A group of area school administrators is coordinating their efforts in an attempt to meet the standards necessary to obtain a grant that could range anywhere from $4-million to $10-million. Atlantic School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Amstein  announced during Monday evening’s School Board meeting, that he’s been working with Superintendents at the Harlan, CAM, Exira-EHK and Griswold School Districts, to apply for a “Race to the Top” (R2T) grant, which had previously only been available to States.

He said the Dept. of Education has shifted the focus of the race to school districts or consortiums, instead of states. Amstein said the districts are applying for an R2T grant that focuses on Career Tech Education (CTE). He said the hope is that the districts can use the grant monies to build-in some programs not currently offered, and expand on those that are being offered. The districts would apply for a Tier 1 grant.

In order to qualify for a Tier 1 grant, the consortium of districts must have anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 students. Working with the other districts, Amstein says, will enable the group to meet the requirement. He says the Superintendents plan to meet by conference call and/or in-person this Friday afternoon, to file a “Letter of Intent,” to apply for the grant, which he says would be a “Great shot in the arm” for rural Iowa, if the grant is received.

He says they’ll be working hard over the next few months to prepare the grant for consideration. Amstein says he’s excited about the prospects of working with the other school administrators to obtain the funding and focus on CTE programs, which he says is in “Dire need of expansion.”

“Race to the Top” was created in 2009 and designed to spur innovation and reforms in state and local district K-12 education. It was funded by the Economic Development Recovery Act as part of the 2009 ARRA (The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act), or economic stimulus package. States were awarded points for satisfying certain educational policies, such as performance-based standards. In May 2012, the Department of Education proposed draft criteria for a district-level Race to the Top program.

Authorities in Montgomery County say no citations were issued following an incident where a dog broke free of its tie out, and attacked a neighboring dog, in Elliott. The incident happened at 411 Linden Street, on Monday. Officials say the dog, owned by Julia Daughtery, broke free of its harness and bit a dog owned by Scott and Beth Peterson. The Peterson’s animal was bitten in several places, causing injury.

The dog returned home and was secured, after Daughtery was notified about the incident. Officials say both parties appeared to have been attempting to comply with the City of Elliott’s dog ordinance, and understanding of liability for injuries to the dog.

No injuries were reported following a minor traffic accident Monday afternoon, in Red Oak. Officials with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office say 84-year old Bruce Burr, of Red Oak, pulled into a residential driveway and had proceeded to back up, in an attempt to turn around, and head the other direction on south 6th Street, when the  SUV he was driving hit a legally parked Chevy Impala. Damage from the mishap, which happened at around 1-p.m., amounted to $2,000. No citations were issued.

Red Oak Police report the arrest this (Tuesday) morning of two individuals. Officials say at around 3:30-a.m., 35-year old Kevin Houchen, of Red Oak, was arrested in the 100 block of West Coolbaugh Street, on a charge of Public Intoxication. Houchin was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $300 bond. And, at around 12:50-a.m., officers with the Red Oak P-D arrested 34-year old Doris Ann Ellision, of Red Oak. Ellison was taken into custody in the 700 block of East Washington Street, on a valid Mills County Warrant for Failure to Appear/Contempt of Court. Ellison was turned over to Mills County authorities for transport to the jail in Glenwood.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press …

Officials with the ISU Extension Service in Cass County said today (Monday),  Carroll County native Beth Irlbeck began her work as the Cass County Youth Coordinator on July 22nd.

Beth Irlbeck

Irlbeck met many members of the Cass County 4-H program and the local community during the Cass County Fair, while at the same time learning the ropes for next year’s event. Her position has fulltime responsibility for youth outreach programming and 4-H program management in Cass County. She replaces Susan Oliver, who held the position for the past four and a half years.

Beth is a graduate of Iowa State University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in public service and administration in agriculture. She has a strong background as a former member in both the 4-H and FFA programs growing up in Carroll County.

The public is invited to stop by the Cass County Extension Office at 805 W. 10th Street in Atlantic, and welcome Beth to her new position. She is available to answer any questions you may have regarding 4-H and youth programming, as well as providing information on resources available through Iowa State University Extension in Cass County. Beth can also be reached by calling the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132.

The Iowa Department of Transportation is taking bids to develop an application for smart phones that allows parents to track their teen’s behavior behind the wheel. D-O-T spokeswoman Tracy Bramble says once the app is installed on a teen’s phone, it would disable texting while the teen is in the driver’s seat and monitor their driving habits. “It tracks things like speed and whether they stop at a stop sign or don’t stop at a stop sign,” Bramble says. “There’ll be a parent portal where a parent can log in with a secure I-D, so only they can see their child’s information. What we’re hoping it’ll do is start a conversation between parents and kids about safe driving.” The app is to be called “Text Later.” Bramble says once installed on a driver’s phone, the app will create a trip log each time a vehicle is going more than 15 miles-an-hour.

“What we’re hoping the app will do is disable the text function of their phone as the kid is driving,” she says. “They will be able to, if they are a passenger, log on as a passenger, but their parent will be able to see if they’ve logged on as a passenger.”

Bramble says the department also wants the app to block all notifications, so teens won’t be tempted to check their phones while driving. She says they hope to make “Text Later” available by early 2014. The D-O-T is promoting the upcoming app this week at the Iowa State Fair.

(Radio Iowa)

The Atlantic Police Department reports the arrest on Saturday, of a woman from Central Iowa. 28-year old Jill Hanselman, of Boone, was arrested for OWI 1st Offense. She was transported to Cass County Jail and booked in.  And, on Friday, officers arrested 18-year old Nicholas Renner, of Atlantic, for Violation of Probation. He was transported to Cass County Jail and booked in, as well.

The A-PD also investigated two recent accidents.  One took place Saturday morning, in the Dollar General parking. Officials says vehicles driven by Jon  Frederiksen, of Atlantic, and Nichelle Whipple, of Massena, were both traveling northbound and approaching the entrance to Dollar General from Wal-Mart. Frederiksen’s vehicle was slowing and stopping to make a left hand turn into Dollar General, when it was struck by Whipple’s vehicle. Authorities say Frederiksen planned to stop by the Cass County Hospital to be checked for possible injuries. No citations were issued. Damage to the vehicles was estimated at a combined  $4,200.

The other accident happened late Friday morning, at the intersection of 5th and Chestnut. Vehicles driven by Christopher Bohlmann, of Audubon and Suzanne Just, of Atlantic, collided as  Bolhmann was eastbound and stopped to back up into a parking stall. Just was also traveling east on 5th Street. Bohlmann didn’t see Just’s car behind him, proceeded to back up, hitting the Just vehicle in the front bumper. No citations were issued and no injuries were reported. Total damage was estimated at $1,800.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Department of Public Safety has decided it will keep secret information about police checks on Gov. Terry Branstad’s license plate. The department said last month it would search for and release information showing how many times the plate was run through police databases, when and by which agencies. But the department said Friday it was mistaken, and the data must be kept confidential.

A former investigator alleges the governor’s vehicle routinely speeds. The data would indicate whether Branstad’s state-assigned vehicle faced other stops or pursuits beyond the April 26 incident in which the trooper driving Branstad was clocked at 84 mph. It would also show whether the vehicle was caught speeding or running red lights by traffic cameras but avoided citations because of its undercover designation.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – An animal welfare group poured red paint over the Iowa State Fair’s butter cow, but the damage was quickly scraped away and the iconic sculpture is back on display.

(Photo via Radio Iowa)

Iowans for Animal Liberation, which promotes veganism, claimed responsibility in a Sunday news release, saying the paint represents the millions of animals killed annually for food.

The Iowa State Patrol says the attack occurred overnight Saturday after someone broke into the locked refrigerated area of the Agriculture Building where the sculpted cow is displayed. The attackers poured red paint over the sculpture and scrawled, “Freedom for all,” on a display window.

Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Scott Bright says the damage was cleaned up quickly Sunday morning and that the display opened as usual.  Bright called it a “mild case of vandalism.”