Here First

The leaders of Iowa’s three public universities discussed how they would spend the funding increase they plan to request from state lawmakers. A new resource to address the public health crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women is launching in Sioux City this weekend. Plus, a look at the efforts to attract and keep veterinarians to rural areas.

Iowa health officials say the state’s low number of confirmed monkeypox cases means its targeted approach to reducing cases is working. Iowa House Democrats are proposing legalizing recreational marijuana as one of their key priorities ahead of the 2022 election. This year, Iowa expanded the number of kids a childcare worker can oversee but daycares are still wracked with retention issues.

Des Moines teen Pieper Lewis was not sentenced to prison in a case where she admitted to killing a man she says raped her multiple times. Lawyers for Iowa’s largest abortion provider argued in court documents that there's no precedent or legal support for bringing back a law banning most abortions. Plus, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources will treat East Okoboji lake against Eurasian watermilfoil this week.

Gov. Kim Reynolds joined a group of 22 Republican governors opposing President Joe Biden’s plan to forgive student loan debt. Des Moines is going ahead with plans to pay 30 million dollars to buy a downtown office building that was vacated two years ago. Plus, a federal judge will not block the transgender student policy adopted by Linn-Mar schools.

The Republican running for attorney general of Iowa says she would defend abortion restrictions in court if elected after the Democratic attorney general has refused to represent the state in two abortion cases. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments next month in a farm groups’ case against the state of California. Plus, how some volunteer groups in the Midwest are stepping up to test water quality.

Two of Iowa’s three public universities saw declining enrollment this fall. The Iowa Migrant Movement for Justice and the Drake Legal Clinic are working to help Afghan parolees gain a more permanent legal status in the United States. Plus, IPR Health reporter Natalie Krebs tells us what we need to know about the latest COVID booster shots in Iowa.

The latest test scores from Iowa public schools show that there has been improvement in math and English but there is still some ground to make up to match pre-pandemic results. Many Iowa cities are taking money from Canadian Pacific in exchange for not opposing its 31-billion-dollar merger. Iowans will have a chance to vote on adding gun rights protections to the Iowa Constitution in November.

There will be at least one debate between Iowa Gov Kim Reynolds and Democrat Deidre DeJear before the November election. The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is ending its Eating Disorder Program’s inpatient care this fall. Plus, as more states crack down on abortion, experts say Black Midwesterners are likely to be disproportionately affected.

Labor unions gathered in Des Moines Monday for a Labor Day Parade. Two new charter schools are starting classes this fall and are the first state-funded charters approved under a law passed in 2021. Plus, a group of Iowa State University researchers is studying the challenges facing Ukrainian refugees who resettle in Iowa

A couple of the state’s most populous counties are seeing extraordinarily higher than usual challenges of Iowa voter registrations. A labor strike in Cedar Rapids continues. Plus, IPR’s Kendall Crawford takes us to a bar in northwest Iowa that’s drawing acts and concertgoers from all over the country.