Gazette Daily News Podcast: Wednesday, April 3, 2024

– Iowa House passes bill bolstering early literacy standards

– Iowa City student wins prize in C-SPAN’s national video documentary competition

– Kingdom Community Center awarded $100,000 at third-annual Grand Impact luncheon

Episode Transcript

Coming up, the Iowa House passes a bill to improve literacy

And later, a City High student is recognized in C-SPAN’s national video documentary competition

Plus, a Cedar Rapids-based nonprofit receives a $100,000 donation

Welcome to the Wednesday, April 3 edition of the Gazette Daily News Podcast. This podcast gives quick bites from the latest headlines coming out of The Gazette newsroom. I’m Bailey Cichon.

First, Iowa House lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday that seeks to improve literacy in Iowa’s elementary schools. The bill was introduced by Gov. Kim Reynolds in a push to improve literacy and reading instruction. According to the Iowa Department of Education, about 34 percent of Iowa’s third-graders were not reading proficiently in 2023. House File 2618 would add new instruction for prospective teachers. It would also add targeted interventions for students who fall behind in reading proficiency. The bill passed the House 92-3 with three Democrats voting no. If the bill is signed into law, Iowa school districts would have to give written notice to the parents or guardians of students who fall below their grade level in reading. This affects students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Parents would have the option to hold the student back a grade.

Additionally, the bill would require that school districts create personalized reading plans for students who have fallen behind until they reach proficiency.

Colleges and universities that offer teacher certifications would need to administer a reading instruction assessment. This would be based on the nationally recognized Foundations of Reading assessment. The assessment would not be required for graduation or licensure, but the higher education institution would need to publish data on how many students receive a passing test score.

House lawmakers altered the bill’s original wording. Originally, it would have required prospective teachers to pass the foundations of reading test in order to graduate and receive a teaching license.

Next, an Iowa City High School student has been recognized in C-SPAN’s 20th annual StudentCam competition. Jaxon Robertson is a 2024 honorable mention prize winner. Robertson will get $250 for his documentary “Prescribing Change: America’s Healthcare Crisis”.

The six-minute documentary looks at the impact of being underinsured and uninsured, the availability and access of health care providers, the cost of prescription drugs and medical procedures and the percentage of people living with chronic health conditions in the U.S. Solutions, like investing in preventative health care and deconstructing the U.S.’s fee-for-service health care model, are considered.

Robertson was one of thousands of students who submitted entries. Since 2004, over 63,000 students and 20,000 teachers have participated in the competition. Over the past two decades, C-SPAN has awarded over $1.5 million in prizes.

For a link to the documentary, visit the link in this episode’s description.

Next, Cedar Rapids-based nonprofit Kingdom Community Center won a $100,000 donation Monday. The award was given as part of Downtown Cedar Rapids Rotary’s annual Grand Impact luncheon. Kingdom Community Center was one of three nonprofit finalists. The other nonprofits were Central Furniture Rescue and Mission of Hope. The finalists had to present a pitch to an audience of 50 area businesses. Each of the businesses pledged money toward the award fund.

Kingdom Community Center was founded in 2019 to provide mentoring and support services to at-risk youth in Cedar Rapids’ Wellington Heights and Mound View neighborhoods. According to the Board President and Founder Bart Woods, the organization will use the funding to purchase an extended passenger van to provide safer transportation to the students it serves.

As always, you can find a link to each of the stories featured in today’s episode in this episode’s description or at the gazette dot com.

Now, let’s take a look at the weather in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Today it will be windy. Expect a high of 39 degrees and a low of 30 degrees. Thursday will also be windy. Expect a high of 44 degrees and a low of 30 degrees.

Thank you for listening to the Gazette Daily News Podcast. Stay up to date with the latest news from Eastern Iowa at the gazette dot com. I’m Bailey Cichon.

Comments: bailey.cichon@thegazette.com