Dordt College and Northwestern College Named Top Ten Colleges in Midwest
(Le Mars) — Two Iowa colleges have made the top ten list from a major national magazine publication.
Dordt College of Sioux Center and Northwestern College
of Orange City are both recognized by U-S News and World Report magazine as being among the top ten colleges in the Midwest. Dordt College is ranked sixth, and Northwestern is placed at seventh among 79 Midwestern regional colleges in the magazine’s 2019 Best Colleges guidebook. This marks the
second year in a row for Dordt to be among the top ten colleges, and the 27th time overall Dordt has been listed. It is the 12th year in a row for Northwestern to be in the top 10. The U.S. News rankings are based on key measures of quality such as academic reputation; retention (freshman retention and graduation rate); faculty resources (including class size, the percentage of faculty with the top academic degree, student-faculty ratio and compensation); student excellence;
financial resources; alumni giving; and social mobility.
Other Iowa colleges among the rankings include: Briar Cliff at Sioux City, Iowa Wesleyan at Mount Pleasant, and Waldorf College at Forrest City. Grinnell placed among the Best Liberal Arts Schools throughout the nation. The rankings, which include nearly 1,400 schools nationwide, are available at www.usnews.com/colleges.
Plymouth County Extension To Offer Seminar On Dealing With Stress
(Le Mars) — Dealing with stress while keeping balance between work and life in a chaotic world will be the focus of a seminar sponsored by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach of Plymouth County, along with the Le Mars Chamber of Commerce Main Street organization. Janelle Johnson, program co- coordinator with the Extension Services says the program is scheduled for October 4th at the Le Mars Convention Center, and will feature Kathy Petersen of People Works, Incorporated.
Johnson says its important if you have an interest in attending the program to pre-register no later than September 21st.
The Plymouth County Extension official says the speaker has been to Le Mars on a previous speaking occasion.
Johnson says the program is open to anyone, and she encourages everyone to attend.
That seminar is scheduled for Thursday, October 4th and will begin at 8:45 a.m. and continue up to noon.
Food Bank Official Charged With Embezzlement
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A former Food Bank of Iowa employee has been accused of stealing nearly $35,000 while working for the nonprofit.
Polk County court records say 31-year-old Lauren Phillips is charged with theft, identity theft, forgery and other crimes. The records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for her.
The records say she used the CEO’s identity and that of several vendors to create and issue checks to herself, while using fake invoices to enter those checks into records as valid payments.
Des Moines Police Detective and Girlfriend Given Probation For Fight
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A Polk County sheriff’s detective and his girlfriend have been given a year of probation for their roles in an Ankeny bar fracas.
Court records say John Negrete and Tereasa Sunberg also were given deferred judgments at their sentencings Friday. That means their convictions can be removed from court records if they complete their probation terms.
The two were convicted in July of assault causing injury.
Authorities say Negrete punched an Ankeny firefighter, Ross Frank, and Sunberg punched Frank’s wife, Danielle.
Negrete and Sunberg say Frank groped Sunberg at the Clipper bar the night of Sept. 8 before the fracas. Frank denied the accusation. Prosecutors say Negrete was off-duty when he punched the firefighter in the mouth and under his left eye.
Anglers Concerned About Fish Population
ONAWA, Iowa (AP) – Anglers are concerned that they’ll have less information about fish populations and habitat after an Iowa agency closes its only fish-monitoring station on the Missouri River.
The state’s Department of Natural Resources will hold a public hearing Tuesday at the Lewis and Clark State Park Visitor Center to discuss its plans.
The agency plans to reassign two permanent monitoring station positions to other locations in eastern Iowa by Oct. 5. Officials say the closure is necessary due to budget cuts.
Onawa fisherman Matt Sorenson says he’s concerned anglers will have less information about the area’s fish after the station closes.
David Weidt is a former Monona County Conservation ranger. He says it’s important to have researchers studying the river.
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Cedar River Starting To Recede After Rising Above Flood Levels
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – The Cedar River has crested below major flood level in Cedar Rapids.
The National Weather Service says the river crested at less than 16 feet (5 meters) overnight Sunday into Monday but remains more than 3 feet (1 meter) above flood level. The city had prepared some spots for a crest of 18 feet (6 meters).
The river is expected to return below flood stage by Thursday, with clear and sunny skies in the National Weather Service forecast.
