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About 11 years ago, the Brennan family was preparing to move from the Philadelphia suburbs to Iowa. They had a number of options to choose from—as long as the city was by a John Deere plant—but picked Ankeny because of the reputation of the public school system. “I...
The Ankeny Chamber of Commerce pulled out of co-hosting Tuesday’s Ankeny School Board candidate forum after it received unspecified “threats,” but the Ankeny Police Department says nothing has been reported. KCCI reported on Oct. 18 that the chamber withdrew its...
One of the first things you should probably learn about Lya Williams is that her name is pronounced Lee-Uh and not Lie-Uh. Another thing you should know is that she cares deeply about the future of public education in the Johnston School District. Williams has thrown...
The demographics of the Johnston School District are becoming more diverse, which is why the district has tried to place an increased emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts. Part of the district’s mission statement is to “commit all district...
One of the most powerful social conservative lobbying groups in Iowa is getting involved in school board races, and the Johnston School District has emerged as one of its top targets. The Family Leader recently announced it endorsed conservative Johnston School Board...
National politics set the tone for a fair amount of school board races in Iowa two years ago, and this year promises more of the same. The 2023 Iowa Legislative session saw Iowa Republicans pass a number of measures aimed at undermining and defunding public schools....
Johnston School Board Candidate Jason Arnold is a father of two students in the district and wants the schools to work for them and all the students in them. He has plans for how to make that happen too. Arnold wants to hire a director for diversity, equity and,...
As I sat on a park bench eating a bacon-grilled cheese sandwich, drinking an Exile Ruthie straight from the tap, and chit-chatting with a few folks, I almost forgot I was at a campaign event, which might have been the point. Ohio businessman turned rising GOP star...
One of the things I love about my job is that I often get to cover the topics I’m most interested in.
For 34 years straight, Johnny and Barbara Long never missed a West Des Moines City Council meeting.
New laws passed by Republicans in the Iowa Legislature this year restrict bathroom access for transgender students, forcibly out students to their parents if they express a different gender identity or ask to go by a different name from the one on their birth...
Have you ever wondered what “once in a blue moon” means? Since there’s a blue supermoon looming on the horizon, literally (it’s going to appear at its peak on August 30), we wanted to dive into the meaning behind the common saying and shed some light on just how rare...
Three months after the Waterloo City Council passed a ban on conversion therapy for minors, the council reversed its decision in a 4-3 vote Monday. The controversial decision comes just days before Cedar Valley Pridefest begins. Why did the council repeal it? Waterloo...
As more than a dozen GOP presidential candidates descend on Des Moines for the Iowa State Fair, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) wants to send them a message they won’t miss. The DNC is placing a billboard in Iowa’s capital city attacking Republican candidates...
The strength of any nation, in many respects, lies in the vibrancy of its economy, which in turn, is largely driven by the energy of its small businesses. As we navigate the complexities of a post-pandemic world, it is essential to recognize the crucial role that...
We asked staffers at Courier Newsroom, Iowa Starting Line's parent company, to share recommendations for books to read this summer. Here’s what we came up with. Okay, confession: I started gathering information for this story in part because I was looking for book...
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Biden’s student loan cancellation plan, a major blow to tens of millions of working- and middle-class Americans who stood to benefit from the program. In a 6-3 decision in Biden v. Nebraska, the Court’s right-wing...
The 2024 election is more than a year away, but we got a glimpse into the priorities of House Republicans last week, when the Republican Study Committee (RSC) released its proposed budget for the 2024 fiscal year, a 167-page document that calls for making cuts to...
State, city and county food inspectors have cited Iowa restaurants and stores for hundreds of food-safety violations during the past four weeks, including insects in customers’ food and filthy kitchens. One fast-food restaurant in Des Moines agreed to close, for the...
Pottawattamie County will hold a special election on Aug. 1 to determine how future board of supervisors elections are conducted, a move community organizers and labor groups hope will create better representation in county government. The Pottawattamie County Board...
More than 5 million Native Americans live in the United States as members of 574 federally recognized and 63 state-recognized tribes. That number is projected to rise to 10 million by 2060. Stacker ranked the states with the largest Native American populations using data from the Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey.
Best Universities compiled data to show the most common degrees awarded to students who attended college by state.
A right-wing media outlet capitalized on the tragic partial-building collapse in Davenport by claiming it was a Moscow building struck by drones from Ukraine. Greta Van Susteren, host of the Newsmax show "The Record with Greta Van Susteren," showed a few shots of the...
May was Mental Health Awareness Month, and for the past few weeks, the Biden administration has announced a series of efforts to address the nation’s growing mental health crisis. Those come on top of the administration’s legislative achievements on mental health,...
Residents and those who have been inside an 80-unit apartment building that partially collapsed Sunday say they were not surprised by it, as the building was in such poor shape.
Davenport, Iowa, is in the national spotlight after a building partially collapsed in the heart of its downtown over the weekend. Here’s what we know: What happened? A little before 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 28, Davenport first responders answered a call about a collapsed...
As more and more people venture out to make up for the last few pandemic-ridden years, you might be looking to go a little farther off the beaten path to avoid the crowds.Stackerdid some digging and found a hidden travel gem for every state, using data from Atlas Obscura.
Memorial Day is usually seen as a day off from work or school, but it’s so much more than that. On Memorial Day, we mourn and honor the US military personnel who have died while serving in the US armed forces. It’s also a time for reflection and to intentionally...
When it comes to astrology, your sun, moon, and rising signs are typically referred to as your “Big 3.” Okay, cool, but what does that mean? Each of these signs indicates something about your personality. They also speak to your ego, motivations, emotions, and other...
State, city and county inspectors have cited Iowa restaurants and stores for hundreds of food-safety violations during the past four weeks, including months-old, moldy food, rodent droppings, spoiled hot dogs and the presence of animals in the building. At least four...
