Gomers: What's going wrong

Gazette Editorial Board

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APPEARANCES COUNT: Iowa's Jason Glass and at least a dozen other states' education directors attended an international education conference in Brazil this month. Their expenses were paid by the Pearson Foundation, tied to the Pearson corporation that has multi-million-dollar contracts with many state governments, including Iowa's. Glass likely didn't do anything illegal by accepting the foundation's dime, says the Iowa ethics board director. But it's best for a public official to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest.

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CRIME LAB BACKLOG: Staffing at the state crime lab has been reduced 10 percent since 2006 while the caseload is up more than 11 percent. Also growing is the backlog of cases and more prioritizing of cases.

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TUITION JUMPS: Tuition at Iowa's community colleges rose an average of nearly 6 percent this year. Though still a relative bargain compared to figures at most four-year, higher-education institutions, Iowa's average community college tuition of $3,948 is 60 percent above the national average.

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