(Griswold, Iowa) – Members of the Griswold School Board, Monday evening, acted to approve two new hires, a transfer, and one resignation. That’s according to District Superintendent Dave Henrichs.

Henrichs said also the Board spent a lot of time discussing benefits for non-certified staff retirement benefits, but took no action. The story was different, however, when it came to two other staff members.

As a part of that Resolution, Hendrichs says, the Griswold School Board decided there will be no more early retirement packages for non-certified staff members until policy revisions can be made. The Board had deactivated the early retirement policy for certified staff, last Fall. The Board considered, but then took not action on Track maintenance bids due to having received only one bid.

They approved a bid from Bob’s Mowing for Chemical Application and Mowing. The Griswold School Board accepted the FY 22 Audit Report, which notes the need to improve segregation of duties, as auditors often note with school districts and small cities.

The Board held continued discussion with regard to Girl’s Wrestling, which is being evaluated, and a four-day school week. He said with regard to the four-day week, District Administrators will be in contact with other Districts to see why they took that route, what’s working for them and not working,

The Griswold School Board concluded their meeting with an Exempt Meeting for the purpose of a collective bargaining strategy session.

(Radio Iowa) – After unseasonable warmth on Monday in the low 50s, forecasters say light snow is likely later today (Tuesday) in northern Iowa, the first part of a two-part winter wallop. Meteorologist Cory Martin, at the National Weather Service, says this first round won’t cause much trouble, but the second round promises to be a doozy. “We’re only expecting maybe some really light snow near the Minnesota border today into tonight,” Martin says. “Possible minor travel impacts, but really we’re not expecting that to have a whole lot of bite to it. Most of the attention is on a much more significant system that’ll be crossing through Wednesday and into Thursday.” Winter weather advisories and warnings are posted for much Iowa’s northern half for Wednesday and Thursday, while a Blizzard Warning is in effect for Lyon and Osceola counties. Martin says a fast-moving system will arrive tomorrow.

“We’re looking at precipitation overspreading much of the state beginning Wednesday morning and into the afternoon,” he says. “Varying temperatures are going to lead to a whole mixed bag of precip types from north to south across the state. We’re looking at highest probabilities for snow, potentially quite heavy near the Minnesota border where they could see possibly up to 10 inches.” The forecast for the Estherville area calls for nine to 13 inches of snow, though it could taper off to just rain in southern Iowa, while central Iowa may be facing a combination of rain, sleet, snow and ice. Martin says the roads could be treacherous in parts of the state.

“We could see some hazardous travel conditions develop, especially going into Wednesday night,” Martin says. “If we do see any change over to snow, with how strong the winds are going to be, that’s going to blow around quite a bit. Check ahead on travel conditions and on the latest weather conditions, especially if you’re going north up into Minnesota. It looks like they get a whole heap of snow up there.” Moving forward, there is a chance of light snow for Friday, but the weekend ahead to looks to be dry for much of Iowa.

(Creston, Iowa) – The Creston Police Department reports eight arrests took place from Friday through Monday. At around 11-p.m. Friday, Officers arrested 23-year-old Bradford Guy Boyer, of Kent, on a Union County Warrant for Failure To Appear (FTA) on an original charge of Disorderly Conduct-Fighting/Violent Behavior. Boyer was also charged with Interference with Official Acts and Public Intox. He was taken to the Union County Jail and later released on $900 cash or surety bond.

Early Saturday morning, 54-year-old Shellie Joe Adams, of Creston, was arrested at the Creston Union County Law Enforcement Center (LEC), for OWI/1st offense. Adams was taken to the Union County Jail and later released on a $1,000 cash or surety bond. At around 2:30-p.m., Saturday, 45-year-old Travis Quinn Wambold, of Fontanelle, was arrested in Creston on charges that include three Union County Warrants for: Harassment 1st an Aggravated Misdemeanor. Fail to Serve Jail Time. No Bond Must serve balance of sentence; FTA for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia a Simple Misdemeanor, and FTA on a Felony Theft in the 2nd Degree charge. Wambold was being held in the Union County Jail on a $5,000 cash only and $300 cash or surety bond.

At around 3:55-p.m., Saturday, 43-year-old Julio Cesar Villalpando Castro, of Creston, was arrested at Saint Malachy on a Union County Warrant for Theft in the 5th. Castro was taken to the Union County Jail where he later was released on $300 cash or surety bond.

Sunday afternoon, 23-year-old Noah Alexander Young, of Creston, was arrested at a pharmacy in the 400 block of S. Sumner Street. He was charged with Interference with Official Acts, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Possession of Marijuana 3rd or subsequent. Young was taken to the Union County Jail. He was later released on a $2,600 cash or surety bond. And, at around 10:15-p.m. Sunday, 23-year-old Sanden Kenneth Cheers, of Afton, was arrested in Creston. He was charged with OWI 1st offense. Cheers was transported to the Union County Jail and  later released on a $1,000 cash or surety bond.

Late Monday night, 21-year-old Kelli Sabrina Romero, of Diagonal, was arrested at the intersection of Cherry and Buckeye. Romero was charged with OWI 2nd Offense. Romero was released on $2000 cash or surety bond. And, 39-year-old Christopher Earl Baker, of Afton, was arrested at the Creston Union County LEC. Baker was charged with OWI 1st Offense. He was transported to the Union County Jail and was being held on a $1,000 cash or surety bond.

(Radio Iowa) – A University of Iowa researcher is studying what he calls “boomerang employees,” those people who quit their jobs and later return to their former employers. The phenomenon is surging now as those who left careers during the so-called Great Resignation early in the pandemic are now rethinking their decisions. Chad Van Iddekinge, a U-I professor of management and entrepreneurship, says rehiring former workers is something of a safe bet. “Boomerangs are a known quantity and because of that, they’re thought to be a less risky hire than someone who’s completely new,” Van Iddekinge says. “Boomerangs also tend to require less onboarding and training than first-time hires who are completely new to a job.”

Still, U-I studies have found boomerang employees are more likely to quit a second time, often for the same reasons they left initially. “One study we did, we were looking at retail managers who returned to a former employer,” Van Iddekinge says. “We found that although rehires initially performed better than first-time hires, the first-time hires eventually began to outperform rehires after they got into the organization and trained and got accustomed to their jobs.”

Indications are that the Great Resignation is still underway and hasn’t let up since the onset of COVID-19. People who were unfulfilled in their positions quit under the “you only live once” creed to forge a new path, but he says many have found early retirement isn’t for them, or they may simply need the money. “A big one that we hear about is thinking that the grass is greener on the other side, and that moving to a different organization will be better,” Van Iddekinge says. “I think what people often find is that the grass isn’t greener and they actually had it pretty good where they were before, and that leads them to pursue returning to a former employer.”

It reinforces the importance of keeping good performance review records so employers can best assess the potential of a rehire. “We’re finding that if people were solid performers before they left, they’re likely to be solid performers again,” Van Iddekinge says. “If they were below-average before, it’s unlikely that they’ve suddenly turned a new leaf and will be a lot better this time around.”

While conventional wisdom indicates people gain experience when they leave for a new job and come back better than before, he says for most it will evoke the adage: “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”