Information released by the Center for Rural Strategies says Cass County has experienced a “brain gain” in the last 40 years, joining the rest of the country in what has been a massive increase in the number of adults who have earned college degrees. In 1970, 8.4 percent of those over 25 years of age had college degrees in Cass County. By 2010, 14.5 percent of adults here had completed college. The percentage of adults with college degrees in Cass County was less than the national average of 27.9 percent in 2010. The college-educated rate was less than the Iowa average of 24.5 percent.

The number of adults in the United States with college degrees has nearly tripled since 1970, when only 10.7 percent of adults had graduated from college. But the percentage of adults with degrees in rural counties, such as Cass County, while increasing, has generally fallen behind the proportion of college-educated residents in urban counties.

In 1970, 7.8 percent of adults in rural counties had some education after high school, but less than a college degree. By 2010, 27.4 percent of rural adults had attained some post high school education without earning a college diploma. That level of education was close to the national average of 28.1 percent. In Cass County, 10.6 percent of adults had some college in 1970, rising to 31.8 percent in 2010. The Iowa average in 2010 was 31.0 percent. Cass County had 10,357 adults (those over 25 years of age) in 1970 and 9,805 adults in 2010.

Only 8.9 percent of the adult population in Cass County had failed to graduate from high school in 2010. Nationally 15 percent of adults had not completed high school; in Iowa, the rate was 10.1 percent. The report was compiled by Bill Bishop, editor of the news site DailyYonder.com, and Robert Gallardo, an associate professor at Mississippi State’s Southern Rural Development Center.

The source data, charts, and a map may be downloaded at http://www.dailyyonder.com/education-and-rural-america-data-page/2012/07/06/4165.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The latest U.S. Drought Monitor map shows conditions have worsened in the Corn Belt states of Iowa and Nebraska.  The map shows extreme drought has spread further into the western half of Iowa and covers all but a small section of southeast Nebraska, where severe drought is occurring. A few counties in central Nebraska are still listed as being under exceptional drought conditions.  The drought map is a project shared by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Weather Service. The latest map is based on conditions as of 6 a.m. Tuesday, so it doesn’t reflect rainfall from storms that passed through parts of both states later Tuesday and on Wednesday.

w/ Ric Hanson

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The 4th Annual T-Fred Memorial Golf Tournament, set for Saturday, is drawing near and organizers are inviting the public to attend. Melanie Petty with the Trevor Frederickson Foundation, says there’s a lot going on that day, and the event “Is definitely not just for golfers.”

A silent auction to be held in the Nishna Hills Club House will be set up by approximately 8 a.m. Saturday, with the tournament set to start at 9-a.m. The auction will end after the last score card is turned in, and organizers say an announcement will be made to let individuals know when the auction is officially closed. Bidders do not have to be present to win, and individuals have the opportunity to call or text Caryn Just at 254-0989 to place a bid or check on an item, even those out playing in the tournament. Just a few of the 40-plus items up for auction include a Yeti cooler, an Echo gas powered blower, a grilling basket, a Derrick Johnson autographed Kansas City Chiefs wall hanging, tickets to Iowa and Iowa State football games, a Weber charcoal grill, a quilt, a Coach purse, and a Craftsman tool chest.

In addition to the auction, a 50/50 raffle will also be held throughout the day. Tickets are $1 each or 6/$5 with the drawing held after the last score card is turned in. Tickets will be available on the course and in the club house. The person whose name is drawn must be present to win.

New to the event this year will be a beer sampling hosted by Doll Distributing. Current plans are to start the sampling at around 10:30-a.m. Also new this year will be County Artist and Atlantic native, Randy Burk, who will be performing live on the back patio from 4-6 p.m. Petty says while the silent auction, 50/50 raffle, free will donation lunch, beer sampling and live entertainment are open to the public, organizers have some things lined up for just the golfers too. Prizes will be awarded on every hole and for the top three places in four flights, bets can be placed on the betting hole, and a 2012 Chevy Cruze is ready to go home with anyone making Deter Motor Company’s Hole in One.

The T-Fred Memorial Golf Tournament is the only fundraiser for the Trevor Frederickson Memorial Fund which was formed to give back to the projects and organizations Trevor loved. Photos recapping the over $42,000 in donations given to date will be on display in the Nishna Hills club house.

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(Update 7-a.m.)

Emergency Responders from Anita and Wiota were called to the scene of a fatality accident this morning south of Wiota. According to dispatch reports from the Cass County Communications Center, the accident happened at the intersection of 680th and Lansing Road (about 1/2 way between Wiota and Cumberland), at around 6:50-a.m. A male victim of the accident was ejected from the vehicle. He died at the scene. No other information is currently available.

A Nebraska man was sentenced Wednesday to 25-years in prison in connection with two shootings in Council Bluffs. According to the Omaha World-Herald, 23-year old Antwan Wright, of Omaha, had faced as much as 145-years in prison, for the March 2011 shootings of 32-year old Jamey Kirk of Council Bluffs, and 53-year old Ignacio Iniguez, of Omaha.

Kirk was shot at a residence in Council Bluffs, after Wright kicked in the door and fired as many as six shots at the man from a .45-caliber handgun, one of which hit Kirk in the arm. Iniguez was shot in the face five-hours later, as he sat inside a car on west Broadway Street in Council Bluffs. Wright stole the car after the shooting. Both men survived the shootings.

Wright was arrested in April 2011, while driving another stolen vehicle. According to Chief Deputy Pottawattamie County Attorney Jon Jacobmeier, under a plea agreement, Wright must serve 17½ years in prison before he’s eligible for parole.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County arrested a Red Oak man Wednesday night. Steve L. Delong was taken into custody at around 10:15-p.m. on a warrant charging him with Driving While Revoked. Delong was located at his home and brought to the Montgomery County Jail without incident. His bond was set at $1,000.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Storms erupted over eastern Nebraska and western and central Iowa, Wednesday, with reports of strong winds, hail and rain. The National Weather Service says storms that developed Wednesday afternoon may have produced a funnel cloud near Howells in Colfax County. No damage or injuries were reported. In Saunders County, hail covered the ground near Morse Bluff. Hail and heavy rain were also reported in the Carroll area, including some half-dollar sized amounts just at around 2:10-p.m. Scranton had quarter-sized hail fall at around 2:40-p.m.

Elswhere in Iowa, winds of up to 70 miles per hour caused some property damage and scattered power outages in Fremont County, near Sidney, Farragut and Shenandoah, as those areas were hit by strong winds between 6:30 and 7:15-p.m. Hail and torrential rain were reported in the Des Moines area. Tree limbs were down in the metro and its suburbs, with minor hail damage to cars. Some intersections were also flooded from heavy rain.

The Chair of the Cass County Democratic party says labor officials and Democratic Party leaders will be speaking to voters who attend the Cass County Democratic Party Fundraiser on Tuesday, August 14^th at the SS Peter & Paul Parish Center in Atlantic. Sherry Toelle says  the event, billed as an evening of “food, fun and political discussion,”  will start at 5-p.m. with the program beginning at 6:30 pm. Congressman Leonard Boswell, Sue Dvorsky, Chair of the Iowa Democratic Party and Ken Sagar, President of Iowa Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO will address current political issues and policies. The event is open to the public. The admission charge is $25.