A documentary about school consolidation in Iowa will premiere this week on Iowa Public Television. The one-hour program was produced by the Des Moines Register, which compiled a yearlong series on the issue. Register journalist Jason Clayworth says the story is essentially about rural decay. “This is really a story about some seismic demographic changes in Iowa and the consequences they’ve had on, specifically, rural communities in the state,” Clayworth said.

The documentary, titled “Lost Schools,” follows a pair of communities over a one year period. That includes the town of Corwith, as its residents voted to close the Corwith Wesley LuVerne School District. “The other community we focused on was the town of Gowrie, where the Prairie Valley School District and the Southeast Webster Grand School District, for the first time, whole-grade shared their middle and high schools,” Clayworth said.

The two stories highlight the sadness of the loss of a school and the struggles people face when consolidating schools.  “So, really, it was emotional for both communities because we’re talking about great change,” Clayworth said. “A school is something in a community that is very personal for the residents because parents and grandparents, in many cases, have all attended these schools.”

Lost Schools will premiere on Iowa Public Television this Thursday (October 22) at 7 p.m. The program will also air on Sunday (October 25) at 1 p.m.

(Radio Iowa)

Firefighters from Griswold were paged-out just before 4-a.m. today (Monday), to help crews from the Elliott Fire Department battle a fully engulfed shed fire. The blaze was occurring at 53890 Pioneer Trail, which is northeast of Elliott.  No other information was immediately available.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — A central Iowa-based autism center has expanded its services in northeast Iowa, a move that one family says will help them better communicate with a three-year-old boy. Cedar Rapids television station KCRG reports the Homestead is celebrating its grand opening in Cedar Falls on Wednesday though the facility has been open for several weeks.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of stealing a taxi after he was discharged from a Des Moines hospital says he didn’t want to walk home. Des Moines police say 26-year-old Luis Orellana-Rivera drove off with the vehicle shortly after he was released from Mercy Medical Center around 6 a.m. on Friday. The unoccupied taxi had the key in the ignition at the time.

LECLAIRE, Iowa (AP) — The driver of a motorcycle has been injured in eastern Iowa following a crash with a recreational vehicle. The Scott County Sheriff’s Office says the Harley-Davidson motorcycle was traveling in rural LeClaire on Saturday afternoon when the driver attempted to a pass a RV backing into a private driveway. The motorcycle driver struck the RV and was thrown off the bike.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — Authorities are looking for an inmate accused of failing to return to an Iowa correction facility following an approved leave of absence. The Linn County Sheriff’s Office says 31-year-old Blake Lyon was on a 30-hour court-ordered furlough from the county’s correction center when he failed to return on Saturday.

The Griswold School Board will hold its regular monthly meeting following a work session Monday evening, in the Central Office of the Middle School/High School Building. The work session, which begins at 5-p.m., will cover Financial Planning and Board Goals.

During their regular session, the Griswold School Board will act on Security bids, following a receipt of updated information. They’ll also act on approving a plethora of Board Policies. Information will be presented under New Business, with regard to SINA [School In Need of Assistance], and with regard to the first reading of Board series 200 Policies.

A 10-year old girl is reported to be in stable condition after they were struck by a passing train, Sunday afternoon, in Council Bluffs. According to Bluffs Police, officers and fire department personnel responded to the scene at S. 13th Street and 4th Avenue, at around 12:24-p.m.

Officers found the girl, who was suffering from head injuries, conscious and alert, lying in the median between two sets of train tracks that run parallel to each other. Medics transported the child to an Omaha trauma center. The child’s identity was not released.

A preliminary investigation indicated that the girl attempted to cross the tracks after one train had passed, and was struck by a second train that had been traveling in the same direction.

The Council Bluffs Police Department’s Traffic Unit and the Union Pacific Rail Road are investigating this accident. If anyone witnessed this accident, please call the CBPD Traffic Unit at 712-328-4948.