Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports three people were arrested last week on warrants. 49-year old Kevin Eugene Stark, of Adair, was arrested Oct. 12th at the Polk County Jail on an Adair County warrant for Possession of a Controlled Substance/ 3rd or subsequent offense, and on warrants for Driving While Barred (2 counts). Stark was being held without bond in the Adair County Jail.

29-year old Seth Robert Lee Baker, of Stuart, was arrested Oct. 12th, also at the Polk County Jail. Baker was wanted on an Adair County warrant for Assault Causing Bodily Injury or Mental Illness. He was released on Oct. 13th after posting a $1,000 bond or surety.

And, 25-year old Haley Nicole Hamler, of Knoxville, was arrested Oct. 13th in Marion County, on an Adair County warrant for Violation of Probation. Her bond was set at $5,000.

The Harlan Police Department reports the arrest on Oct. 14th, of 18-year old Juan Carlos Andrew Lara Juaraz, of Harlan. Juaraz was arrested following a traffics top and transported to the Shelby County Jail, where he was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was also charge with failure to hold a valid driver’s license.

Harlan Police also issued separate citations to three individuals. 20-year old Kelsie Michele Kleffman, of Harlan, was cited Oct. 10th, for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and speeding. 23-year old Brandon Lee Anderson, of Harlan, was cited Oct. 16th for driving while suspended, and 26-year old Jessica Rae Borquez, of Harlan, was cited for driving while suspended, Oct. 9th.

Harlan Police report also, there were non-injury accidents that took place Oct. 11th, 12th, 13th and 16th.

The Griswold School Board, Monday, discussed their enrollment numbers. Superintendent Dave Henrichs said the certified numbers are down. The certified enrollment [resident students regardless of where they attend school] was 505.9, down 10.69 from a year ago. The BEDS enrollment students that are served everyday regardless of where they live] was 478.8, which was down 8.29. Those numbers were not unexpected, according to Henrichs. BEDS is the Basic Educational Data Survey. Henrichs said as they went through the bond referendum process, they told the public the numbers were expected to drop 15 students in each of the next three years, so they are ahead of what was projected.

The Board tabled action on Backpack restriction, opting instead to have further research conducted. The Griswold School Board also approved a request with regard to girls basketball practice procedures. The girls basketball coach asked if the 8^th grade girls could practice with other athletes, and it was approved, but left as an option and up to the discretion of Athletic Director Katie Elwood. It would not be mandatory.

Henrichs said a meeting will be held 2-p.m. Wednesday (Oct. 18^th) with regard to the facilities project and the budget. He said also no decisions will be made on the purchase of a replacement van or suburban for an older model that’s experiencing costly mechanical issues. The Board did approve the specs to be sent out to bid.

The Griswold Board he says, hired Haley Tryon as a 1:1 elementary level para-educator, Amy Hook was hired as assistant high school girls basketball coach, and they approved the resignation of Bob Amos as assistant high school wrestling coach, but he will remain as a volunteer. Henrichs also wanted to recognize Farm Credit Services of America. They donated $6,000 to the Griswold FFA for their Greenhouse Project. The greenhouse hoops are up. The next phase is to install the siding.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of a Corning man Tuesday. At 8:00am Deputies arrested 41-year-old Daniel Bright of Corning for Driving While Revoked.  He was taken to the Adams County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.

Members of the CAM School Board met Monday for about 45 minutes. On their short agenda, was the topic of open enrollment applications. Superintendent Dr. Casey Berlau said unlike other districts, CAM has seen an increase in enrollment and in the student body as a whole. Their certified numbers to the State show an increase of eight students, but within the buildings, the number is up to 19.

Berlau said also, the CAM School Board approved a request to purchase weight room equipment for the Massena School, which will be used by athletes, PE teachers and their students. The Board also approved some coaching contracts.

The Audubon School District Board of Education held their regular monthly meeting Monday night. Superintendent Brett Gibbs told KJAN News the Board took a look at their policy concerning Foreign Exchange Students He says as the District has gotten smaller there’s been concern about the number of students they’re getting. There were three students this year, which amounts to 10-percent of the Senior Class. There’s also the matter of timing, as some have started 2-3 weeks after school began.

Enrollment numbers, as projected, are down in the Audubon District, as they are in many area school districts, but there is some good news on the horizon. He said this will be their smallest year, but the biggest classes are in the Elementary. The two smallest classes are Juniors and Seniors, so it appears there will be some slow growth in class sizes. He said also they looked at the FY17-18 financial statements. The sharing dollars (Harlan  Coon Rapids) are starting to show-up in their budget, which is helping the bottom line. Coon Rapids has seen an increase of 14 or so students in the Certified Enrollment to the State. Gibbs said the School Board Monday,  set goal-setting and performance indicators for Fiscal Year 2018. Their goals, he said, were the same as last year. More importantly, he said, they took a closer look at some of the indicators that show progress that’s being made toward their goals, and made adjustments as necessary.”

The District he said they starting setting Board goals about four or five-years ago. It’s something that’s helped the District stay focused on their priorities and not get side-tracked by other issues that may arise. That’s especially true when it comes to professional development and funding priorities. The Audubon School Board also held the first reading of the District’s Wellness Policy, which is important in light of a recent change in policy by the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB). They also have a site visit this Spring from the State of Iowa Food Service, so they wanted to make sure the Wellness Policy was up to date.”

Gibbs said they had a site visit recently, with regard to the District’s 21^st Century Afterschool Program. This is the first full-year for the Summer and Afterschool program but second year of funding. He said the visit last Friday went very well. There are more than 40 K-4^th grade students participating in the afterschool program that runs from 3:30-p.m. to 6:30-p.m. Monday through Friday. The kids and community benefit from the program, because the kids never leave the school, there’s time for homework, physical activity, and STEM-based learning.)

The District received a $100,000 for the two programs.

WARREN COUNTY — An Indianola man was injured while climbing into his tree stand on Sunday while deer hunting. Officials with the Iowa DNR said today (Tuesday), 24-year old Bobbie Joe Stephens fell approximately 23-feet into a ravine while hunting on private land in southern Warren County. He had not been able to hook up to his harness at the time of the fall. He was able to call a hunting partner for help after falling.

Stephens was taken to a Des Moines area hospital and was treated for broken ankle. Further investigation revealed the tree stand straps were broken due to weather exposure over time. The tree stand had been left up since last season. The DNR reminds hunters if you leave your tree stand out year-round, be sure to check the straps before using the tree stand.

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Documents say employees maintained a secret waiting list of veterans for some Omaha mental health appointments. The Omaha World-Herald reports that a compliance officer’s memo to the director of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System says the list dodged VA requirements for establishing and maintaining waiting lists. The compliance officer’s audit included two whistleblower complaints made about lists for appointments at the VA’s mental health psychotherapy clinic in Omaha.

The VA acknowledges the audit but won’t answer questions about it. It also says no veterans were harmed. The VA set up strict requirements for establishing waiting lists following a 2014 scandal that showed VA employees were covering up chronic delays with false paperwork and secret lists.

A man from Union County was arrested Monday afternoon on a warrant out of Nebraska. Creston Police arrested 29-year old Christopher Woolums, of Creston, on a Sarpy County, NE., warrant for Violation of Probation, on an original, Possession of a Controlled Substance, charge. Woolums was being held in the Union County Jail pending extradition to NE.

And, a Creston man reported to Police Monday morning, that someone had stolen property from his home valued at $1,500 altogether. The incident at a residence in the 600 block of Grand Avenue, took place sometime between August 1st and Oct. 13th. The missing items included a gold watch, 2 teeth with gold fillings, and a prayer blanket.