Late on Thursday afternoon, the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) rejected the Iowa City Community School District’s request for a waiver to switch to all online classes for two weeks. The district applied for the waiver on Tuesday as Johnson County’s COVID-19 test positivity rate continued to increase over the last two weeks, with fears […]
ICCSD
COVID-19: State finally grants Iowa City schools another waiver, but ICCSD might not use it; another 2,057 Iowans test positive

On Friday afternoon, the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) granted the Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) a waiver to continue with all-online classes next week as the number of new COVID-19 cases in Johnson County remains high. The district, however, said it will stick with its previously announced plan to resume its hybrid model […]
Iowa City schools will keep all classes online through Dec. 11

The Iowa City Community School District announced on Tuesday night it has received a waiver from the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) permitting it to extend its use of all-online instruction for an additional two weeks. The district switched to its distance learning model on Nov. 16, due to the surge in new cases of […]
Iowa City Transit suspending Eastside Loop service while schools go all online

Iowa City transit will temporarily suspend the AM and PM Eastside Loop bus service starting on Monday, Nov. 16. “The service suspension is being done due to the Iowa City Community School District decision to resume off-site learning,” Iowa City Transit said in a statement. “Service for these two routes will not return until on-site […]
ICCSD asks the state for permission to go all online due to COVID-19 surge in Johnson County

The Iowa City Community School District has submitted a request to the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) to move to all online instruction for two weeks due to the surge in new cases of COVID-19 in Johnson County. In an email to district families, Interim Superintendent Matt Degner said the request had the support of […]
Iowa City student information may have been exposed in billing company hack

The Iowa City Community School District informed families on Tuesday the company that handles Medicaid billing and reimbursement for the district was hacked and student data may have been stolen. “On September 2, 2020, Timberline informed us that an unknown actor accessed its network between February 12, 2020 and March 4, 2020, encrypted certain files, […]
Iowa City schools receive a second waiver, will allow for an additional two weeks of all online classes

The Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) received a second two-week waiver on Friday, allowing schools to offer keep offering less than 50 percent in-person instruction. District schools are currently holding all their classes online due to the spike of COVID-19 cases in Johnson County. Following recommendations from district staff, the ICCSD Board of Directors […]
Iowa City school board votes to start the year fully online amid COVID-19 spike in Johnson County

The Iowa City Community School District Board of Directors voted unanimously on Saturday to start the school year with two weeks of all online instruction. The decision was made possible by a waiver freeing the district from the 50 percent in-person instruction minimum Gov. Reynolds has mandated every school district in Iowa — except for […]
Iowa City schools granted waiver by state to start classes all online as Johnson County COVID-19 cases soar

The Iowa City Community School District has received a waiver from the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) that will allow it to begin the year with two weeks of all online instruction. The district had applied to DOE for a waiver to exempt its schools from the 50 percent in-person instruction standard Gov. Kim Reynolds […]
Hearing date set for ICCSD, educators’ lawsuit against Gov. Reynolds’ school mandate

A hearing has been scheduled for the lawsuit challenging Gov. Kim Reynolds’ authority to order schools to have 50 percent in-person instruction even if local school boards believe COVID-19 conditions make that too dangerous. The Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) and the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA), which represents more than 30,000 educators in […]
Iowa City Community School District joins lawsuit against Reynolds’ school reopening orders

Gov. Kim Reynolds’ order requiring schools to offer at least 50 percent in-person instruction even if a school board decides the spread of COVID-19 in its community makes it unsafe to do so is unconstitutional, according to the attorney for the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA). ISEA General Counsel Jay Hammond said during a news […]
Gov. Reynolds: School district ‘did exactly what they needed to do’ by moving first-grade class online after positive COVID-19 test

Gov. Kim Reynolds had planned to have the superintendent of the Indianola Community School District speak at her press conference on Tuesday, so he could explain what the district has done since its Irving Elementary School confirmed a case of COVID-19 four days after starting classes, but postponed the superintendent’s appearance to have more time […]