Category Archives: Schools

Jun 18

Exira-EHK merger vote coming soon

A good article from the Omaha World-Herald with some basics about the merger process, benefits, and the pressure districts face. The most important factor in this case, though, may be the financial trouble the Exira district has been in recently.

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Jun 10

School closures and the Barker rules

The Iowa Department of Education has online the two dozen or so appeals about school closings since 1977. That year, the Iowa Department of Public Instruction created the “Barker rules”. In response to a case regarding the Van Buren school … Continue reading

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May 26

Carving up Clearfield

April 1, 2010: The stone soldier out front couldn’t guard against a century and a half of demographics. (Note: He faces north.) Clearfield is the only school in Iowa I know of that has a Civil War monument on its … Continue reading

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May 19

99-year-old Orange School closes

When the Orange Township school at the intersection of Orange Road and Kimball Avenue was built, it was for a rural Black Hawk County population. Decades later, it was incorporated into the Waterloo school district and the area became part … Continue reading

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May 08

East Greene, South Central Calhoun mergers approved

May 10, 2010: Now that the school in Lytton is closed will the billboard come down too? Or should it stay up as a historical memento? The special election Tuesday (most know for Warren County voting against a casino) included … Continue reading

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May 03

Schools that had a snow day May 3

From schoolalerts.iowa.gov and TV stations. Many started with a two-hour delay and then announced closure later. AGWSR, Aplington-Parkersburg, CAL, Chariton, Hampton-Dumont, Iowa Falls-Alden, Osage, PCM, Pleasantville, Riceville, Seymour, South Hardin, Wayne, West Fork. Thirteen inches in Osage. Snow at Tulip Time … Continue reading

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May 02

A historic snow day for these schools

This picture shouldn’t have a May 2 date-stamp. More reports here. Let’s hope this week of weather is a real drought-buster. Based on TV stations’ websites, there are multiple schools that cancelled classes today because of snow. Because this is historic, … Continue reading

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Apr 27

Kossuth County Area Schools and Rural Iowa’s Population Collapse

As population and school enrollments in rural Iowa keep shrinking, many districts are finding it increasing difficult to stay afloat. One place this change is keenly being felt is in north-central Iowa. Rather than make this essay a blog post, … Continue reading

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Apr 25

Titonka Elementary School closing

July 6, 2011: Dead district walking. Even though Titonka’s merger with Algona does not take effect until 2014, the district effectively will cease to exist this summer. All students K-12, instead of just 5-12, will be going to school in … Continue reading

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Apr 24

CWL may be next small-school domino to fall

Corwith-Wesley and LuVerne have been whole-grade sharing for more than 30 years, but could never merge because the combined districts didn’t meet the 300-student threshold. Now the two districts may be going to join Algona within the next five years. … Continue reading

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