K-12 Education

The Iowa City school district will spend $2.1 million over the next year to partner with Junior Achievement on creation of an immersive career exploration program that educators say will help students chart a course for their high school education and beyond.

At an annual address, leaders cite progress in grad rates and steps for school safety. Cedar Rapids Community Schools Superintendent Tawana Grover says the district ‘is not perfect ... but is progressing’ toward goals.

Cedar Rapids schools officials will spend the next several weeks speaking with staff, parents and community members to consider ways the district can reduce the cost of a proposed $211 million bond measure that seeks to support future operations, including building a new middle school.

The move will allow the Cedar Rapids nonprofit to increase the quality and quantity of low-cost arts programming for area youth and adults.

The Academy for Scholastic and Personal Success, which has empowered Black and biracial students in Cedar Rapids for more than 35 years, is preparing to transition to a new chapter with the retirement of its founder and executive director, Ruth White.

The suit claimed the public school district’s policy that restricted bathroom use for transgender students and visitors was distressing and violated his rights. The dismissal follows the impending removal of ‘gender identity’ as a protected Iowa class.

As a Nature Everywhere Community, Cedar Rapids schools will add “greenery” to some school yards and playgrounds. That could be anything from nature — like putting down more grass or installing a garden — to building infrastructure that’s stormwater and flood resistant and incorporates heat protection.

A poll of area residents commissioned by the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance revealed lukewarm sentiment toward a proposed $211 million bond meant to support future operations in the Cedar Rapids school district.

Governors in several Republican-led states -- spurred by Iowa -- are pressing the Trump administration to cut strings attached to their federal education money, a goal conservatives have long dreamed of that now appears within reach.

Both chambers have now signed off on the governor’s proposal, which she unveiled during her annual Condition of the State address in January.

Cedar Rapids schools will reduce building staff positions by 6 percent and cut $7M in administrative expenses to adjust to a budget deficit that district officials said is the result of declining enrollment and decreases in state and federal funding.

The group hopes to expand the 3 Dimensions of Education program to a total of 22 Iowa schools and 13,640 student by 2030.