There’s still time to sign up for the first-ever Iowa Outdoor Learning Environments Conference which will be held in Ames later this month. One of the organizers, Carly Sabus, explains the focus of outdoor learning environments, or OLEs (pronounced OH-lees).

Sabus says, “We define an outdoor learning environment as a deliberately-designed outdoor space for intentional learning and an intentional setting for exploration, inquiry, and learning to empower environmental literacy and education and STEM learning.”

An OLE can be located at a school or other community location like a library, park, protected natural area, or other places where the outdoor setting can enhance educational opportunities for youth and community members. The two-day conference will zero in on helping Iowans create more OLEs. “We will be having a whole line-up of workshops and speakers from all over the region who are local experts on these outdoor learning environments,” Sabus says. “We’ll be tackling subjects like gaining community support for your outdoor learning environment, helping get funds, how you get volunteers.”

Workshops will also teach participants how to create educational programs, design, implement and maintain OLEs. The event will be held June 18th and 19th at the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center in Ames. The event is sponsored by Prairie Rivers of Iowa.

(Radio Iowa) –  more at www.prrcd.org

PHOENIX (AP) — More than two months after an Arizona man was arrested on a fugitive warrant stemming from his escape from an Iowa prison 37 years ago, officials there have yet to decide whether to extradite or release him. For over a decade, Charles Cagley thought he was no longer a wanted man based on a private investigator’s research in 2005 and on an Iowa prison warden’s letter to Veterans Affairs a year later, his wife Virginia Cagley said.

All that came unglued March 27 when police, notified by the FBI that Iowa had a newly outstanding warrant for him, showed up at the couple’s home in Prescott Valley, 82 miles north of Phoenix. The Cagleys had lived in the area since 2004.

Since Charles Cagley’s arrest, Iowa authorities have been trying to decide where things stand legally and what they will do next. Meanwhile, he’s been locked up at the Yavapai County Jail in Camp Verde, 23 miles from the couple’s home. “He does a lot of reading. He’s read a lot of books and he constructed a backgammon game out of cardboard and sugar containers,” Virginia Cagley told The Associated Press during a telephone interview Thursday. “He and his cellmates play.”

The wife, who frequently speaks to her jailed husband by phone, said his frame of mind is “up and down, nervous and not nervous.” Iowa Department of Corrections spokesman Cord Overton said Friday the department has been working with an assistant attorney general and Gov. Kim Reynolds’ staff “to take the proper legal course of action in regards to this case.”

Overton said Iowa officials believe that a 90-day limit on his detention in Arizona expires June 26. Finding paper records from decades ago is one reason resolution of the case has been difficult, Overton said. Overton previously told the AP that the 2018 warrant that resulted in Charles Cagley’s March arrest was issued after state officials reviewed old records and found that the escape case appeared unresolved.

Charles Cagley entered prison in 1978 to serve a 10-year sentence, less time for good behavior, on a robbery conviction in Woodbury County. Virginia Cagley previously said her husband fled because he was threatened by other inmates who wanted him to smuggle marijuana into the prison and because somebody tried to break into her trailer. “We were in fear for our lives so we ran,” she said.

The private investigator the couple hired in 2005 to research the Iowa case was told “everything had been dropped,” Virginia Cagley said. In 2006, after Charles Cagley applied for VA benefits, the Iowa warden wrote the VA and said the 1991 warrant was withdrawn, she added.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Some Dubuque parents are concerned about the end of an elementary school’s charter status, despite officials saying many of the school’s practices will remain in place. The Dubuque Community School Board voted in January not to renew Prescott Elementary School’s status as a charter school, The Telegraph Herald reported. Officials said they believed the school didn’t see significant improvement in student achievement during its 12 years as a charter.

The school will keep its expeditionary-learning instructional design, with an integration of the arts, and continue having students spend two years with the same teacher, Principal Vicki Sullivan said. She said officials believe they’ve found ways to keep the school’s identity.

“I do not think that the children will be experiencing a large difference,” Sullivan said.
The school will see some changes, such as transitioning to regular enrollment boundaries next school year instead of being open to all students, Sullivan said. Students who were enrolled this school year will be allowed to continue attending classes, district officials said.

About 15 students have decided to leave Prescott and attend their home schools, Sullivan said. The school has about 260 students. Parent Liz Wiskus said she’s decided to transfer her daughter, Hailey, to Carver Elementary School in the fall for fifth grade.
“Too much was in limbo,” Wiskus said. Naomi Clark’s daughter, Liberty, will start the fourth grade in the fall. Clark said she plans to open-enroll Liberty at Prescott, despite concerns about how the school may change.

“They have friends here,” Clark said. “They know the teacher, they know the school and hopefully, many of the charter elements will be kept.”

MAQUOKETA, Iowa (AP) — A Dubuque man charged in the stabbing death of a Bellevue man has pleaded not guilty. The Telegraph Herald reports that 23-year-old Drew Mangler entered a written plea last week in Jackson County District Court. Mangler is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old James Remakel.

Police found Remakel’s body after being called to a house in Bellevue on Dec. 25, 2016. An autopsy showed Remakel had been stabbed 33 times in his upper body, neck and head. He was believed to be dead for several days before police found him.
Court documents say Mangler was developed as a suspect following witness accounts to police. Investigators say they found a shoe with Remakel’s blood on it during a search of Mangler’s house.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A year after firework sales returned to Iowa, many cities have implemented new restrictions as the fledgling industry tries to put itself on a more permanent footing. The Iowa Legislature last year cleared the way for consumer fireworks in Iowa for the first time since 1938 in last-minute legislation that left cities and businesses scrambling. Some cities received numerous complaints, while fireworks companies filed lawsuits alleging too many barriers were erected.

Firework sales already have started for the summer season at permanent retail outlets, and sales can begin Wednesday at tents and other temporary structures. Iowa law also allows winter firework sales in December and early January. Summer firework sales run through July 8, the last day discharging fireworks is legal. Absent more restrictive local rules, fireworks can be shot off between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily or until 11 p.m. on July 4 and the weekends of June 30 and July 7.

Sioux City and Council Bluffs, have restricted the use of fireworks to a much narrower timeframe. Although cities can ban the use of fireworks, they can’t stop firework sales. They can, however, limit where items are sold to certain areas. Council Bluffs Mayor Matt Walsh said the city is experienced with an annual “tidal wave” of fireworks, which have long been legal in neighboring Nebraska. He said allowing a short window to use them has worked, and the city saw no injuries last year. “We realize that it’s almost impossible to regulate the use during the Fourth of July,” Walsh said. “Council Bluffs residents were buying fireworks and shooting them off anyhow.

The state fire marshal’s office said no agency tracks the number of injuries or fire calls linked to legalizing fireworks, leaving the exact impact of fireworks ambiguous. Some cities, like Des Moines, reported a surge in calls. Others, like Council Bluffs, had few adverse consequences. Beyond safety concerns, the noise from fireworks can be a nuisance for the elderly, veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, pet owners and those with an early bedtime.

State Fire Marshal Dan Wood said 552 licenses had been issued as of last Friday. He expects a final tally between 700 and 800, which would be up from last summer’s 664 fireworks stands. Inspections are conducted once the stands are up and running.
“It didn’t seem like we had too many large issues last year,” Wood said. “For the most part, it was just small stuff that they were able to fix on the fly.”

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa maker of wind turbine blades has been fined nearly $155,000 for multiple workplace safety violations. The Des Moines Register reports that Iowa’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration levied the fines against TPI Composites for violations at its Newton plant. The violations included fire hazards, airborne contaminants, faulty record keeping, fall hazards and a lack of employee training.

The citations support complaints from dozens of former workers who say TPI didn’t properly protect them from dangerous chemicals that caused them severe skin injuries. Those complaints were first reported by the Des Moines Register. Some workers say they were fired after reporting the injuries.

The company said Friday it was evaluating OSHA’s findings and that safety is a core value of the company. Six former employees are suing the company.

The National Weather Service reports isolated severe storms are possible today (Sunday), mainly over central Iowa. Severe storms are possible again on Monday, especially by late afternoon and into the evening. Large hail and damaging winds will be the main threats though isolated tornadoes may occur. In addition locally heavy rainfall is possible.

Police in Council Bluffs are searching for a vehicle and driver involved in a pedestrian hit-and-run crash that happened today (Sunday), at around 2:35-a.m.  Authorities say the incident occurred on the Intertstate 480 westbound on ramp from N. 41st Street, in Council Blufs. The male pedestrian was identified as 27 year old Joshua Nelsen of Omaha, NE. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment of serious injuries. The hit-and-run vehicle may be a tan sport utility vehicle unknown make, model, or year.

The Council Bluffs Police Department is asking anyone with information on the incident to please call the Council Bluffs Traffic Unit at (712) 328-4948 or Crime Stoppers at (712) 328-7867(STOP).

Red Oak Police, Saturday evening, were called to the Montgomery County Law Enforcement Center, to speak with two juveniles and their parents, about an incident that took place 6-p.m. Friday. Upon further investigation, the two (unnamed) juveniles were cited into Juvenile Court, for Theft in the 5th Degree. The youth were then released to their parents.

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst held her 4^th annual Roast and Ride, Saturday. The event kicked off at Big Barn Harley Davidson in Des Moines with a ride honoring veterans and patriots, with nearly 450 motorcycle riders participating. The proceeds from ticket sales for the ride will be donated to the Travis Mills Foundation, an organization that provides an all-inclusive, and all-expenses paid retreat for veterans and their families.

Joni Ernst with Travis Mills (Photo provided)

The Republican Senator from Red Oak said of Travis Mills, “Your story of service and sacrifice is an inspiration to us all and your commitment to supporting fellow veterans from across the country – including right here in Iowa – is the true meaning of brotherly love.”

The nearly 450 motorcycle riders then traveled about 50 miles to the Central Iowa Expo in Boone for a family-friendly hog roast, where nearly 1000 attendees heard from Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, special guest Chairman Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, and Senator Joni Ernst.