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NEWS 9.15.22: WITCC Looks to Add Athletics, School Issue Votes, Fundraiser Helps Iowa Teen Pay Restitution, and More

WITCC

Western Iowa Tech Community College announced plans to pursue adding competitive sports next year. President Terry Murrell stated in a Town Hall Meeting posted to YouTube some options could include basketball, volleyball, and soccer. The move to enter a sports agreement with the National Junior College Collegiate Athletic Association has the full support of WIT’s Board of Directors. Listen for more details tomorrow afternoon during All Things Considered.

News release from Western Iowa Tech Community College:

Western Iowa Tech Community College (WITCC) is excited to announce it will be pursuing athletics on campus. On September 12th the WITCC board of directors authorized the college to submit an application to the National Junior College Athletics Association (NJCAA). The application will be submitted by October 1. Upon approval, the college is aiming to start a women’s volleyball, men’s basketball, and men and women’s soccer teams in fall/winter 2023.

“We are very excited to bring athletics to our campus,” says Terry Murrell, President of Western Iowa Tech Community College. “We believe an athletics program will help build a stronger connection to our community and increase the vibrancy of our campus community.”

*Western Iowa Tech holds the license for Siouxland Public Media. The station is located on the campus of WITCC.

Voters went to the polls to several Siouxland school districts to decide the fate of projects and bond issues. The Storm Lake Community School District received the go-ahead to spend $10 million on an addition for its Early Elementary building. The measure passed with 74% support.

Voters in the Estherville Lincoln Central School District reviewed an existing Physical Plant and Equipment Levy.

A $16 million dollar bond issue passed for the Odebolt-Arthur-Battle Creek-Ida Grove School District or OABCIG.

However, a plan by the Rock Valley School District to spend $25 million on new classrooms and a gym at the high school failed to pass.

The Department of Transportation is recommending several awards for rail projects to be voted on for approval by the Transportation Commission next month.

Radio Iowa reports two of the projects are in Siouxland. One is for Platinum Crush in Buena Vista County. The company is building a new soybean crush plant that will turn soybeans into livestock feed and vegetable oil. The $37 million plan includes a private loop track that can accommodate five-unit trains. The project will create more than 50 new jobs. The DOT is looking at providing a $612,000 grant and $2 million loan toward the project.

Another project up for consideration would improve rail infrastructure for the Floyd Valley Transload in Woodbury County. The total project is almost $1,000,000 and would be covered by a loan and grant of $120,000.

A fundraiser for an Iowa teen who killed a man she says raped her raised enough money to pay off $150,000 in restitution in less than 24 hours after her sentence was handed down.

Pieper Lewis received five years probation and a deferred judgment on Tuesday. Lewis was just 15 when she admitted stabbing 37-year-old Zachary Brooks to death in Des Moines. She was originally charged in 2020 with first-degree murder.

Under Iowa law, Pieper Lewis must also pay the victim’s family $150,000 in restitution, even though prosecutors never disputed her claims of assault and human trafficking.

A GoFundMe page set up for Lewis had raised more than around $230,000 as of early Wednesday afternoon and the amount keeps growing by the minute.

State licensing officials have sanctioned pharmacies in nine of Iowa’s Walgreens stores for a variety of alleged violations. According to the Iowa Capital Dispatch, the issues include missing narcotics, a lack of qualified personnel and issues that caused some Iowans to lose access to their medications. No Sioux City locations received sanctions or fines.

Federal officials are reporting a drop in the number of Iowans hospitalized who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week.

The Department of Health and Human Services says 232 Iowans are hospitalized as of today (Wednesday). That’s down from 270 last week.

That’s as the number of new reported positive COVID tests remains stable.

Iowa health officials say more than 52 hundred positive tests have been reported in the past 7 days.

State officials also added 26 Iowans to the state’s COVID-associated death count, bringing the total to nearly 10 thousand.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 63 percent of all Iowans are fully vaccinated against the virus.

State health officials say the low number of confirmed monkeypox cases means Iowa’s targeted approach is working.

Iowa has just 22 confirmed cases of monkeypox.

State officials say they’ve targeted their monkeypox vaccine outreach toward men who have sex with men and transgender people who have had new partners in the past 30 days. As well as their close contacts and health care professionals.

Ken Sharp is with the state health department.

There was a large amount of demand, eight to 12 weeks ago for a vaccine, we quickly satisfied that demand. And what we're seeing now is the supply that we have for vaccine is more than sufficient for the demand that we're seeing from our local partners. 

Monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted infection, but officials say most cases have been spread through close sexual contact, primarily among men who have sex with men.

Vangarde Arts wants to bring a free outdoor series to Cook Park in Sioux City.

The nonprofit recently submitted the concert series proposal to a foundation that funds projects utilizing music in public spaces.

Vangarde Arts Brent Stockton told the Sioux City Journal’s Earl Horlyk that the organization chose Cook Park to breathe new life into a great midtown park and neighborhood.

Vangarde Arts will need to qualify as one of the top 20 finalists in the public voting phase of the Levitt AMP Sioux City Grant Awards. For information on voting, click on the Facebook page for more information or click here.

News release from the State of Iowa:

Gov. Reynolds announces $40 million for nonprofit projects helping Iowans in need

DES MOINES -- Today, Gov. Reynolds announced $40 million in grant funding for 24 projects through the Nonprofit Innovation Fund. The program, announced as a $20 million grant program in May, doubles the original investment in shovel-ready infrastructure projects that will enable Iowa nonprofits to expand services or help more Iowans.

“We received overwhelming interest in this unique grant program which highlights the passion of Iowa’s nonprofits and their positive impact on our state,” said Gov. Reynolds. “These grants will invest in innovative projects that will put Iowa’s nonprofits in a better position to serve those in need.”

Funding will support projects statewide, including:

  • Cambridge: Youth & Shelter Services has been awarded $3,000,000 toward the development of a youth recovery campus with emergency shelter, crisis stabilization, and residential addiction treatment for adolescents and young adults. The campus will provide a nature-focused setting and trauma-informed care. The award represents 17 percent of the total project cost of $17,992,000. 
  • Centerville: Centerville Betterment Community, Inc. has been awarded $650,000 for a larger facility to expand services for individuals with mental health and intellectual disabilities. The award represents 50 percent of the total project cost of $1,300,000. 
  • Cherokee: Centers Against Abuse and Sexual Assault has been awarded $515,295 to repair and update New Leaf, a thrift shop whose proceeds benefit survivors of sexual assault. The award represents 90 percent of the total project cost of $572,550. 
  • Des Moines: Center at Sixth has been awarded $3,000,000 to purchase commercial space in the 6th Avenue neighborhood for a nonprofit incubator where entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds will have access to mentors and tools to grow their businesses. The award represents 84 percent of the total project cost of $3,579,876. 

IEDA began accepting applications June 27. Eligible expenses for infrastructure projects include construction costs, acquisition, site development, engineering and architectural services. Funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024. For more information on the Nonprofit Innovation Fund, visit iowaeda.com/nonprofit-innovation-fund/.

Funding for this grant opportunity is made available through the federal American Rescue Plan Act.