GUARD STUDENT
An Iowa State University undergraduate from Le Mars is getting a free college education through his membership in the Iowa National Guard.
A Guard public affairs release says Devon Feenstra is a freshman at ISU, working toward a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing. At the same time, he’s a member of the 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City. This is his third year with the 185th. On training weekends, Feenstra teaches emergency management classes. As a member of the Guard, he is required to attend monthly training meetings, and aditional training periods each year.
The Iowa College Aid Commission says eligible members can receive up to 100% tuition assistance at Iowa institutions of higher learning, or trade schools.
After twenty years of service in the National Guard, members are eligible for a military pension at age 60.
After finishing his undergraduate studies, Feenstra will be able to apply for a commission as a military officer.
FATAL CRASH
There was a two vehicle fatal crash in Sioux County last night. The Iowa State Patrol says an 18 year old Emma Nibbelink of Luverne, Minnesota, drove onto the west shoulder of US 75, over-corrected, and crossed the center line, into the path of a pickup driven by 25 year old Dylan Taylor of Le Mars. Taylor’s vehicle stuck Nibbelink’s vehicle broadside, and both vehicles went into a ditch. Nibbelink was pronounced dead at the scene. Taylor was not seriously hurt. The State Patrol says the shoulder was covered in ice and snow at the time. The accident occurred around 6 pm on US 75, 5 miles north of Sioux Center.
REYNOLDS SCHOOL REFORM
Governor Kim Reynolds is proposing state-funded savings accounts for parents who send their children to private school. Reynolds outlined the plan during the annual “Condition of the State” address at the statehouse last night.
The governor’s plan would create Education Savings Accounts. In the next school year, about 76-hundred dollars in state money would be deposited in each account — for low income parents enrolling a child in a private school. In the third year, all Iowa parents would be eligible for state money to cover private school tuition and related expenses.
This is the third year Reynolds has asked the Republican-led legislature to pass a so-called “school choice” plan and this year’s bill is the most expansive. Reynolds campaigned against some fellow Republicans in the Iowa House who opposed her previous plans. This new proposal is expected to send nearly 107 million dollars to low income Iowa parents who enroll their child in a private school for the next school year.
The governor’s staff did not have state spending estimates for future years, when all parents would be eligible for state funds to cover private school expenses for a child. Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls says the governor’s plan, in year three, will give taxpayer dollars to wealthy Iowans who can already afford to send their kids to private school.
House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst says private schools aren’t required to take students — and there’s no private school option in 42 Iowa counties.
A newly-created, five-member House committee will review the governor’s school choice plan at a meeting early Wednesday afternoon. Jack Whitver, the Republican leader in the state Senate, suggests the governor’s bill could move quickly through the legislative process.
Reynolds also used Tuesday night’s speech to reveal a state government reorganization plan. Reynolds hired a private consulting firm to help develop the outline, which would shrink the number of state agencies from 37 to 16.
GRASSLEY SURGERY
Senator Chuck Grassley will undergo surgery this week after hurting his hip. Grassley’s staff released a statement yesterday at about 5:30 p.m., saying Grassley is in good spirits and expected to make a full recovery. The statement did not indicate how Grassley injured his hip or what kind of surgery would be performed. Grassley sent a tweet shortly after seven o’clock last night, praising Governor Reynolds for her “Condition of the State” message, but not commenting on his own condition. Grassley has just started his 8th term in the U.S. Senate and has the most seniority of any currently serving senator. Grassley, who is 89, is also the second oldest current member of the Senate.
DEERE EQUIPMENT REPAIRS
The American Farm Bureau has reached an agreement with John Deere that will allow farmers to repair their own equipment, or take it to independent repair shops. The director of the Drake University Agricultural Law Center, Jennifer Zwagerman, says says Deere needs to protect the investment it has made and the computerized systems, programming or technology that’s used in the equipment is more important than the equipment itself. Zwagerman says Deere was trying to do that — but was not fully recognizing or meeting the needs of their customers. She says the agreement should answer the calls of farmers for a change. She says the Deere agreement will extend beyond that company’s products — as the memorandum of agreement says the Farm Bureau is looking to enter into these types of agreements with other companies as well.
