Atlantic Community School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Amstein, Tuesday, thanked a local business and organization for their generous support of education in the district. Amstein acknowledged 1st Whitney Bank and Trust for their contribution of $37,500 towards the district’s 1-to-1 computer initiative which puts leased Apple Macbook laptop computers into the students’ hands as a learning tool beginning with the upcoming school year. The bank has pledged a total of $50,000 toward the first phase of the project.)

The 1:1 (One-to-One) program will cost more than $625,650 over the course of four-years. During Tuesday night’s School Board meeting, Amstein also acknowledged the support of the Atlantic Education Foundation. He said they donated funds to purchase a laser engraver for the Industrial Tech program at the high school. The engraver cost around $20,000.

Amstein said also, Camblin Mechanical, the Association of Builders and Contractors, and A-H-S Principal Heather McKay, are in talks to bring a Career Tech Education course in Plumbing, to the high school. He said if that happens, it will likely be the first such course in the State of Iowa. The initial class would focus on safety, use of tools and the basic components of plumbing. Students who complete the first class will receive their OSHA Safety Certificate, which is required by many employers in the mechanical and plumbing field.

In other news, Amstein said he received word from the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) that they would like to receive a short presentation from a representative of the district to be made at the IASB’s convention in November about the Lindamood Bell Reading and Comprehension Program the district has been using, and that the IASB is highly impressed with the results Atlantic has experienced with the program.

During the convention, a representative of the district will sit in on a panel that focuses on poverty and strategies districts use to aid in students’ learning and comprehension.

w/ Ric Hanson

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An Amber Alert was issued late last night for three eastern Iowa girls. All three were found, safe, in the Waterloo area, but the man who allegedly snatched them is still on the loose. Thirty-six-year-old Shaun Hogan is accused of taking the girls in a red, four-door Pontiac Grand Am with an Iowa license plate of 832 YPC.

Shaun Hogan

Hogan is described as being a black male, standing about six-foot-three and weighing 250 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes. Authorities say he should be considered dangerous. It’s believed that the girls were taken at about 3:00 yesterday afternoon. Waterloo Police say they were found safe last night, and the Amber Alert was cancelled about an hour after it was issued. Investigators indicate that the girls are the daughters of a woman found dead near the Linn County town of Walker yesterday.

If you have any information about the whereabouts of Shaun Hogan, you’re asked to call local law enforcement, or to contact the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation by calling 515-443-3014.

(Radio Iowa)

MOUNT AYR, Iowa (AP) – A 51-year-old Missouri man has been talked into putting down a shotgun and surrendering to authorities in southwest Iowa’s Ringgold County. The Des Moines Register says Randy Longstreath, of Bethany, Missouri, was arrested around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday after a six-hour standoff south of Mount Ayr.

The sheriff’s office says Longstreath had gone to the home where his estranged wife, stepson and another adult male were staying. The sheriff’s office says Longstreath fired the shotgun and threatened everyone in the home.  The people all escaped without harm before a SWAT team and negotiator arrived. The negotiator eventually persuaded Longstreath to surrender.

Court records say Longstreath faces charges that include domestic abuse assault, harassment, burglary and going armed with intent.

Iowans with an Iowa neurologist’s clearance to take cannabis oil to treat chronic epilepsy will go to the Iowa D-O-T to get a card which will shield them from drug possession charges in Iowa. The Iowa Department of Public Health has unveiled its proposed rules for implementing the new state law passed by legislators and the governor this spring. Deborah Thompson, the legislative liason for the department, says while her agency will process the paperwork and determine who is eligible, the D-O-T will hand out the cards because there’s a D-O-T licensing outlet in each of Iowa’s 99 counties.

“To bring people that have this debilitating disease to Des Moines may cause more headaches than it’s worth,” Thompson says. “They have a system also that enables them to connect with law enforcement and the law enforcement folks can, the way they would with any of our IDs, drivers licenses, they have a connection to the DOT’s system that allows them to see more details than a card provides for.” The cards can be issued to adults who have an Iowa neurologist’s recommendation to use cannabis oil to treat their “intractible” epilepsy. The parents or guardians of children with the condition can also apply for the card. Thompson says the new law was fairly specific about what hoops were required to qualify for the cards and her agency’s proposed rules follow those guidelines, including a requirement that other treatment options have been tried first before opting for cannabis oil.

“The neurologist will then send the completed application, including the written recommendation, directly to the Department of Public,” Thompson says. “We thought this would marginalize the opportunity for fraudulent behaviors if we got it directly from the neurologist’s office.” Staff in the Iowa Department of Public Health will review the applicant, then notify the D-O-T if it has been approved and a card may be issued. There is no Iowa site that dispenses the cannabis oil, so caregivers will have to go out of state to get the product. The rules were discussed during Wednesday’s Iowa Board of Health meeting in Iowa City. The board will vote on the rules at its September meeting. A legislative committee will also have a chance to review the rules before they take effect.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa State Fair will feature a “Field of Dreams” butter sculpture this year along with its iconic butter cow. Fair officials say the sculpture will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Iowa-based movie filmed at the Lansing Family Farm in Dyersville. The molded butter sculpture will depict aspects of baseball and Iowa’s farmlands. It will join the butter cow in a 40-degree cooler.

The fair will also offer a new interactive exhibit called “Farm with Us.” It will include bushels of corn and soybeans for people to touch and an interactive digital screen. This year’s fair will be held Aug. 7-17.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Governor Terry Branstad has issued a disaster emergency proclamation for seven Iowa counties in response to recent storms and flooding. The counties covered are Audubon, Grundy, Ida, Jasper, Keokuk, Poweshiek and Washington. The governor is also asking the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assess 20 counties that were hit hard by storms last month.

WELLMAN, Iowa (AP) — A former business manager for an eastern Iowa school district has been accused of stealing about $8,00 through an employee credit card. The Mid-Prairie School District says Cindy Steege of North Liberty faces theft charges in connection to unauthorized charges on the card. School officials say they contacted authorities last month after finding possible financial irregularities.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A boy who ran away from a Dubuque juvenile facility has been hospitalized after he stole a county road department pickup truck and crashed it into a utility pole. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the boy left Hillcrest Family Services and took the truck yesterday afternoon. Police say the boy suffered minor injuries in the crash.

FAIRFIELD, Iowa (AP) — Part of an old building in eastern Iowa has been torn down over concerns it might collapse. The Fairfield Fire Department says it responded to an emergency call Tuesday about the structural integrity of the building. Businesses and apartments near the building were temporarily evacuated. An excavating company came in and tore down some of the structure to avoid potential injuries.

Gov. Terry Branstad, Wednesday, issued a proclamation of disaster emergency for seven counties in response to the ongoing flooding and severe weather beginning June 26, 2014, temporarily lifted certain transportation weight restrictions and requested the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to conduct assessments in 20 counties impacted by the June 26 and continuing storms.

Counties included in this most recent disaster proclamation are Audubon, Grundy, Ida, Jasper, Keokuk, Poweshiek and Washington. The governor’s proclamation allows State resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of these storms.

In addition, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEMD) made a request Wednesday to FEMA, to conduct damage assessments in 20 counties impacted by the June 26 and continuing storms. The damage assessments, which will primarily cover public infrastructure, will be conducted jointly by FEMA, HSEMD and local officials. Results of the damage assessments could be used to determine if a request for a Presidential Disaster Declaration is warranted. Damage assessments will be conducted in the following counties: Audubon, Black Hawk, Butler, Cedar, Des
Moines, Grundy, Hamilton, Hardin, Ida, Iowa, Jackson, Jasper, Johnson, Jones, Lee,
Linn, Louisa, Mahaska, Muscatine and Poweshiek.

This is the fourth such request that HSEMD has made to FEMA to conduct damage assessments as a result of June severe weather.

Emergency crews were called to the scene of a head-on collision Wednesday afternoon, southeast of Walnut. The accident happened at around 4:25-p.m. on 530th near the intersection with Sumac Road in Pottawattamie County. Multiple injuries were reported, along with victims trapped. LifeNet responded to the scene along with Walnut Rescue and Medivac Ambulance. Two people were in each vehicle.

Three of the victims were transported from the scene. Two of them went to the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic. Another was flown to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha. Family members say two women were in one vehicle. One of the vehicles was driven by Leah Jenkins, of Atlantic. Her sister says Leah suffered from several broken bones and other, unspecified injuries, but was expected to make a full recovery. A passenger in the car suffered from scrapes and bruises. Both women were wearing their seat belts.

The status of a victim in the other vehicle is not available, while the fourth person was not injured. The names of the other accident victims have not officially been released.

The accident remains under investigation by the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office.