(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Community School District’s Board of Education held a Special Board meeting this (Thursday) evening, to act on two measures to come before them. The first was a Resolution calling for an election on the issuance of $22.5-million in General Obligation (G.O) School Bonds. (You can watch the entire proceedings through this link https://www.youtube.com/live/8rmMb4cnx_M )

Before the Board discussed business dealing with the bonds, Board President Laura McLean took a moment to address the loss of another student in the District. 12-year-old Brynley Lank died unexpectedly, Wednesday. She was a 7th grader in the school system. McLean called for a moment of silence/prayer for her family.

Counselors will be available at each of our schools to support our students in the days ahead. Last month, a student who was about to enter the third grade at Washington Elementary died, after being struck by a vehicle.

Atlantic School Board Special meeting 9-18-25 (YouTube image)

Moving forward with the rest of the agenda, Laura McLean explained the $22.5-million bond referendum is part of the District’s Master Plan for facility improvements.

The Board voted unanimously to pass the Resolution as presented. The language on the ballot in November will ask, “Shall the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Community School District in the Counties of Cass, Pottawattamie and Audubon, State of Iowa, be authorized to contract indebtedness and issue General Obligation Bonds in an amount not to exceed $22,500,000 to provide funds to build, furnish and equip classroom additions and a new secure entrance at Washington Elementary, a new skybridge and commons area between Schuler Elementary and the Middle School, and classroom additions at the High School, with related building and site improvements at each facility; and to remodel, repair, improve, furnish, and equip existing educational facilities, including additional secure entrance improvements, media center and common area improvements at the High School, and site improvements? “

The second action item on their agenda was to establish whether or not an election should be held on the proposed issuance of approximately $18.5-million worth of School Infrastructure Sales, Services and Use Tax Revenue Bonds to pay for a new fieldhouse. A petition with 500 signatures was presented to the Board during their previous meeting, asking for the Bond Measure to be placed on the ballot for the voters to decide.

The Board again voted unanimously to pass a motion placing the matter on the ballot. District Finance Director Lisa Jones and Board Member Kristy Pellett….

If it fails to pass, it will not affect the $22.5-million dollar bond, as that is a separate matter with specific intent.

CITY OFFICES THAT WILL BE ON VARIOUS BALLOTS IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY

Red Oak City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Mayor – Vote for One: John Haidsiak, Tim Fridolph

Council Member Ward #2 – Vote for One: Terry Koppa

Council Member At Large – Vote for One: John Gross, Jeanice Lester

Council Member Ward #1-TFV – Vote for One: Levi Franks

Elliott City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Mayor – Vote for One: Michael A. Carson

Council Member At Large – Vote for Three: Chris Tischer, Nancy Jo Nelson

Grant City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Mayor – Vote for One: Clay Amos

Council Member At Large – Vote for Five: Zelda Swartz. Lyn Sliger, Erin Amos

Villisca City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Mayor – Vote for One: Marilyn Halda

Council Member At Large – Vote for Two: Vince Abraham,

Council Member At Large – TFV 2-year term: Jane Albertie,

Stanton City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Council Member At Large – Vote for Three: Chris Stephens, Justin Rhamy, Wes Royal, Jeff Sebeniecher

Coburg City Offices and Candidates Filed:

Mayor- Vote for One: None Filed

Council Member At Large – Vote for Two: None Filed

(Harlan, Iowa) – Sheriff’s officials in Shelby County have identified the individuals whose bodies were found in a residence that was on-fire Tuesday, in Harlan. Authorities say a female, 52-year-old Dominique Pontzius and a male, 24-year-old Sebastian Pontzius, died as the result of the fire, which was determined to have been intentionally set as an act of suicide for both individuals.

Their relationship was mother and son. No foul play is suspected, and no other persons are being sought. An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

The Sheriff’s Office says if you or someone you know is struggling, help is available by texting 988 (The Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) to connect with support.

WASHINGTON, D.C. [Press Release]— During National Suicide Awareness Month, Representatives Zach Nunn (IA-03) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) introduced the Prevent Youth Suicide Act, bipartisan legislation to equip educators with tools to identify students at risk of suicide and provide life-saving interventions.

“One life lost to suicide is one too many, and far too many families in Iowa know this pain firsthand,” said Rep. Nunn. “The Prevent Youth Suicide Act gives high school teachers and staff the tools to act before a crisis, protect our kids, and help them thrive.”

Suicide is now the second leading cause of death for young people ages 10–24. In Iowa, the suicide rate for this age group is 18.5 per 100,000 — roughly 30% higher than the national average. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 40% of high school students nationwide reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness in 2023, and 1 in 10 attempted suicide.

Despite the urgent need, most school districts lack consistent training and resources to help teachers spot the warning signs when a student is struggling. Without clear guidance, those signs can be missed and students are left without support.

“Every child should know they have someone in their corner when they need it. Our educators do incredible work to teach and support students, and this legislation would ensure they have the training, resources, and processes to help children and connect them with mental health professionals,” said Rep. Pappas. “As we work to tackle the mental health crisis, we must listen to the needs of our children and teachers and take action to strengthen resources and support. No one should ever feel alone in this fight.”

The Prevent Youth Suicide Act would require the U.S. Department of Education to implement a new national standard for suicide prevention across middle and high schools. Specifically, the bill would:

• Provide biennial, evidence-based suicide prevention training for all licensed school personnel working with students in grades 6–12.
• Establish clear protocols to recognize and respond to students showing signs of distress, including guidance on reporting concerns to parents and school counselors.
• Create referral systems connecting students with mental health professionals both in and outside of school.
• Ensure trauma-informed care by training educators to understand and respond appropriately to the impact of trauma in student lives.

Text of the bill can be found here.

(Radio Iowa) – A member of the eastern Iowa immigrant rights group Escucha Mi Voz will go to Italy next month where he plans to meet with Pope Leo the 14th. Reverend Guillermo Trevino of West Liberty will attend the World Meeting of Popular Movements in Rome with Escucha Mi Voz’ parent organization Gamaliel. In the past, the meeting has provided a framework for the language used in the pope’s letters.

Trevino told supporters during a protest this week outside an immigration enforcement office in Cedar Rapids. “It’s a training for six days through the Vatican, sponsored by the Vatican so, approved by the Vatican. It includes an audience with Pope Leo himself,” Travino says, as people applaud. “So we were talking about national attention, but we might get some world attention.”

Trevino is advocating for his godson, Pascual Pedro, to be returned to the United States. Pedro was deported from Iowa to Guatemala this summer despite having no criminal background. “This started, as we know, July 1st, when Pascual was here by himself, but we know he’s not by himself, and it’s a fight still to bring him home,” Trevino says. “So we keep fighting. Don’t give up.”

Trevino recently returned from Washington D.C., where he met with members of Iowa’s congressional delegation to advocate for Pedro’s return.

Escucha Mi Voz is Spanish for “hear my voice.”

(Radio Iowa) – State Senator Claire Celsi’s family has announced Celsi has entered hospice care. Celsi, a Democrat from West Des Moines, has served in the state legislature since 2019. Celsi, who is 59, announced earlier this year she was dealing with a medical issue and was awaiting surgery.

State Senator Claire Celsi (D-West Des Moines) (official photo)

Celsi missed two months of the 2025 legislative session, but returned for the final few weeks. Celsi is a Drake University graduate who founded her own a public relations firm in 2009.

(Radio Iowa) – Attorneys for three environmental groups are urging Iowa officials to adopt tougher water quality standards. The federal Clean Water Act requires states to hold a public hearing about water quality regulations every three years and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources hosted one this (Thursday) morning. Iowa Environmental Council legal counsel Mike Schmidt says a decade ago federal officials recommended that states monitor water for 94 toxins that could impact human health and it’s shocking Iowa standards still call for monitoring just 50. “Iowa has the second highest cancer rate in the country — one of the only states with a rising cancer rate,” Schmidt said, “and we are concerned that water quality plays a role in that.”

An Iowa DNR environmental engineer says the agency is “potentially looking” at adopting the EPA’s expanded list of toxins to monitor, but is looking into using Iowa data rather than national parameters. Dani Replogle is a staff attorney for Food and Water Watch, a national group that has about 24-thousand Iowa members. She says more stringent standards are needed so Iowa taxpayers don’t have to keep paying to clean up drinking water supplies or get rid of algae from public lakes. “DNR’s under-inclusive and vague water quality standards contribute to the water quality crisis by impeding enforcement against polluters,” Replogle said, “and communication about the true magnitude of the problem in Iowa’s waterways,” Replogle said.

Wally Taylor, legal counsel for the Sierra Club’s Iowa chapter, says the state’s voluntary Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy isn’t working and it’s time to set limits on how much nitrogen, phosphorus and manure can used on Iowa farmland. “It’s a no brainer to have numeric criteria for nutrients,” Taylor said, “and to really get a handle on the major problem in Iowa’s waters.” The D-N-R’s water quality resource coordinator says when the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy was adopted in 2013, officials projected it would take many, many years to make progress given the scale of changes required in farming practices and upgrades needed in municipal wastewater plants.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Workforce Development director Beth Townsend says the labor landscape in August remained pretty similar to what we’ve been seeing. “We have a slight uptick in our unemployment rate from three-point-seven to three-point-eight, but we did see an increase of labor force participation to 67-point-five. We added 19-hundred workers in August, so that’s a good sign,” she says. “Iowa employers added 36-hundred jobs in August as well.” Townsend says the addition of jobs was offset by continued layoffs in manufacturing. She says getting more people back into the workforce is important. “The group that we saw gains for the month of August was in the 20 to 24 age group, which is a key demographic because that group has, you know, been on the decline in terms of work,” Townsend says.

Townsend says Iowa’s economy continues to hold steady as we wait for more improvement on the national level. “I would not be the one to predict when we’re going to turn this all around, but I would say these are good trends and we hope that they continue. Obviously we want to bring the unemployment rate down, ” she says. Townsend says the amount of unemployment claims is another number that shows things are holding steady. “We paid out less money in August of 2025 than August of 2024 and benefits obviously went up in July of 2025. So you know you watching the unemployment insurance claim numbers are is also a good indicator of where we’re at,” Townsend says.

Townsend says the average duration for unemployment payouts remains below ten weeks, indicating they’re still able to help people find really good jobs.