(DES MOINES) – Gov. Kim Reynolds announced on Wednesday (today), that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) granted her request to provide assistance in the form of low-interest disaster loans for Polk County, along with seven contiguous counties impacted by the June 6-July 2, 2018, flooding and severe weather event. Homeowners, renters, businesses and most nonprofit organizations in Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Madison, Marion, Polk, Story and Warren counties, whose property was damaged or destroyed by this disaster, will be able to apply for low-interest disaster loans from the SBA.

Applications may be made in person at the SBA’s Disaster Loan Outreach Center located at Polk County River Place, 2309 Euclid Avenue, Des Moines, beginning December 13, 2018, at 8 a.m. Representatives from the SBA will be on hand at the Disaster Loan Outreach Center to answer questions about the disaster loan program, explain the application process and help individuals complete their application. The center’s normal hours of operation will be Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. until further notice. Please note for the holidays, the center closes at 5 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 21 and reopens at 8 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 3. No appointment is necessary.

Applicants may apply online and receive additional disaster assistance information, at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela. Applicants may also call SBA’s Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance.

Governor Kim Reynolds has announced the full list of she calls a “Teachers Cabinet” that she says will give teachers a more prominent voice in education policy in the state. Reynolds announced the first seven members of the cabinet in August and received nomination from the public for the final nine. Included among the cabinet members, from western Iowa, is:

• Alex Oliver, Social Studies Teacher, Riverside High School in Carson, Riverside Community School District, Cross Country, Wrestling and Track Coach
• Denise Hoag, Computer Science Teacher, Thomas Jefferson High School, Council Bluffs Community School District, was previously employed in the corporate world as a computer programmer
• Jodie Geist, Special Education Teacher, Mount Ayr High School, Mount Ayr Community School District, specializes in helping students transition from high school to adult life
• and Vanesa Sanchez, Elementary Dual Language Teacher, Denison Elementary School, Denison Community School District.

The governor says cabinet members will meet quarterly with her and Iowa Department of Education Director Ryan Wise to offer their advice about how to better prepare all students. Reynolds says it will strengthen the direct line of communication between the governor’s office, schools and communities. The first meeting will be January 4th in Des Moines.

A Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputy conducting a traffic stop Tuesday at Highway 6 and 400th Street, arrested a man from Colorado on drug charges. 19-year old Jose Hernandez-Alvarez, of Aurora, CO., was taken into custody at around 9:50-p.m., for Possession of a Controlled Substance (9.8-grams of marijuana)/1st offense, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (1 grinder and 1 pipe). His bond was set at $1,000.

The Cass County Board of Supervisors this (Wednesday) morning, received an annual report from West Central Community Action (WCCA) Interim Executive Director Wendy Mueller, who is also the organization’s Outreach and LiHeap Coordinator. She was appointed to the position following the retirement of long-time Executive Director Joel Dirks. WCCA provides nearly a dozen services to 10 counties in western and southwest Iowa. Mueller thanked the Board for continuing to fund WCCA, which she said allows them “To provide services at the highest level possible,” to Cass County residents. Mueller said during Fiscal Year 2018, WCCA served 667 households in the County, which consisted of more than 1,500 individuals. Of the households served, 44% were single-person. 54-percent had an income below the 100-percent poverty guideline. 66 persons were on a fixed income. 61-percent were renters, and of the individuals served, 41% were between the ages of 18-and 54.

Mueller said also, WCCA operated three Head Start classrooms in the County during FY 2018: one was located in Anita, and two are in Atlantic. They served a total of 45 children. She says they also started an Early Headstart Home-Based program in August, with a capacity of 12 children ages zero-to three. By the end of the fiscal year, seven families had been enrolled in the program. The Child Care Resource and Referral program works with home providers who are either registered or want to become registered, as well as child care centers, to get them involved in the Quality Rating System [QRS], which improves overall child care.

Wendy Mueller said 142 children were enrolled in 15 daycare centers, as part of the Child and Adult Care Food program, which promotes good nutrition and positive eating habits for children who are in home-based daycare. WCCA also helped four households received a total of $69,000 for weatherization services, to improve home energy efficiency. And, through LiHeap, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, WCCA serviced 445 households in the form of utility assistance, for a total cost in Cass County, of nearly $200,000.

Mueller said also, the WIC (Women, Infants and Children) Program, served over 400 participants, provided over $204,000 in WIC certificates, most of which were used in food stores in Cass County. In summation, she said over $1.5-million worth of services were provided through WCCA to Casss County. She asked the Supervisors to consider the organization’s request for funding in the amount of $4,000, which is the same as last year. The Board will take the request under consideration when they begin work on the budget, in January.