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It’s a sure sign that summer is coming to an end when
students, parents and teachers prepare to head back to school.
I’m certainly ready for my two daughters, Katie and Shawn,
to go back to school. Katie, who will
be a senior at Oskaloosa
High School, spent the
summer working at the local golf course.
Shawn, who will be a sophomore, earned money mowing lawns and
babysitting.
As a senior, Katie is beginning to look at colleges. She’s undecided about a major but is
interested in playing volleyball and possibly golf in college. Katie first has to choose between a
community college, a private college or one of our state universities. I personally had a great experience at Loras College in Dubuque,
where Mary and I met.
I’m proud that Iowa
kids have some great choices when it comes to in-state education. Supporting education is a bipartisan
priority in the Iowa Legislature. Our
recent efforts are improving student achievement by keeping the best teachers
in Iowa classrooms, increasing accountability, and making quality preschool
accessible to all Iowa kids.
I’m looking forward to seeing that progress firsthand when
I visit local classrooms as part of America's Legislators Back to
School Program.
This national effort, sponsored by the National Conference
of State Legislatures, teaches young people what it's like to be a state
legislator. Every year, more than
1,400 state lawmakers visit an estimated 320,000 students in
their classrooms, bringing civics to life for our young Americans and
encouraging them to play an active role in their government.
It also gives me the opportunity to meet personally with
young constituents, answer questions, share ideas and listen to concerns.
I am setting up my visits for the upcoming school year and
am interested in visiting any elementary, junior high and high school
classroom that would like to have me.
If you’d like me to come to your school at any time throughout the
year, call me at 641-673-0359 or e-mail me at tom.rielly@mahaska.org.
Congratulations to Maj. Dan Maeder
of Richland and 1st Lt. Robert Larkins of Fremont,
who were named Iowa National Guard “Hometown Heroes” during the Iowa State
Fair, Aug. 7 - 17.
Maeder, who serves at Camp Dodge
in Johnston,
was Hometown Hero of the Day on Aug. 9.
He is an assistant principal at Ottumwa’s
Evans Middle School. While serving in Iraq, Maeder
organized “Operation Iowa Cares,” an initiative to provide Iraqi
schoolchildren with school supplies. More than 1,450 backpacks filled with
school supplies were donated by Iowans and distributed to Iraqi children.
Larkins, who serves in Ottumwa, was Hometown
Hero for Aug. 15. He is a college
student, who has been deployed to Iraq
twice, as well as to California for a U.S.
border security mission. Larkins is currently
engaged in flood and fire restoration.
Grant opportunities make Iowa a great place to live, work and raise a
family
The Iowa Arts Council has received a $100,000 grant from
the National Endowment for the Arts for Iowa artists and arts organizations
recovering from storm damage.
Some of the dollars will go to the 2008 Emergency Arts
Relief program, which provides up to $500 for immediate recovery needs.
Others will be used for larger grants and stipends generally ranging from
$3,000 - $6,000.
Disaster-affected Iowa
artists and Iowa
arts organizations that are nonprofit, federally tax-exempt, and located in a
state- or federally-declared disaster area are eligible to apply. Complete information and applications are
available at www.iowaartscouncil.org.
Working with Iowa
young people can be a great win-win opportunity for local businesses. The Iowa Student Internship Program is now
accepting applications from local businesses interested in providing
internships to Iowa
college students.
Companies are eligible to apply for up to three
internships, which are worth $3,100 each. The program is available to
Iowa-based companies that:
- Have
fewer than 500 employees, with a significant portion employed within Iowa in
biosciences, advanced manufacturing or information technology.
- Offer
internships to students of Iowa
community colleges, private colleges, or regent institutions within two
years of graduation.
- Create
a substantive working experience for interns in research and
development, engineering, process management and production, product
experimentation and analysis, product development, market research,
business planning and administration.
For more information, visit www.iowalifechanging.com/business/innov&comm.html
The Iowa Utilities Board is coordinating a community-based
initiative to weatherize homes for Iowans in need before the winter heating
season.
A community grant of up to $5,000 is available for
communities with a population of 10,000 or less to educate residents on
weatherization and energy efficiency.
The Utilities Board is also offering matching grants of up
to $500 to organizations throughout Iowa.
These grants are to be used to weatherize homes and provide educational
materials for Iowa’s
low-income families, elderly or disabled individuals.
More information is available at www.state.ia.us/iub.
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