January 28, 2012

You are here: Home / 2009 / Archives for March 2009

Report says Iowa war memorial in disrepair

March 30, 2009 By

A memorial to some of Iowa’s most-decorated war heroes has fallen into disrepair. The state of Iowa owns an acre of land near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where each state has a monument to its Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.

Iowa Senator Dennis Black, a Democrat from Grinnell, says the state got a letter from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society with what he calls "shameful" news about the site.

"It states that the Medal of Honor Monument for the great state of Iowa is in crucial need of restoration and maintenance." Up until now, Black says no one in Iowa has been charged with maintaining the memorial. The Iowa Senate passed a bill to study what’s needed to restore or replace the monument. Black did some research on the state’s Medal of Honor recipients.

Black says, "To receive a letter that relates to the award for those heroes who receive it for the highest level of intrepidity and valor, to me, is kind of shameful." Starting with the Civil War, 108 Iowans have received the medal for unusual valor in battle.

Black says some Iowans’ names are missing from the monument, including the state’s only female recipient, Civil War surgeon Mary Edwards Walker, and Vernon Baker, the only African-American recipient of the award from World War Two.  

Filed Under: Military, Politics & Government

Looks like heavy snow will miss Iowa

March 30, 2009 By

It now appears that extreme northwest Iowa will escape the winter weather that was issued for later tonight and into Tuesday. National Weather Service forecaster Miles Schumacher says that part of Iowa should be spared the heavy snow that was predicted.

Lyon, Osceola, Sioux, O’Brien, Plymouth and Cherokee counties were under the watch but the watch was canceled this morning by the Weather Service. Schumacher said parts of eastern Iowa had their share of snow over the weekend.

Schumacher said Iowa will experience rain and thunderstorms tonight and Tuesday as March is going out like a lion. There is still a chance for some light snow in the northern counties tonight. 

Filed Under: Weather

Effort underway to cut the word "retard"

March 30, 2009 By

Iowans are being encouraged to join an effort to refrain from using the word "retard." Mark Reed, president of Special Olympics Iowa, says people with intellectual disabilities view the word as a cruel and offensive slur.

"What we’re trying to do is educate people and raise their awareness about individuals with intellectual disabilities and how the ‘R’ word is very offensive to them and their families," Reed said. "We’re trying to encourage people to speak out and say ‘that’s not acceptable anymore.’ We should each hold ourselves accountable for not using that word."

The "R" word campaign rose from discussions at a youth summitt in February at the Special Olympics World Winter Games in Idaho. "The youth decided that their goal was spread the word to end the word, promote awareness and initiate change," Reed said. Five athletes from Iowa competed in the Special Olympics World Winter Games. Reed says a number of community and school based activities are planned around Iowa Tuesday as part of the national effort to eliminate use of the "R" word.

"One example, at Western Dubuque High School, they’re reporting that a group of students are putting forth an effort in educating students and staff about the derogatory use of the ‘R’ word both in and out of school," Reed said. "They’re planning a week of activities."

Actor John C. McGinley, of the TV show "Scrubs," is helping with the national campaign by making media appearances. Organizers say they hope to collect 100,000 online pledges at www.r-word.org .

 

Filed Under: Human Interest

Study finds health insurance costs up since 1990′s

March 30, 2009 By

As debate is renewed about health care reform, a study finds health insurance costs have bounded in Iowa and nationwide since the mid-1990s, when major reforms were last considered. John Lumpkin, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, says Iowa’s seen little progress in getting more people coverage, while health care cost increases far outpaced our salaries.

"What we’re finding in Iowa is that while the number of uninsured hasn’t increased — and mind you, these numbers are from 2007, before the economic downturn — but what we’re seeing is a dramatic increase in the cost, especially compared to people’s wages," Lumpkin says.

"As the costs increase, more and more Iowans are going to be forced to make a choice between paying for health insurance and paying for food." He says the cost of paying for one year of health insurance has bounded year after year for more than a decade.

"In Iowa, we’ve seen a significant increase since 1996," Lumpkin says. "The costs have gone from $2500 in 1996 to $3900 in 2006. This represents a six-times faster increase in the cost of these than in the amount wages have gone up." He says Iowa’s very close to the national average in logging the price hikes — as insurance costs went up 59-percent in Iowa during that decade and 61-percent nationwide.

The study found U.S. workers’ insurance costs have risen nearly eight times faster than incomes. Still, Lumpkin says he’s optimistic our nation’s leaders will find a way to rectify the deteriorating situation. "Absolutely, I think there’s hope, Lumpkin says. "We’re having very serious conversations in Washington about health care reform and covering the uninsured. People who don’t have health insurance live sicker and die younger. We believe it’s time for congress to do something about it, to work with the White House and find a solution."

The New Jersey-based Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is the country’s largest philanthropic organization devoted exclusively to health and health care. For more information on the foundation’s study, visit: " www.CoverTheUninsured.org ".

 

Filed Under: Health & Medicine

Education Department says many efforts attempt to cut drop out rate

March 30, 2009 By

The Department of Education released numbers last week showing the dropout rate in Iowa schools increased last year — though Iowa still has one of the lowest dropout rates in the nation, Department director, Judy Jeffrey, says many things have been done to address the problem.

Jeffrey says they did have a dropout summit in the past with some of the districts that have a higher percentage of students who drop out. She says they also have several initiatives underway that support learning and positive behavior to help teachers determine what they need to do to keep kids in school. Jeffrey says the department works with districts to develop their high school structure and environments to try and keep kids in school.

She says the state allows districts to levy funds for dropout prevention if they have a program approved by the department of education. Jeffrey says there are a lot of programs to provide information and resources to help keep kids in school "but it really comes down to that personal effort at that local building and within those communities that really matter." Jeffrey says keeping the rate from rising is an ongoing problem.

Jeffrey says the problem is not unique as educators across the nation talk about how difficult it is to keep kids in school and to get them to graduate. Jeffrey says one problem in Iowa is a mixed message on dropouts. Jeffrey says the state policy legally allows a kid to drop out of school at age 16, while at the same time schools are being held accountable for a better graduation rates and lower dropout rates. "So we have policy structures right now that are not consistent in the message that they send to our young people," Jeffrey says.

Jeffrey says students thinking of dropping out now face a bleak future with the economy in a downturn. Jeffrey says if kids want to go to college, enter the military, or get a job, the minimum requirement is a high school diploma. She says many of the jobs that would have been attainable in the last couple of years, are now being filled by people who have been laid off.

Jeffrey says they are not able to track the students who have dropped out to see if they even returned and got their high school diploma or G-E-D. She says they department doesn’t know that know, but some school districts know those numbers. Jeffrey says the new system that assigns students tracking numbers will be linked to community colleges to help them track that information. You can see the dropout numbers on the Department of Education’s website. 

Filed Under: Education

Iowa State women advance to Elite Eight

March 30, 2009 By

The 17th-ranked Iowa State women’s basketball team will make its second Elite Eight appearance in school history Monday night when the Cyclones face second-ranked Stanford at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif. The game will tip at 8 p.m. central.

Iowa State went on an 8-0 run over the final 1:10 to defeat Michigan State, 69-68, and advance to the Elite Eight. The Cyclones improve to 27-8 overall, tying the school record for wins which was set in 1998-99, the school’s other Elite Eight season.

Michigan State held a 68-61 edge with 1:23 remaining but Cyclones put on a full-court press that left the Spartans struggling to get the ball across half court.

Iowa State and Stanford have already matched up once this season, a 83-45 Cardinal win at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Classic in Hawaii on Nov. 29. 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

Stanzi moves from unknown to #1 for Iowa

March 30, 2009 By

Ricky Stanzi is the clear number one at quarterback for the Iowa Hawkeyes as they go through Spring drills. Stanzi started 11 games this past season and it was during spring drills last year that Stanzi put himself into contention for the starting job.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says Stanzi is clearly the most experienced at the position, and that’s interested because he wasn’t even on the radar last year. Ferentz knows expectations will be much high for Stanzi next season after he completed 59% of his passes and had 14 touchdowns as a sophomore.

Ferentz says Stanzi’s no different from a lot of other guys who have played, except that his position is more prominent than some of the others. Ferentz says one goal for Stanzi is to cut down on turnovers. Mistakes were a huge factor in Iowa’s four losses, and Ferentz says those are the things that cost them last year in the games they lost.

But Ferentz says Stanzi also has a resiliency citing drives after turnovers in the Illinois and Penn State games. Iowa opens next season at home September fifth against UNI.

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »