Articles Tagged: Cedar Rapids Community School District

Goal almost met with more than 5,000 signatures collected to get bond to fund facility needs placed on November ballot

Hoover Elementary School teachers and families Monday spoke about the dire need for a new facility after plans for construction were temporarily delayed last month when neighbors voiced concerns about the project.

Students and staff in Cedar Rapids and Iowa City schools who are exposed to measles and do not have proof of vaccination will be required to stay home 21 days after exposure.

The number of students in Cedar Rapids schools charged with a crime fell by nearly 50 percent last school year, the result of work by a group violence intervention program that aims to prevent crime.

Also in this week’s Government Notes, Cedar Rapids has been recognized for its McLoud Run flood control project

Also in this week’s Government Notes, Cedar Rapids is supporting a new initiative to address homelessness.

Executive leadership staff span a 6 to 22 percent increase in proposed salaries as they take on new and expanded roles

There were more than 300 physical restraints of students in the Cedar Rapids Community School District during the 2024-25 school year — an increase from around 200 the year prior. But the U.S. Department of Justice reports there’s been a “noticeable improvement“ in employees’ understanding of problem solving and de-escalation.

Several executive leadership positions were removed from a revised personnel report approved by the Cedar Rapids school board Monday. It was the second time in a week the board has considered approval of a personnel report after last week’s vote failed.

Former Cedar Rapids schools superintendent Lew Finch, who served from 1994 to 2004, oversaw the last bond referendum to be approved by voters in the district.

Also in this week’s Government Notes, the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance is seeking “community champions” to connect with potential residents as part of its Collaborative Growth Initiative.

Arts programs in the Cedar Rapids Community School District are on “life support” after years of under funding, Carl Rowles, Jefferson High School band director, told the Cedar Rapids school board Monday. Rowles was one of dozens of people turned up at the meeting wearing school attire and advocating for the arts.

Iowa students will be more engaged in their learning and with their peers as they head back to school this fall under new policies restricting the use of cellphones and other personal electronic devices during the school day, educators say.

A letter of intent has been signed for the Cedar Rapids school district to purchase a property adjacent to Van Buren Elementary School, allowing the district to relocate an access road that will be built to service the new school building planned for the site.

The Cedar Rapids school board did not approve a personnel report in a 4-3 vote Monday, so that it can further consider proposed changes in central office staff “responsibilities and pay.”