(Atlantic, Iowa) – The City of Atlantic’s Planning and Zoning Commission is set to meet 5:30-p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 10th, in the City Council’s Chambers, at City Hall. The only item of regular business on their agenda is the City’s Zoning Ordinance.

Zoning Administrator John Lund says the Commission will hear from SWIPCO (Southwest Iowa Planning Council) Community Development Specialist Danielle Briggs, who will provide “Feedback on land use planning and methods to correct issues the City is confronting as a community, that can be corrected through the Zoning Ordinance.”

Following a review and further discussion, the Commission is expected to formulate a recommendation to the City Council for their consideration and possible action.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Board of Supervisors in Montgomery County, Tuesday (Sept. 10), will receive a report from Emergency Management Director Brian Hamman, with regard to a county-owned, 300-foot tall communications tower near Villisca, which was toppled over during a tornado event that took place May 21st.

During a Supervisor’s meeting last June, Hamman said planning was underway for a new tower at that site–including new footings to replace those that were damaged by the old tower’s removal during the week of June 17th.

In other business, the Montgomery County Supervisors are expected to draw lots and pass a Resolution to establish a County Compensation Board. A bill (Senate File 2442) passed by the Iowa Legislature and signed into law by Governor Reynolds, changed the method of determining county officials’ wages, and included the elimination of county compensation boards as of July 1, 2024. The Montgomery County Supervisors discussed and agreed to reinstate the Compensation Board, and, as recommend by ISAC (Iowa State Association of Counties) hold a drawing of lots with regard to terms of the Supervisors who are represented on that Board.

The Board of Supervisors are also expected to set Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024 at 8:45-a.m., as the date and time for a Public Hearing on the Vacating of all of the unimproved Walnut Street as described in the Amended plat of the unincorporated Town of Hawthorne.

The Board’s  meeting begins at 8:30-a.m.

View the complete agenda here: AGENDA 9-10-2024 Regular a

(Anita, Iowa) – A Public Hearing will be held Monday (Sept. 9) in Anita, just prior to the CAM School Board’s regular monthly meeting. The hearing, which is slated to be held at 6:30-p.m. in the CAM High School Media Center, is with regard to a proposed extension of school bus route times.

Later on, during the regular meeting of the Board, they will act on approving an extension of the bus route times. CAM Superintendent Paul Croghan has said the extension is to be in compliance with bus route times. The bus routes typically come in at under an hour, but there is a 15-minute shuttle bus, and the extension is intended to bring that bus route into compliance with the other, regular routes.

CAM logo

In other business, the CAM School Board will act on any resignations to come before them, as well as any new hires/contracts. Another agenda item, is approval of a Daycare Agreement. The daycare is part of the former north elementary building.

The full agenda can be viewed here: September 9, 2024, CAM Board Agenda

(Washington, D-C) – On her fourth trip to stand with Israel since the October 7 attacks, U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), co-chair of the Abraham Accords Caucus, returned to the Middle East with U.S. Representatives Jim Banks (R-Ind.), John Curtis (R-Utah), and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-Iowa) to help move a deal forward that ensures the survival of Israel, destroys Hamas’ ability to reconstitute in the region, and brings the American hostages home.

According to a press release, “After the heartbreaking news of the murder of Hersh Goldberg-Polin at the hands of Iran-backed Hamas, Ernst reiterated even greater urgency to bring home Americans still held by Iran-backed Hamas.”

Senator Ernst said:

“Every second counts when Americans are being held by Iran-backed Hamas. On my fourth trip to Israel since October 7, this delegation’s mission was clear: pave a way to bring our citizens home and decimate Iran-backed Hamas. As leaders throughout the region expressed that the Biden-Harris administration’s actions have created confusion about America’s loyalties and leadership, even while the Iranian regime’s proxies are holding and murdering our countrymen, the need for our work became more evident. We must keep working on a deal that ensures the forever survival of Israel, destroys Hamas’ ability to reconstitute in the region, and releases our hostages. During this visit, we pressed regional officials to use their leverage to secure such a deal.

“While Biden and Harris waffle in their support and betray our greatest ally in the Middle East, I will not waver until every American is returned home and Iran-backed terrorists are destroyed.”

In Israel, the delegation met with Prime Minister Netanyahu (Photo supplied by Ernst’s office)

Representative Banks said:

“The tragic news earlier this week that Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American, was one of the six hostages executed by Hamas underscores the urgency of our delegation’s ultimate goal: to reestablish American leadership so we can bring our hostages home, help Israel protect itself, and eliminate Iran-backed Hamas and Hezbollah. The weak and wavering leadership from the Biden-Harris administration has been ineffective in achieving that goal. Thank you to Senator Ernst for leading this important trip.”

Representative Curtis said:

“My visits to Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and Qatar are a stark reminder of the urgent need to bring the hostages home and for a peaceful resolution in the Middle East. As I return to my safe home, I pray for a solution that ends the fighting, brings stability to the region, eradicates antisemitism, and allows Jews and Arabs to prosper together.”

Representative Miller-Meeks said:

“Following Hamas’s unprovoked, heinous invasion of Israel on Oct 7, we have been diligently meeting with families and Heads of State to advocate for the release of all hostages still being held in Hamas captivity. Hamas’s recent murder of six hostages, including American citizen Hersh Goldberg Polin, is yet another tragedy that underscores the brutality of this terrorist organization. We will continue to forcefully push for the release of all the hostages.”

(Des Moines, Iowa) – Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress results for spring 2024, show that the state has reached or surpassed pre-pandemic proficiency levels in English language arts and mathematics The Iowa Capital Dispatch says tests results from the Spring 2024 assessment released Friday by the Iowa Department of Education, determined whether students in 3rd through 11th grade were meeting proficiency standards in the two subjects, in compliance with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act.

In the release on spring results, education department officials wrote that overall results showed some long-term progress for most grades, while results “do not show meaningful progress in most grade levels” for mathematics by remaining steady in comparison to previous years.

For English language arts (ELA), proficiency rates improved or remained steady in all assessed grades, with the exception of 3rd grade, in comparison to the previous year. Proficiencies increased across five grades — 4th through 8th.

(Photo illustration via Canva)

When looking at long-term results, the department found the largest increases in ELA scores for grades for 6th through 8th grade students’ proficiency in comparison to 2019 scores, rising between 8 and 9 percentage points. However, proficiency rates have decreased since 2019 for third grade students, as well as those in 9-11th grade.

In mathematics, proficiency increased in comparison to 2019 results for grades 3, 5, 6 and 8, with the highest improvement coming for 3rd grade students with a 5 percentage point increase. Results for 7th and 11th grade students remained at the same rate, while students in 9th grade saw the biggest drop of 7% fewer students proficient in 2024 compared to 2019. Grades 4 and 10 saw proficiency rates drop by a percentage point over the five-year period.

Overall, most mathematics proficiency rates show “relatively little to no growth across most grades when compared to last year,” according to the department news release, with grades only increasing or decreasing by 1 or 2 percentage points.

The results also showed that significant proficiency gaps remain among students with disabilities and students who are English language learners in both of the assessment areas. English language learners had an average proficiency difference across all assessed grade levels of 53% in English language arts and 45 percentage points in comparison to the overall student results, while students with disabilities saw differences of 45% in English language arts and 41% in mathematics.

During the 2024 legislative session, test results were cited as a motivation to pass the law proposed by Gov. Kim Reynolds making significant changes to Iowa’s Area Education Agencies system providing support for children with special needs in Iowa schools.  A report released by the Guidehouse consulting firm said the state spent more per-pupil on special education funding than the national average, but that students with disabilities performed below the national average on assessments. However, AEA supporters and education advocates argued the report cited misleading information.

In addition to efforts to change special education provisions in Iowa schools, the Iowa Department of Education said in the Friday news release the state is working to improve proficiency rates by adopting new academic standards for both of the tested subjects, approved by the Iowa State Board of Education. The department also provided professional learning opportunities for implementing the new standards over the summer for nearly 2,000 mathematics educators and more than 1,300 English language arts educators, according to the release.

UPDATED: SUSPECT IS IN CUSTODY

Previous report…

(Carlisle, Iowa) – Police in the central Iowa town of Carlisle are asking for the public’s help in locating a suspect believed to be connected to the robbery of the First Interstate Bank in Carlisle, Friday afternoon. Authorities have identified 27-year-old Kevin Jeffrey Seay as the suspect. (Photos below are from the Carlisle Police Dept. Facebook page)

Seay was last known driving a 2016 gray Chevrolet Cruze- Iowa plate LHS 472. Police said Seay is aware that police are searching for him. The man should be considered armed and dangerous. If you have any information regarding his location, please call 911!

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Authorities in Montgomery County report two separate arrests. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department says 65-year-old Daniel Mark Sempek, of Elliott, was arrested on a warrant out of Pottawattamie County, for OWI/1st Offense. Sempek was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 bond.

And, police in Red Oak Police report 31-year-old Dallas Eugene Davis was arrested a little after 6-p.m., Friday, for Violating a No-Contact order. Davis was being held without bond, in the Montgomery County Jail.