Articles Tagged: Iowa Department of Education

Ann Lebo, the former head of Iowa’s state education agency, who last month announced she was resigning to pursue other opportunities, now has a new job with the state.

Iowa’s jointly-enrolled high schoolers last year earned a total 1,804 degrees, diplomas, or certificates alongside their high school diplomas – marking a 61 percent jump in a single year from 2021, according to the new report.

Iowa Democrats and some state employees say they’re concerned a bill that was introduced to reorganize state government will cut too many employees from Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services, which could eliminate federal funding and reduce the services available to some Iowans.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Chad Aldis, an Iowa native with experience working for multiple charter school and private school choice think tanks, to lead the Iowa Department of Education.

Educators say social-emotional learning can help improve students’ mental health, decrease bullying and teach career readiness skills

The head of Iowa's Department of Education is stepping down next month to pursue other opportunities, the Iowa Governor’s Office announced Friday.

Did you miss these key stories from The Gazette in 2022?

After shedding students annually for more than a decade – a post-recession trend aggravated by the pandemic – Iowa’s 15 community colleges this fall recorded their first collective enrollment uptick since 2010: a half percentage point bump, pushing the student tally to 82,251.

Also, a second Iowa store sold a $2 million Powerball ticket

Iowa will receive about $6 million in federal grant dollars to help schools address student well-being as part of the bipartisan gun violence bill signed in June.

Iowa Safe Schools director of public policy says the department is being ‘thorough’ on updating ‘oudated language’

Cedar Rapids-based Kirkwood Community College has announced plans to close two of its eight regional and county centers due to declining enrollment and a “significant decrease” in use of the locations.

Iowa’s 15 community colleges collectively are projecting a $2.3 million dip in total resources for the next budget year — contributing to a projected $36.8 million deficit — propelled largely by previous bumps in federal funding, due to COVID-19, and more anticipated facility and program expenses.

The bill calls for Iowa to adopt LEAD-K, a nationwide initiative to raise awareness of deaf or hard-of-hearing children’s experiences in language learning and to work toward school readiness and sufficient language skills by providing access to both American Sign Language and English.

Iowa community colleges are seeing a rebound in enrollment numbers since the pandemic with a growing number of high schoolers earning college credits through joint enrollment program.