SPM News

The Iowa Department of Public Health added 94 additional deaths due to complications of COVID-19, including one more in Woodbury County. The deaths happened between late August and early October for a total of 6,748 since the start of the pandemic. The number of positive tests in the last seven days continues to fall, down 8% since Monday. Iowa’s test positivity rate dropped to 9.2%. However, the positivity rate in Woodbury County is 17% with most cases in younger people according to Siouxland

Friday, October 15th, is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day . An event planned for 7 p.m. at Sioux City's Miracle Field includes an opportunity for people and families to light a candle. Katie Kruse of Dakota Dunes, South Dakota, is the organizer and member of the non-profit No Foot Too Small . She shares her personal story and mission with Siouxland Public Media’s Sheila Brummer. To preregister for the event click here . No Foot Too Small was founded out of a desire to draw

The Vangarde Arts Harvest Blues Fest takes place this weekend with a performance Saturday night from Australian blues master Michael Charles . Charles took time out of his busy schedule to talk to Siouxland Public Media’s Sheila Brummer about his upcoming Sioux City appearance and how his music transcends the blues genre. * Special thanks to Jane Rogers, publicist for Michael Charles. Biography: Michael Charles musical pilgrimage started over six decades ago in his birth place Melbourne,

The statewide COVID-19 infection rate continues to decline since its recent peak in mid-September, but the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports certain counties in rural Iowa — where vaccination rates lag behind the state average — have new daily cases comparable to their pandemic peak last year. Adams County has the largest number of infections per capita in the state, even though its rate of infection has dropped 21% in the past two weeks, according to New York Times data . Its two-week total of

The Iowa State Auditor’s office on Tuesday released a reaudit of the Sioux City Community School District that did not show any major wrongdoing. The report covers a period from June 30, 2017, to June 30, 2019, and recommends the school board approve and document pay raises. Dan Greenwell requested the reaudit through a petition drive before he joined the school board. He felt the district operated with weak financial controls and expressed concern Superintendent Paul Gausman handed out bonuses

Nebraska’s four Native American tribes took part in a special celebration at the state Capitol in Lincoln today for Indigenous Peoples Day. One of the speakers at the event was the Chairwoman of the Winnebago Tribe Victoria Kitcheyan . "We have an opportunity to educate our friends, neighbors, and relatives in the teaching of the Ho-Chunk People, The Ponca People, Omaha Nation, and Santee Sioux Tribe." Flags honoring Nebraska’s four Native American tribes were presented by tribal leaders for

Information from the Iowa Department of Public Health shows a continuing downward trend in new cases and hospitalizations due to COVID-19. There were more than 8,300 new positive test results added in one week, down about 600 from the previous week. The statewide positivity rate is 9.5%, with people 18 and under making up about a quarter of the new cases. However, that age group makes up only 3% of hospitalizations in the state. The positivity rate in Woodbury County is 16%. There are 566

A federal judge Friday extended an order that will prevent state officials from enforcing a law that prohibits school districts from implementing mask requirements until a federal lawsuit challenging the law can be heard. Several parents and advocacy groups had sued to overturn the law, saying students who are at risk because of health conditions were not being protected against COVID-19. Judge Robert Pratt had earlier issued a temporary restraining order preventing Gov. Kim Reynolds and

New COVID-19 infections continued to fall last week in Woodbury County, hitting the lowest level in over a month.

Morningside University received a $2.3 million dollar grant from the United States Department of Education to offer education programs to help Iowa’s growing immigrant population. “What we can do is provide pathways for current teachers to earn and English as a second language endorse that will improve their instruction and help English-language learners.” Dr. Kelly Chaney is the Dean of the Sharon Walker School of Education at Morningside. University officials say Iowa’s Latinx population grew