United Group Insurance

Nunn Announces 2024 Congressional Art Competition Winners from Griswold, Bondurant, and Centerville

News

May 29th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES — U.S. Representative Zach Nunn (IA-03) has announced the winners of the Iowa Third Congressional District Art Competition. The top three vote receivers from the public voting option will have their art on display in each of the Iowa Third Congressional District offices, and the winner selected by a panel of three art judges will have their art on display in the U.S. Capitol.  The Overall Winner was Blake Foster, with the Griswold High School, for his piece entitled “Through My Eyes,” which will be on display at the United States Capital. Griswold High School Student Kailey Swain was a People’s Choice Award recipient, for her piece entitled “A Walk Through Show Season,” which will be on display at Nunn’s Creston Field Office.

Through My Eyes (Blake Foster)

(Other Art Competition winners are listed below)

Rep. Nunn said “I’m so impressed by the talent displayed in this year’s art competition. In each of the more than sixty submissions, students showcased creativity and perspective. Thank you to every student who participated in this year’s competition. Iowa is a special place, and these amazing students are just some of the many reasons why.”

Other recipients:

Student: Addisyn Marvin 
School: Bondurant-Farrar 
Location of Display: Des Moines Field Office
Name of Artwork: “Iowa’s Daughters”

Student: Noelle Craver 
School: Centerville High School 
Location of Display: Ottumwa Field Office
Name of Artwork: “Circle of Life”

Posted in News |

Iowa State Wrestling Adds Cuban National Osmany Diversent

Sports

May 29th, 2024 by Asa Lucas

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State head wrestling coach Kevin Dresser announced the addition of Cuban national Osmany Diversent to the roster on Tuesday.

“Osmany is an extremely talented and athletic young man,” Dresser said. “We have had some very good results with our recruiting efforts in Cuba in recent years. I’m excited to see how he makes the adjustments from freestyle to folkstyle wrestling.”

Diversent, a 2022 junior Pan-American champion, brings a credentialed freestyle background to Ames. He won 57kg junior titles at the 2021 and 2022 Cuban National Championships before capturing the senior division title in 2023.

At the 2021 Junior Pan-American Games, Diversent defeated Richard Figueroa – a 2024 NCAA Champion for Arizona State – in the semifinals en route to winning gold. Including Figueroa, Diversent owns three victories over wrestlers on Division I rosters – Ryan Miller (Penn) and Jacob Moran (Indiana).

On the senior level circuit at 57kg, Diversent earned bronze at the 2023 Pan-American Games and gold at the Central American and Caribbean Games.

Diversent, a La Habana, Cuba native, becomes the third Cuban national on Iowa State’s roster, joining Anthony Echemendia and Yonger Bastida.

Diversent projects at 125/133 pounds for the Cyclones.

Posted in Sports |

State opens more than 60 summer meal sites for kids

News

May 29th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Iowa Capital Dispatch) – School districts and community groups in Iowa will establish over 60 new meal sites to feed children during the summer, paid for by about $900,000 in grants, the Iowa Department of Education announced In southwest Iowa, the meal sites include those in Bedford, Clarinda, Council Bluffs, Riverside, Carson and Shenandoah.

Growing the Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant is an alternative to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer for Children program, also known as summer EBT, which Gov. Kim Reynolds declined to join.

Iowa Department of Education Director McKenzie Snow said in a statement, “We commend the awardees for their leadership in growing the reach and impact of these programs, providing children with no-cost, healthy meal options in enriching environments this summer and beyond.” State officials said the USDA’s program was not the best way to address food insecurity in the state, citing the estimated $2.2 million price tag in administrative costs for the state and lack of nutritional focus.

In April, Governor Reynolds said “With the Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant, we will expand these well-established programs across our state to ensure Iowa’s youth have meals that are healthy and use local community farms and vendors when possible.” Some Democratic lawmakers and food assistance activists argue more could have been done if Iowa was in the USDA’s program. Luke Elzinga, board chair of the Iowa Hunger Coalition said the program falls flat given the budget surplus and the amount of money summer EBT offered.

(Photo by Amanda Mills/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Around half of the new sites will be at schools with the other half located in libraries, parks, apartments and more. Depending on the site, kids are required to either eat the food there, take it to go or a hybrid of the two. Not all rural areas have a nearby meal site, which presents a barrier to families who don’t have time to drive to meal sites every day, critics point out. Under summer EBT, a parent would receive an EBT card worth $40 per month per child for food assistance at participating stores during the summer.

Officials have yet to release how many of last year’s 500-plus meal sites will return for 2024. Elzinga said that based on the number of sites last year and the new sites this year, he expects about half of school districts will still not have a meal site.

Posted in News |

Tri-Center School District to receive $820K from Biden-Harris Admin./EPA Clean School Bus Program

News

May 29th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

WASHINGTON — As part of its ongoing effort to replace diesel-fueled school buses, the Biden administration today (Wednesday), said it will provide about 530 school districts across nearly all states with almost $1 billion to help them purchase clean school buses. The initiative, part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus Program rebate competition, will give funds to school districts in 47 states and the District of Columbia to help them buy over 3,400 clean school buses. Alaska, Hawaii and Nevada are not part of this round of funding.

In Iowa, seven school districts requested a total of just over $3.17 million to replace a total of 18 buses, according to the White House. Locally, the Tri-Center Community School District is receiving $820,000 towards the purchase of four electric school buses.

Nearly all of the clean school buses purchased will be electric, at 92%, according to the administration. Low-income, rural and tribal communities — accounting for about 45% of the selected projects —  are slated to receive roughly 67% of the total funding, per the administration. The Clean School Bus Program has now collectively awarded nearly $3 billion to fund about 8,500 electric and alternative fuel buses for over 1,000 communities across the United States, according to the administration.

The program started through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, which includes $5 billion over five years to transform the country’s existing school buses with “zero-emission and low-emission models,” per the EPA. Among many negative health and environmental effects, especially for communities of color, diesel exhaust exposure can lead to major health conditions such as asthma and respiratory illnesses, according to the EPA.

Exposure to diesel exhaust can also “worsen existing heart and lung disease, especially in children and the elderly,” the agency said.

Posted in News |

Clarinda Cardinals Baseball Team Sweeps The Atlantic Trojans in Double-Header On Tuesday in Atlantic

Sports

May 29th, 2024 by admin

The Atlantic Trojan baseball team lost both games of their double header by scores of 4-3 and 9-0 Tuesday night against the Clarinda Cardinals. Game one started as a pitching duel as both teams struggled to get base hits. 3 of Clarinda’s four runs came off of errors and Atlantic’s only 3 runs were from errors and wild pitches. Every inning the Cardinals scored, Atlantic would go on to tie until the top of the 7th. When Creighton Tuzzio had an RBI single with two outs to bring in the go ahead run. In the bottom of the seventh Tuzzio was put on the mound and he retired the side with three straight strikeouts to get the win.

In game two the Clarinda got a nice pitching performance by Sophomore starting pitching Jordan Butt who pitched all seven innings while striking out 15 Trojan batters to secure the win for the Cardinals.

Trojans coach Nathan Block talked about their 4-3 loss in game one.

Coach Block talked about 9-0 loss in game two, despite playing few guys at different positions on defense due to injuries.

Clarinda will improve their record to 3-0 overall and 3-0 record in the Hawkeye Ten Conference, they will host Red Oak on Wednesday. With the two losses for Trojans, that will give them a 1-4 overall record and 1-3 in the Hawkeye Ten Conference and travel to take on St. Albert on Thursday.

Posted in Sports |

High School State Girls Soccer Tournament results from Tuesday May 28th

Sports

May 29th, 2024 by admin

Class 1A

  • Dike-New Hartford 1, Assumption 0
  • Nevada 2, Hudson 1
  • Denver 3, St. Albert 1
  • Treynor 3, Bishop Heelan 1

Class 2A

  • North Polk 3, Lewis Central 2
  • Pella 4, Iowa City Liberty 2
  • North Scott 2, Waverly-Shell Rock 1
  • Dallas Center-Grimes 4, Xavier 1

Class 3A

  • Waukee Northwest 3, Ankeny Centennial 2
  • Valley 2, Linn-Mar 0
  • Bettendorf 7, Pleasant Valley 1
  • Ankeny 3 Waukee 0

Posted in Sports |

High School Softball results from Tuesday May 28th

Sports

May 29th, 2024 by admin

Hawkeye Ten 

  • Clarinda 6, Atlantic 4
  • Atlantic 11, Clarinda 1
  • Glenwood 10, Denison-Schleswig 0
  • Glenwood 16, Denison-Schleswig 0
  • Creston 12, Harlan 0
  • Creston 7, Harlan 0
  • Lewis Central 14, Red Oak 4
  • Lewis Central 12, Red Oak 0
  • Shenandoah 3, St. Albert 2
  • Shenandoah 13, St. Albert 1
  • Kuemper Catholic 6, Carroll 1

Western Iowa Conference

  • Missouri Valley 10, IKM-Manning 0
  • Riverside 10, Tri-Center 0

Rolling Valley Conference 

  • Logan-Magnolia 13, CAM 3
  • Glidden-Ralston 14, Alta-Aurelia  11

Corner Conference

  • Griswold 19, Sidney 0
  • Fremont-Mills 9, Stanton 2

Raccoon River Conference

  • Waukee Northwest 3, North Polk 1
  • Indianola 6, Ballard 4
  • Boone 16, Saydel 6
  • Norwalk 2, ADM 0
  • Kuemper Catholic 6, Carroll 1
  • Gilbert 6, Pella 4
  • Winterset 4, Dallas Center-Grimes 2
  • Bondurant-Farrar 6, Clarke 0

Pride of Iowa Conference 

  • Bedford 12, Southwest Valley 2
  • Wayne 14, Central Decatur 0
  • Southeast Warren 17, East Union 0
  • Mount Ayr 8, Lenox 6

West Central Activities Conference

  • Ogden 11, ACGC 8
  • Woodward-Granger 11, West Central Valley 9
  • Earlham 6, Pleasantville 0

Posted in Sports |

High School Baseball results from Tuesday May 28th

Sports

May 29th, 2024 by admin

Hawkeye Ten 

  • Clarinda 4, Atlantic 3
  • Clarinda 9, Atlantic 0
  • Glenwood 13, Denison-Schleswig 3
  • Glenwood 7, Denison-Schleswig 3
  • Creston 2, Harlan 1
  • Harlan 12, Creston 1
  • Lewis Central 12, Red Oak 5
  • Lewis Central 12, Red Oak 2
  • St. Albert 12, Shenandoah 5
  • Shenandoah 2, St. Albert 1

Western Iowa Conference

  • IKM-Manning 8, Missouri Valley 7
  • Underwood 16, Audubon 4
  • Tri-Center 7, Riverside 2

Rolling Valley Conference 

  • Logan-Magnolia 9, CAM 5
  • Woodbine 11, Alta-Aurelia 1

Corner Conference 

  • East Mills 21, Essex 0
  • Griswold 4, Sidney 3
  • Stanton 25, Fremont-Mills 9

Raccoon River Conference

  • ADM 2, Perry 1
  • Carlisle 7, Centerville 1
  • Dallas Center-Grimes 15, Winterset 0
  • Norwalk 4, Ballard 2
  • Saydel 5, Boone 4
  • Gilbert 7, Pella 1

Pride of Iowa Conference 

  • Wayne 14, Central Decatur 1
  • Lenox 11, Mount Ayr 1
  • Southeast Warren 8, East Union 0
  • Southwest Valley 17, Bedford 7

West Central Activities Conference

  • Ogden 12, ACGC 5
  • Panorama 3, Madrid 2
  • Pleasantville 11, Earlham 1
  • Woodward-Granger 5, West Central Valley 1
  • Van Meter 12, Greene County 4

Posted in Sports |

Showcase lets Iowa high school performers shine on statewide stage

News

May 29th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) – Hundreds of Iowa high school theater students from dozens of schools are in central Iowa today (Wednesday), rehearsing on the big stage at the Des Moines Civic Center for tomorrow night’s final performance. The annual Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards Showcase is being hosted by Broadway actress Ryann Redmond. She says there will be production numbers, lots of singing and dancing, classic musicals and new pop rock musicals.

Organizers say the showcase celebrates the achievements of Iowa’s young musical theater artists, and creates visibility and support for high school musical theater programs. The showcase will begin at 7 P-M Thursday and it’ll be livestreamed online statewide through Iowa P-B-S.

Posted in News |

A $3.5 million settlement for family of ISU rower who died in 2021

News

May 29th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Radio Iowa) -The Ames Tribune reports court documents show Iowa’s attorney general is recommending that Iowa State University and the State of Iowa pay a three-and-a-half MILLION dollar settlement to the family of an I-S-U sophomore who died in a rowing accident. Two members of the Iowa State Crew Club died three years ago when their boat capsized during windy conditions on Little Wall Lake, which is about 18 miles north of Ames.

The parents of Yaakov Ben-David filed a wrongful death lawsuit and the proposed settlement must be approved by a three-member state panel. I-S-U freshman Derek Nanni was the other student who drowned in March of 2021 and the state paid a two MILLION dollar settlement to his parents two years ago.

Posted in News |