A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on Monday afternoon that stops the Reynolds administration from enforcing its law prohibiting Iowa school districts from creating their own face mask mandates. “Iowa’s mask mandate ban makes it dangerous for disabled or immunocompromised children to attend school, but several pediatricians opine it is dangerous for […]
Iowa Department of Education
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‘A very clear disability discrimination situation’: ACLU and 11 Iowa families sue over state ban on school mask mandates
The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Iowa filed a lawsuit in federal court on Friday, seeking to overturn the ban on school mask mandates Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law earlier this year. The national ACLU and the Iowa affiliate were joined by Disability Rights Iowa and the Arc of Iowa, an […]
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Reynolds says she wants to give ‘the public reliable information’ about COVID, before cutting off questions at news conference
“I believe the government’s role in a public health crisis is to provide the public reliable information, so that they can make and form their own informed decisions,” Gov. Kim Reynolds said during a news conference on Thursday. “I also believe that this approach is more effective than mandates that attempt to dictate other people’s […]
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‘It’s simply unacceptable’: U.S. Department of Education launches investigation of Iowa’s ban on mask mandates in schools
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has launched an investigation into whether Iowa’s prohibition on mandating face masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 put students at risk in a way that violates their rights. “Specifically, OCR will examine whether, in light of Iowa’s prohibition on local school districts and schools […]
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COVID-19: Reynolds sued over ban on masks in schools; more than 7,000 new cases reported in latest update
One day after a lawsuit was filed against the state over the new state law barring school boards from requiring face masks in schools, IDPH published an update showing another 7,112 Iowans tested positive for COVID-19 during its most recent seven-day reporting period. The new cases included in the Wednesday update pushed the total number […]
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Republican-backed bill allowing charter schools to avoid local oversight goes to the governor’s desk
A bill preempting the authority of local school boards over publicly funded charter schools is going to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk for her signature. Reynolds named this sort of expansion of charter schools in Iowa as one of her top priorities in her Condition of the State speech at the beginning of this year’s legislative […]
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Gov. Reynolds signs bill requiring all schools to offer 100% in-person instruction regardless of COVID-19 conditions
Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill on Friday morning that will require all school districts to provide 100 percent in-person instruction to any student whose parents request it, regardless of its possible impact on the spread of COVID-19 in a school or a community. “It’s time to put local control into the hands of parents, […]
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COVID-19: ICCSD’s waiver request was denied as Reynolds plans elimination of hybrid learning; deaths surpass 4,000
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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
