Category Archives: Schools

Jan 21

Collins-Maxwell-Baxter athletics split ahead?

Austin Draude pointed me to this Newton Daily News article that’s pretty much a bolt out of the blue: The very-long-term Collins-Maxwell-Baxter athletics sharing agreement may be falling apart. According to the article, there are some complaints about the location or split … Continue reading

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Dec 30

Diagonal school building turned 100 in 2014

April 1, 2010: View of the 1914 Diagonal school building. The round tube is a fire escape. The home of the smallest high school in Iowa marked its centennial this year. The main building for Diagonal schools was built in … Continue reading

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Dec 29

Gladbrook-Reinbeck enrollment report

Like all rural school districts in Iowa, Gladbrook-Reinbeck is experiencing a long-term decline in enrollment. To get a better grasp of what’s going on overall, and the trends, the district hired a consultant. The resulting report (PDF), on the macro … Continue reading

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Dec 19

Elma Elementary closed; is Lime Springs next?

“On roll call, all answered aye, although Duane Bodermann of Elma hesitated before voting to close his alma mater.” After years of debate and declining enrollment, the Howard-Winneshiek school district closed Elma Elementary at the end of last school year, … Continue reading

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Dec 17

Creation, analysis of retroactive football brackets

When the IHSAA said it would no longer pre-set a full bracket for the football postseason, instead setting up an “as-you-go” for each round, I wondered if there would be final brackets made after the finals. That did not happen. … Continue reading

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Dec 16

Seymour school replacement vote narrowly fails

September 13, 2011: Top center of the original Seymour school building. Sadly, medieval-themed school flourishes just aren’t in vogue anymore. In today’s climate, steady to slightly-higher student enrollment is a victory for small districts. The Seymour school district in Wayne … Continue reading

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Dec 12

No automatic waivers to start school in August

“Effective immediately, the department will no longer automatically grant waivers of the school start date requested under Iowa (law) for the 2015-2016 school year.” Big move. Stories: Gazette, Register (AP), KCCI. It was one thing to get waivers starting school the … Continue reading

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Dec 12

Courier features North Tama’s “Plus 1” Mondays

This year, the North Tama school district is not following a standard school calendar. Every other Monday is a “Plus 1” “enrichment session.” Regular classes aren’t held, and students spend more time than a regular class period on various activities. … Continue reading

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Dec 03

Seven votes

The combined vote total in Farragut and Hamburg to merge their school districts would have formed a supermajority in favor, but each district must vote separately. Hamburg opposed reorganization by seven votes. Not quite 1000 votes were cast overall, but it’s … Continue reading

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Dec 02

Farragut, Hamburg vote on merger today

In far southwest Iowa today, the Hamburg and Farragut school districts are voting on consolidation to become Nishnabotna. There have been plenty of meetings on the issue, with slightly higher stakes than a normal school merger because of the potential … Continue reading

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