(Radio Iowa) – A Princeton University study of Iowa’s state-funded accounts for students in about half of Iowa’s private schools has found tuition rates for kindergarteners went up between 21 and 25 percent more than kindergarten tuition in Nebraska’s private schools. Democrats say the study shows the taxpayer-funded accounts are a windfall for private schools. House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst, of Windsor Heights, says the state spent 180 million dollars on the program this year. “Fifty-four percent of the vouchers so far have gone to 10 counties,” Konfrst says, “so how is this helping rural Iowa?”

Senate President Amy Sinclair, a Republican from Allerton, is an advocate of Iowa’s Educational Savings Accounts program. She says private school tuition increases are likely due to inflation. “I think those tuition increases would have occurred regardless of an Education Savings Account scholarship when you have over the course of the last three years cumulative inflation of about 20%, those costs impact non-public schools,” Sinclair says. The Princeton study found tuition in dozens of Iowa private schools for students in first through 12th grades went up 10 to 16 percent. Sinclair says the study is deeply flawed because researchers were unable to get information about tuition rates for all of Iowa’s private K-through-12 schools.

“The interesting thing about that study is that it does indicate that most of the non-public schools are still below the cost per pupil that public schools are spending on a student,” Sinclair says. Sinclair and Konfrst made their comments during recent appearances on “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S. The 2024 Iowa legislature approved a two-and-a-half percent increase in general state funding for Iowa’s public schools, along with funding to raise starting salaries for public school teachers to 50-thousand dollars within two years.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill co-authored by Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson that seeks to prevent stillbirths passed the House on 408-3 vote. Emily Price, the executive director of Healthy Birth Day, joined Hinson to talk about the bill. She says stillbirths are an epidemic. “The annual number of deaths far exceeds the top five leading causes of deaths among children ages zero to 14 years combined that includes unintentional injuries congenital anomalies preterm birth homicide SIDS and heart disease,” Price says. Stillbirth is defined as the loss of a baby at 20 weeks or more during pregnancy. Healthy Birth Day created the Count the Kicks campaign with the help of Iowa woman to track the movement of babies to help prevent still births.

“Five Iowa women who all lost daughters to stillbirth in the early 2000s wanted to keep other families from enjoying the same tragedy they endured, she says. The organizations says the stillbirth rate in dropped by nearly 32 percent in the first ten years of the campaign. Congresswoman Hinson says the bill will free up federal funds for research into causes for stillbirths and prevention programs and will be addressing maternal care deserts in rural parts of Iowa. “We’ve been making an effort to get more midwives certified so they can help provide some of that emergency care before they may have a chance to get to a hospital,” Hinson says.

Rep. Hinson speaking on the House floor (file photo)

The Republican Congresswoman says this is especially critical in Iowa, which ranks last in access to O-B care according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “I’ve heard from women in rural Iowa who must drive over an hour to see their O-B-G-Y-N or visit the nearest maternal ward or hospital. And they struggle to find that quality care that they need during their pregnancy,” she says. The bill now goes to the Senate.

DES MOINES, Iowa — [KCCI] Des Moines police have arrested a suspect who is accused of stealing an SUV with a baby in the back seat. “Parents stepped away for a second. Somebody jumped in the car and took it, “said Sgt. Paul Parizek, Des Moines police Department. A 2015 Mercedes-Benz GL 350 was reported stolen Friday morning in the 2300 block of Ingersoll Avenue. A 9-month-old baby was strapped in a car seat inside.

After a search, the child and the vehicle were located just before noon in the 2700 block of Ingersoll. The child was found safe. Hours later, police said they had arrested Corey Van Le, 32, of Des Moines. Le is charged with neglect of a dependent, a Class C felony, and operating a motor vehicle without owner’s consent.

AMES, Iowa – May 20, 2024 – The Iowa Department of Transportation is working across the state this spring and summer to determine how many cars, trucks, and other vehicles are using the state, county, and city roadways. The information gathered allows transportation officials to better predict traffic volume and weight trends, allowing them to plan improvements that will give Iowans the most benefit for each dollar spent.

This year’s efforts are concentrated in southwest Iowa, but occasionally crews will work elsewhere in the state. Some employees will spend peak hours between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. at a location counting the morning, noon, and evening traffic. They count and classify vehicles, record vehicle turning movements, and gather other data necessary to assist in planning the future of Iowa’s roadway system.

Other employees will be placing and checking portable traffic recorders in the same general areas. When the recorders are set, they usually record data for one or two days and are checked periodically. Employees responsible for the recorders work various shifts, including hours outside of a traditional business day.

Additional statewide work scheduled for this summer includes the installation, upgrading, and maintenance of permanent traffic recorders and weigh-in-motion equipment at continuous count locations. Other data collection activities include taking inventory on railroad crossing characteristics such as number of tracks and the types of warning devices present, including signs, lights, horns, and control gates. This information is then used for rail crossing planning, engineering, and safety improvements.

People in the area can expect to see Iowa DOT employees and vehicles in their communities all hours of the day. All of this work is important to support Iowa’s transportation system.

DES MOINES, Iowa — [WHO-TV] – The Des Moines Police Department announced Sunday morning that the victim of the homicide on May 18 was a 51-year-old female resident of Des Moines. At 11:37 a.m. on Saturday officers responded to the 1400 block of 4th Street with reports of a deceased person in a home. According to Des Moines police, officers arrived and discovered a deceased female within the home. Officers on scene reported an apparent traumatic injury and requested detectives to the scene, which is when it was determined a homicide investigation.
The name of the 51-year-old female victim is being held while family members are being notified. The cause of death will be confirmed with a forensic autopsy. The Des Moines Police Department continues to investigate the incident and more details will become available at a later date. This is the fourth homicide in Des Moines in 2024.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa— Family, friends and co-workers of a Iowa Department of Transportation worker from Neola who was killed on the job last Thursday, will honor 36-year-old Matthew Dickerson, later this week. Funeral services for Matt Dickerson will be held 10-a.m. Thursday, May 23rd, at the Hoy-Kilnoski Funeral Home in Council Bluffs. The Iowa State Patrol says Dickerson was hit and killed last week while working on Interstate 80, northeast of Council Bluffs.

According to troopers, a UPS driver from Pennsylvania hit Dickerson while trying to pass a semi in a construction zone. In a statement posted online, the Iowa DOT says it was “heartbroken and shocked” by Dickerson’s death.

Matthew Dickerson

Officials say it’s a reminder of the risks workers face, and they urge all drivers to prioritize safety on the roads, especially in work zones.

FORT DODGE, Iowa [KCCI] – An Eagle Grove man is facing felony homicide charges six months after police say he blew through a stop sign in rural Webster County, slamming into another car, killing a 13-year-old passenger. 38-year-old Logan A. Christensen, of Eagle Grove, is charged with homicide by vehicle – operating under the influence, a Class B felony; serious injury by vehicle – OWI, a Class C felony; and failure to obey a stop sign, an aggravated misdemeanor.

According to court documents, around 3:15 p.m. on Nov. 22, 2023, Christensen was driving a 2015 Dodge Ram when he failed to stop at a stop sign at the intersection of 110th Street and Union Avenue in far northeast Webster County. A 2014 Toyota Camry driven by Sara Sanga, of Hardy, was northbound on Union Avenue when Christensen’s truck struck the passenger side, landing both vehicles in the ditch, where the Camry hit a utility pole and rolled. The driver of the vehicle, Sara Sanga, sustained serious injuries and was taken to a Des Moines hospital by air ambulance. Sanga’s 13-year-old son, Kyle Hilbert, died at the scene.

A search warrant application shows the Iowa State Patrol troopers on the scene observed Christensen have slurred, mumbled speech, and an odor of alcohol coming from both Christensen and the inside of his vehicle. According to the criminal complaint, a blood sample showed Christensen’s blood alcohol content was .041%, below the legal limit of .08% to drive a motor vehicle. However, Christensen’s sample also tested positive for both cocaine and THC, the psychoactive component in the cannabis plant.

Court records show charges were filed on April 18 and Christensen posted $30,000 cash bail on May 10. It is not clear when, exactly, Christensen was arrested. He has a preliminary hearing scheduled for June 5. According to court records, Christensen told Iowa State Patrol troopers at the scene that he had two “Captain and Cokes” earlier in the day and that he was driving to pick up his daughter. Christensen has two previous OWI convictions, one from 2004 and one from 2013, records show.

(Radio Iowa) – As Waterloo residents work to revitalize old industrial areas, concerns are mounting about the safety of those sites, like the Chamberlain ammunition plant which was abandoned some 40 years. Residents want to tear it down and put affordable housing in its place, but the E-P-A has said the soil is toxic. Margo Collins-Draine, who’s lived in the neighborhood since the late ’60s, wants to see more help from the agency beyond just a warning sign. “They’re coming in and they’re giving consultations, but they’re not putting their money where their mouth is,” Collins-Draine says. “They need to do more as far as funding sources to help the city out.”

Collins-Draine says Chamberlain and other factories left Waterloo nearly 50 years ago, and the city was left with few options. “HUD didn’t come in, EPA didn’t come in. Nothing was ever treated. The groundwater wasn’t treated,” she says. “Most of them were along either the Cedar River or tributaries to the Cedar River, so there’s contamination.”

The E-P-A named the Chamberlain compound a “brownfield” site several years ago, preventing any immediate development of the property. The site is currently fenced off without signage indicating the danger.

(Glenwood, Iowa) – The Glenwood Police Department reports two arrests. On Sunday, 19-year-old Trevor Brant, of Glenwood, was arrested on two-counts each of; Criminal Mischief; Burglary in the 3rd Degree, and Assault. Brant was being held in the Mills County Jail on a $12,000 cash-only bond.

And, on Saturday, Glenwood Police arrested 34-year-old Salman Elias, of Lincoln, NE, for OWI/1st offense. His bond was set at $1,000.  Elias posted bond and was released.