Gazette Daily News Podcast, October 26

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Iowa’s top research universities have continued sliding in the U.S. News & World Report’s new 2022 “Best Global Universities” ranking.

The University of Iowa dropped to 174 in the 2022 report made public Tuesday, falling 14 places from its No. 160 ranking last year. It ranked 153 in 2018.

Iowa State University dropped to No. 237 in the new report, falling from 231 last year. It was ranked No. 204 in 2018.

The 2022 report comes about a month after the UI made gains in the domestic version of the U.S. News rankings — rising five spots to No. 83 among all universities nationally and inching up one spot to No. 33 among only public U.S. universities.

Iowa State — like its placement in the global rankings — slipped nationally, from No. 118 to No. 122 and from No. 54 to No. 58 among just public universities.

The new global rankings are calculated using 13 indicators heavily focused on research. The most weight — at 25 percent — is given to global and regional research reputations.

On Wednesday, Linn County and Cedar Rapids will launch an online request-for-proposals process for organizations to apply for a share of the two governments’ $14 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The website is cr-linnarpa.org, and the deadline to apply is noon Jan. 7.

During a news conference Monday, Cedar Rapids Mayor Brad Hart said the Cedar Rapids City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday on approving $3 million of its overall $28 million share of federal aid toward the funding pool. Linn County Supervisor Stacey Walker said Monday that the county will put $11 million of its overall $44 million share toward this first-round allocation.

Hart said city and Linn County staff will review submitted proposals and collaborate on projects that are within the city of Cedar Rapids. Funding recommendations are expected to be presented to the council by the end of February 2022.

An Ankeny resident and Iowa State University student has become the first woman enlisted infantry soldier in the Iowa National Guard.

Pfc. Taylor Patterson returned from basic training at Fort Benning in Georgia last month, the Guard said. There are about 9,000 service members in the Iowa National Guard.

It’s been five years since the U.S. Army opened combat arms positions to women. An infantry soldier must complete a 22-week training program, where they learn skills ranging from squad tactics to combat training.

Patterson says she succeeded in the training with the help of her drill sergeants and support from her family.

She is currently studying animal science at Iowa State University in Ames.

According to the National Weather Service’s Quad Cities’ bureau: There will be some areas of frost before 9 a.m. Tuesday. Otherwise, it will be sunny, with a high near 56. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Tuesday night will have increasing clouds, with a low around 45 and southeast wind around 10 mph.

Looking ahead, rain is in the forecast Wednesday and Thursday, then clear or partly cloudy for the rest of the week. Highs are in the mid-50s and lows in the high-30s.