When getting input from Cedar Rapids students and families of what the new Coolidge and Jackson elementaries should be named, Jackson’s principal Nick Duffy said there was a “common theme” in the suggestions — the August derecho. “Given that we had experienced a significant natural disaster this summer in the wake of the derecho and […]
Cedar Rapids Community School District
CRCSD Superintendent Noreen Bush receives national award

Superintendent Noreen Bush of the Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) was honored with a national superintendent award on Friday. Bush was named the recipient of the award from AASA, The School Superintendents Association during its 2021 Women in School Leadership Awards virtual ceremony. “Our program is designed to recognize the exceptional leadership from exemplary […]
Cedar Rapids school board will fill Gary Anhalt’s seat by appointment

The Cedar Rapids Board of Education decided during a special meeting on Monday how to fill the vacancy created by the death of board member Gary Anhalt. The vacancy will be filled by appointment, and the individual appointed will hold the seat until the next school board election on Nov. 2. Anhalt died earlier this […]
Five Linn County school superintendents ask Gov. Reynolds to prioritize vaccinating school staff

Five Linn County school superintendents sent a joint letter to Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday asking for additional COVID-19 vaccine doses to be allocated to the state’s priority populations in light of the Feb. 15 deadline for school districts to provide all in-person instruction. The superintendents ask state officials to reallocate 64,000 doses of vaccine […]
CRCSD students will return to in-person instruction next week

Students in the Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) will return to in-person learning the week of Dec. 7, the district announced on Thursday. CRCSD began district-wide remote learning on Thursday, Nov. 12, after its two-week waiver was approved by the Department of Education. The district then applied for another waiver to extend virtual learning […]
CRCSD applies for waiver to continue all-online learning after Thanksgiving break

The Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) has applied for another waiver from the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) to extend virtual learning by another two weeks following Thanksgiving break, Superintendent Noreen Bush announced on Tuesday in a message to families. CRCSD began district-wide remote learning on Thursday, Nov. 12, after its two-week waiver was […]
CR Schools Superintendent discusses remote learning and COVID-19 in district schools

Cedar Rapids families should know by next Tuesday if the Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) will apply for another virtual instruction waiver or if students can expect to return to in-person classes after Thanksgiving. Superintendent Noreen Bush said the district will be closely following three main metrics — staff absences, impact on the healthcare […]
‘We are hanging by a thread’: Cedar Rapids officials call on governor to issue mask mandate; CRCSD gets waiver to move classes online

“Everything is increasing — the spread, the positive COVID cases, the hospitalizations, the deaths,” State Senator Liz Mathis said at the start of a virtual news conference on Thursday, the same day Linn County surpassed 10,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Mathis’ district, which includes Cedar Rapids, Marion, Robins, Hiawatha, Bertram, Ely and southern Linn County, […]
ICCSD gets to move all classes online as cases of COVID-19 surge in Johnson County (Updated)

Update: The Iowa City Community School District Board of Directors approved moving the district’s school to all online instruction at its meeting on Tuesday evening. The change will take place on Monday, Nov. 16, following the recommendation of the district’s administration. Interim Superintendent Matt Degner said waiting until Monday would give parents a chance to […]
Cedar Rapids school district requests to move to all-online instruction due to COVID-19 surge in Linn County, increase in staff quarantine

The Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) applied for a waiver from the Department of Education (DOE) on Tuesday to move to district-wide remote instruction for two weeks. If granted, students would begin remote learning on Thursday. The request comes as Linn County is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. The country reported […]
Your Village: Why is there an elementary school named after Nixon in Iowa?

Have a question about what’s going on in your community? Ask Little Village. Submit your questions through the Your Village feature on our homepage, or email us at editor@littlevillagemag.com. There’s a Nixon Elementary in Hiawatha?????? Why would they name a school after Nixon?? —GM, Coralville, via the Your Village feature on LV’s homepage. Timing, they […]
Cedar Rapids Community School District working with high school students on anti-racism initiatives

The Cedar Rapids Community School District is working to establish a Black student union at all four high schools and create a superintendent’s advisory council, among other action steps as part of the district’s anti-racist initiatives. Superintendent Noreen Bush provided an update on these efforts at the Board of Education’s Monday meeting. The update was […]