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Private college officials say they’re being threatened by Rep. Taylor Collins, House education chair

Iowa private college officials say a key lawmaker is threatening funding to a state tuition grant program over their opposition to allowing community colleges to offer four-year degrees. Gary Steinke, president of the Iowa Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, said lobbyists for the association received a call last week from Rep. Taylor Collins, chair […]

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‘God bless the president’ for attacking Iran: Iowa Senators, Senate candidates react to Operation Epic Fury

Hours after President Trump announced early on Saturday morning that the United States and Israel were attacking Iran, Sen. Joni Ernst appeared on Newsmax to praise Trump for launching the attack.  “God bless the president for executing this mission,” Ernst said. “Because this is not just changing for today, this is world-changing for years to […]

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Coralville City Council ends Flock contract signed by police chief after backlash; residents tell city ‘never again’

At its formal meeting on Tuesday night, the Coralville City Council voted to cancel its contract with Flock Safety and remove the two Flock automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras already installed on city property. There had been growing community opposition to the use of Flock’s ALPR cameras in Coralville since last July when the city’s […]

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Iowa House passes tuition freeze, penalties for private schools with DEI programs, continuing education limits

Iowa House lawmakers passed legislation Tuesday to freeze tuition and restrict some nonresident enrollment at public universities; penalize private colleges with diversity, equity and inclusion offices; and make changes to continuing education and career and technical education. Career, continuing education courses HF 2547 would expand career and technical education (CTE) credit transfers and establish a […]

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Judge: City’s arrest of critic is ‘quintessential viewpoint discrimination’

Declaring that a citizen was “targeted because he criticized the police department and city leadership,” a federal judge has ruled that the City of Newton violated the rights of a critic by twice having the man arrested at city council meetings. The decision means that Noah Petersen’s lawsuit against the city for violating his constitutional […]

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Sol Butler, Olympian and football star of the Jim Crow era, is a Dubuque icon — and the subject of a new book

One hundred years ago, Sol Butler’s name was well known throughout the sports world. A multi-sport athlete, Butler set records at the University of Dubuque, was a quarterback in the early days of the NFL, competed in track and field at the Olympics and played pitcher and shortstop in the Negro Leagues. His achievements came […]

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‘Remember what Iowa is really about’: Advocates stress solidarity, condemn anti-immigrant attacks from lawmakers at State Capitol rally

About 100 people were chanting “Immigrants are welcome here,” as a rally by the Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice (Iowa MMJ) began in the rotunda of the Iowa State Capitol on Wednesday afternoon. The rally was the culmination of Iowa MMJ’s annual advocacy day at the Capitol. The Des Moines-based nonprofit advocates on behalf of […]

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Iowa Senate committee approves bill forcing medical training programs to accommodate unvaccinated students

On Wednesday, Republicans on the Iowa Senate Education Committee approved a bill that would require public and private colleges and universities that offer “a medical, nursing, or other health care-related degree” to permit unvaccinated students to complete courses requiring clinical rotations that would bring them into contact with medically vulnerable patients.  SF 2095 requires a […]

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More than 700 Iowa water segments are impaired, according to a new state report

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources released a draft version of its 2026 biennial integrated report Tuesday, which listed more than 700 segments of rivers, lakes or wetlands in the state as impaired.  The impaired list looks at retroactive data and determines if a water segment meets, or fails to meet, designated criteria for uses […]

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