The Atlantic Rotary Club and Administrators with the Atlantic Community School District, Wednesday afternoon, paid tribute to retiring teachers and staff of the District. The event culminated with the award for Rotary Teacher of the Year.

Gini Jordan (far right), 2017-18 Teacher of the year, and her family. (Click on the image to enlarge)

That award went to a woman who was recognized at the beginning of the event, Gini Jordan, Schuler Elementary School Special Education teacher, who is retiring after more than 34-years with the District. Schuler Principal James Northwick spoke about Jordan’s being a Catholic School Teacher for six-months. Later she would work in Audubon, and finally to Atlantic, where she was a substitute teacher and then a Special Education Teacher.

He said he and others will greatly miss her ability to be a mentor to those around her, someone who would stay after school to talk with teachers well past the end of the school day, and was always able to revive his plants or at least offer advice on how to care for them. He says she’s always willing to help.

Toward the end of the program, last year’s Teacher of the Year award winner Lisa Munsey, read from some of the nomination forms submitted on Jordan’s behalf. One of the respondents said “This teacher is an excellent role model for our Six Pillars of Education: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship.” She went on to read “[She] treats students with dignity and respect….[she] has one of the biggest hearts in education…[she] is committed to students with Special Needs. [She] is skillful and creative in the classroom and shares knowledge and expertise with others.”

The nominator said Gini Jordan also “Has always has a special knack with some of our tougher students…[she] isn’t afraid to take on a challenge and is an expert in building  relationships with students.” Jordan’s family was in attendance for the surprise award, including her son James (who graduated from AHS in 2003. He now makes machines for genetic sequencing) her two daughters, who are also Atlantic graduates who went on to become teachers in Carroll and Iowa City respectively, and her husband Jim, who will retire from the Iowa DOT on Thursday.

She said “It’s been a wonderful career that I’ve had, the joy and satisfaction that I’ve gotten from getting to know all of you…I couldn’t have this [award] without you.” She closed by saying “I wish you all the same wonderful career that I had.” Other awards were presented to the following retirees: Ginger Bechtold, Dan Amos, and Barb Linn. Many other teachers and staff received certificates for 10- 15- 20- and 35-years of service to the District. Superintendent Steve Barber also recognized those persons who will be leaving at the end of the current school year in pursuit of other opportunities, including Activities Director/Asst. High School Principal Matt Alexander, who will become Superintendent for the OA-BCIG School District.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s lowest-performing schools must do more than show improvement to get off a list of targeted schools under a plan approved by the U.S. Department of Education. U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos informed Iowa Wednesday that its school accountability plan was accepted after revisions made by the Iowa Department of Education.

The plan replaces Iowa’s old system that required 100 percent student proficiency. Iowa now seeks to have 80 percent of high schoolers proficient in reading and 84 percent in math.

Iowa wanted to allow schools in the bottom 5 percent of proficiency that show consistent improvement to stop being subjected to special policies intended to improve performance. Federal officials said those schools must no longer be in the bottom 5 percent to remove the designation.

An accident in Council Bluffs involving a transit bus resulted in three people being transported to the hospital and injuries to three others who were treated at the scene. Council Bluffs Police say officers responded just before Noon today (Wednesday) to the scene across from the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office at 1300 Big Lake Road, where a small transit bus crashed into the train trestle.

Upon arrival, officers noted the bus was too tall to make it under the trestle and the top of the bus was severely damaged. The back of the bus was ripped off during impact with the trestle. The bus was owned by Notre Dame Housing, an assisted-living facility in Omaha, NE. There were six people on the bus, including the driver. All of them had minor injuries and three of the passengers received treatment at local hospitals for non-life threatening injuries.

The driver of the bus was issued a citation for the accident. The Canadian National railroad was notified during the incident and all train activity was stopped causing traffic jams throughout the area for about an hour. Train traffic has returned to normal by around 3-p.m.

Authorities say it was six-months ago today (Wednesday), on Nov. 16th, 2017, that a similar accident occurred at the same location where, thankfully, no one was injured. The clearance for this bridge is only eight feet eight inches. The public is reminded of the low clearance, and should plan routes accordingly.

KJAN will be broadcasting on Facebook Live the Atlantic High School Graduation Ceremony on Sunday on the KJAN AM 1220 Facebook page. The ceremony is set to begin at 2:00pm on Sunday, May 20th at the Atlantic High School Gymnasium.

Head to the KJAN facebook page here.

A Judge in Cass County District Court has dismissed charges against a Cumberland man charged in Sept. 2017, with Sexual Abuse in the 3rd Degree. According to online court records, The alleged incident involving 47-year old Matthew Lynn Dorscher took place Jan. 1st, 2015. After a criminal complaint was submitted Sept. 7th, 2017 and a warrant was issued in association with the investigation, Dorscher turned himself-in on the warrant for felony Sexual Abuse 3rd Degree, and Lascivious Conduct with a Minor. The latter charge was dropped, and Dorscher was set to stand trial April 24th.

Dorscher’s attorney submitted documents April 16th for an Alibi Defense. Two days later, the State (Prosecution) filed a motion to dismiss the case, with court costs assessed to the State. Judge Susan Christensen summarily dismissed the case without prejudice.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has released a report on arrests dating back to April 24th. Among those arrested: On Monday, 47-year old Kimberly Barbara Hoffman, of Walnut, was arrested on an active warrant for Theft in the 1st Degree, and Forgery. Hoffman was booked into the Shelby County Jail and held under $15,000 cash/surety bond pending initial appearance. She was released later that day after appearance with Shelby County Magistrate. And, last Sunday, 40-year old Seamus (Shame’us) Walsh Vaughan, of Shelby, was arrested for OWI/1st offense, and carrying weapons. Vaughan was transported to the Shelby County Jail and held under $3,000 cash/surety bond. Vaughan was released the following evening from jail after posting a cash bond.

On May 4th, Deputies in Shelby County arrested 24-year-old Cody Michael Doss, of Council Bluffs, on charges of carrying concealed weapons, possession of drug paraphernalia, and providing false information to a peace officer. Doss was transported to the Shelby County Jail and held under a $2,000 cash/surety bond. Doss had an active warrant out of Pottawattamie County, and was transferred to their facility after posting bond on Shelby County charges, May 10th. Also arrested May 4th, was 20-year-old Wayne Richard Koster, of Patchouge, New York. Koster was charged with eluding, prohibited acts, operating while intoxicated, possession of controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. His arrest was the result of a pursuit through the county at speeds reaching 150mph. Koster was transported to Shelby County Jail where he is being held under a $7,000 cash/surety bond. Koster was also being held while awaiting extradition on an outstanding warrant out of New York.

Information on other arrests can be found on the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office’ Facebook page.

(IA DNR) – Springtime means baby season for Iowa wildlife, beginning with the first hatched great horned owls in March on to June when most of the pheasant chicks arrive and nothing looks more innocent and cute than baby animals. Just check the internet. And on occasion, these cute fluffy and feathery, clumsy and gangly babies are discovered all alone and “rescued” from their mother into a cardboard box and whisked to the nearest office of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR). While the “rescuer” may have had the best intentions, they likely have doomed the very animal they aimed to save.

Many wildlife babies die soon after “rescue” from the stress of being handled, talked to, and placed into the unfamiliar surroundings. Should it survive this trauma, they often succumb more slowly to starvation from improper nourishment, pneumonia or other human caused sicknesses. “All species of wildlife have highly specific needs for survival,” said Karen Kinkead, Wildlife Diversity Program coordinator for the Iowa DNR. Rescuing a baby from its mother not only shows bad judgement, it’s illegal. “Most mammals are nocturnal. Mother will hide her young during the day so she can sleep or look for food so it’s perfectly normal for the young to be alone or unattended during the day,” she said. “Don’t assume a fawn or a nest full of baby cottontails or raccoons are orphaned.”

The transition to independence varies by species from as little as four or five days to weeks or even months. Most wildlife babies leave before they can care for themselves. They may become widely scattered during this fledgling period, but remain under the direct care and feeding of their parents. Young birds appear clumsy and vulnerable because they really are clumsy and vulnerable. As the fledging process continues, survivors smarten up fast, while slow learners quickly fade. Most birds have less than a 20 percent chance of surviving their first year.

Fawns

As the morel mushroom season hits full stride, so does the number of calls to the Iowa DNR about finding “abandoned” fawns. A fawn’s self-defense is to remain motionless and blend in with the background vegetation, but that is often mistaken for abandonment. What callers don’t realize is that mother is likely hiding nearby waiting for them to leave so she can resume taking care of her fawn. “The Iowa DNR does not rehabilitate or raise wild animals to the point of self-sufficiency, and, because of the expanding presence of chronic wasting disease in the Iowa deer herd, we do not allow deer to be taken to a private rehabilitator to be raised and released,” said Tyler Harms, biometrician with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Research Section.

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal neurological disease that affects deer, elk, moose, and caribou. In some locations where the disease has been the longest, it is causing population declines. The disease can be spread through saliva, urine, feces and blood of an infected deer. Once shed into the environment, the infectious agent, a deformed prion protein, can remain viable and infect healthy deer for years. Infected does can pass along the disease to their fawns, if not before birth, afterword through grooming and close contact.

Infected deer may not show symptoms for about two years, making the disease difficult to find. There is currently no practical way to test live deer; the only way is to collect tissues (lymph nodes) from a dead deer and submit them to a lab for testing. “We appreciate the passion people have to protect the fawns. We have it too. But, all it takes is one infected deer to be taken to a pen or other area where it can infect other deer and the environment, then the likelihood of any healthy deer getting sick at the facility increases dramatically,” he said.

Harms said the best chance for fawns or baby ducks, raccoons, skunks and birds to survive is for them to be left alone, in the wild.

BURLINGTON, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say the woman whose body was found next to a burning car north of Burlington was the wife of the driver. The Des Moines County attorney’s office identified the woman Tuesday as 50-year-old Lisa Wischmeier. The office didn’t release any information about the cause of her death. Her husband, 57-year-old Bradley Wischmeier, has pleaded not guilty to vehicular homicide and operating under the influence. His trial is scheduled to begin July 24.

Deputies sent April 17 to the scene in a harvested cornfield not far from the Wischmeiers’ home found him lying around 20 yards (18 meters) from the blazing vehicle. Court records say Wischmeier told deputies that he’d been driving crazily around the field until the vehicle overheated and caught fire.

One of the largest medical centers in southwest Iowa is announcing expansion plans. Steven Baumert, president & C-E-O of Methodist Jennie Edmundson Hospital, says they’re adding a three-story, 60-thousand-square-foot medical office building with a price tag around 16-million dollars. “The first floor of the medical office building will be home to around 15 Methodist Physicians Clinic primary care providers,” Baumert says. “It will also include an imaging suite as well as a new Urgent Care with easy access and extended hours.”

The second floor will be dedicated to addressing and improving the health of area women. “This floor of the building will be a hub for women’s services,” Baumert says. “It will include OB-GYN practices, space for specialty practices like maternal fetal medicine as well as some imaging services like mammography and ultrasound.”

Plans for the third floor have yet to be finalized. Construction should begin later this year with completion expected in early 2020.

(Radio Iowa, w/Thanks to Karla James in Omaha)

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — Officials are considering linking security camera networks owned by the city of Dubuque, Dubuque County and Dubuque Community Schools. The Telegraph Herald reports that school officials have proposed the idea with the goal of helping first responders during emergencies. Dubuque County Information Technology Superintendent Nathan Gilmore says a new server could give emergency responders access to the cameras. Gilmore says officials would be able to select which cameras are included in the system.

District Technology Director Coby Culbertson says officials will first test out the idea on certain cameras. Dubuque Information Services Manager Chris Kohlmann says city officials will likely conduct tests this summer. County, city and school officials will then create a draft plan, which would be considered by county supervisors, City Council members and school board members.