Iowa

‘¿Habla español?’ Iowa schools look overseas to find Spanish teachers

Published

4 months ago

March 11, 2026

‘¿Habla español?’ Iowa schools look overseas to find Spanish teachers

The Exchange Visiting Teachers from Spain helps schools find qualified Spanish teachers.
World language teaching positions are hard to fill in rural areas.

The sounds of Dallas Center-Grimes High School Spanish students singing “¿Por Que Te Vas?” by Jeanette with varying levels of gusto and prodding by teacher Antton Zuazu Hernández may seem like an unusual way to learn.

But the sing-along is how Zuazu Hernández, a native of Spain, helps engage his students and share his culture as part of a teacher-exchange program.

“I feel I’m a messenger in a way, and this is part of the program,” he said. “We’re expected to both bring our culture here and bring your culture back to Spain.”

Zuazu Hernández — who taught English in Spain — is among 26 bilingual teachers in Iowa as part of an exchange program between the Iowa Department of Education and Spain’s Ministry of Education and Culture.

“(The program) was created to address the shortage of qualified Spanish teachers in the state and helps expose students to different world cultures,” said Heather Doe, the department’s spokesperson. “… The Exchange Visiting Teachers from Spain program has been very successful in helping schools, especially in rural communities, hire highly qualified Spanish teachers.”

Iowa has nearly 1,200 world language teachers in kindergarten through college, according to the Iowa World Language Association website.

Some foreign language teachers in Iowa moved to the U.S. and later obtained teaching credentials. Others were recruited to work in Iowa schools.

Iowa schools, including Waukee Community School District, even offer financial incentives as a recruitment tool for hard to fill positions.

“Many of them, like me, will arrive with teaching experience from our home countries, but in the process of validating the credentials in the U.S. we find obstacles,” said Elizabeth Bulthuis, a Waukee High School world languages teacher who immigrated from Ecuador in 2003, “and the validating of credentials also can be lengthy and costly, because of all the educational systems and how they are structured differently.”

Exchange program is beneficial to schools, superintendent

The Spain exchange program — which brings hundreds of teachers to schools across the U.S. — comes with several requirements.

The Spanish teachers must be certified in the language with at least two years of experience, Doe said. Additionally, candidates go through a vetting process at the federal, state and local levels. Teachers also attend a three-day state orientation.

Schools and districts participating in the program pay an $895 fee to offset licensing and orientation costs, Doe said.

The program is a blessing for rural areas struggling to fill positions teaching foreign language, special education, math and science.

“It’s very difficult to even get an applicant,” said Deron Stender, the superintendent at the rural Creston Community School District, “… When I say it’s difficult to even find (the candidates) they don’t exist. And if they do, they’re probably going to be in a larger metro, urban, suburban areas where there’s just more opportunities.”

St. Anthony’s conducts bilingual class for its students

St. Anthony’s Catholic school brings Spanish speaking teachers to the U.S. to teach students the language.

Zuazu Hernández taught Spanish and drove a bus at Creston during the 2024-25 school year. But falling enrollment and budget cuts resulted in his position being eliminated.

A program drawback is teachers only have three-year visas, he said.

“When you have a very good individual that comes to your district from a foreign country after the third year, you still have that need again,” Stender said. “So, we just open it back up to the same program, but you’re doing another refresh of the process, and while that’s a challenge, it’s still better than not having a teacher in the classroom.”

Not every world language teacher comes from Spain

Another issue schools have faced is filling teaching positions for immersion programs.

In the early 2000s, St. Anthony’s started a Spanish-immersion program after several families with children of Honduras and Guatemala descent wanted their kids to have a Catholic school education and maintain their connection to the Spanish language.

“A lot of teachers go to school to teach Spanish, but they go to school to teach it as a standalone Spanish class,” principal Jennifer Raes said. “… We were really searching for teachers that could come here and teach in any subject, just a regular teacher, but also has the skills of teaching in Spanish and English.”

Marisol Guerra, a Honduras native, came to the U.S. in 2010 to help start St. Anthony’s program. Guerra manage to come to the U.S. as part of that year’s Spain exchange program cohort.

More than a decade later, the school offers classes in English and an immersive track where 85% of the students’ day is spent learning in Spanish. While families were hesitant in the beginning to take part in the immersion program, there is now a waitlist of almost a dozen families.

“There was uncertainty, (but) they wanted their children to learn a second language,” Guerra said, “and they wanted without knowing, I think, they also were exposing them to other cultures and opening their minds to other things.”

The over the years, St. Anthony’s has employed teachers who moved to America from Spain, Mexico and other Latin American countries.

The over representation of teachers from Spain likely is due to other countries not offering similar exchange programs, said Bulthuis, a member of the Iowa World Language Association.

It took several years for the veteran teacher — who came to Iowa in 2005 — to become credentialed to teach in the U.S. because she was not part of an exchange program.

“I think that world language teachers can be difficult to recruit because the pool of candidates is relatively small, so teachers need a strong language proficiency, cultural knowledge and all the teaching certifications,” said Bulthuis, who left Ecuador in 2003 because of the country’s financial crisis, “(but) many people who speak another language also have opportunity in other careers.”

Bulthuis does not recommend loosening the criteria to teach in Iowa but suggests improving or streamlining the process for an international teacher to obtain a state teaching license.

“… Not every Spanish speaking country is going to have (an exchange) program like that in place to help their community,” Bulthuis said,

Cultural exchange

Educators say employing international teachers goes beyond language skills.

“International educators can bring tremendous cultural and linguistic expertise to the classroom, which is an incredible skill and very valuable for students,” Bulthuis said.

That cultural exchange can carry over into a school’s lesson plans.

Zuazu Hernández often lets his American students’ interests drive what he teaches them about Spanish culture. These questions have ranged from wanting more insight into bullfighting, the Spanish school system, stereotypes and politics.

“Sometimes, they are more interested in me as a person, or the things I can tell them about Spain than the actual Spanish language,” he said, “but they have that curiosity that I think all teachers, we have to take advantage of.”

While reading “¡Viva el toro!” by Lisa Ray Turner and Blaine Ray, a novel about bullfighting, Zuazu Hernández talked to students about his family’s love of the cultural spectacle and how it is losing popularity in Spain because of how the bulls are treated.

Zuazu Hernández is open about his perspective on the practice to his students.

“To me, bullfighting is not worth sustaining just because it’s a tradition — traditions are not always good or acceptable — but rather because it’s an art, and it expands the depth of human understanding of the most intense truths in life, with death as the scariest of all,” he told the Des Moines Register in an email.

His students appreciate his candidness and the chance to learn from teachers with different lived experiences.

“I like having different teachers because they have different experiences, and I think it adds to the overall class,” said Grace Heston, an 11th grader Dallas Center-Grimes High School. “When you’re learning about Spanish, you’re not just learning about a language, you’re learning about the culture associated with it.”

Samantha Hernandez covers education for the Register. Reach her at (515) 851-0982 or svhernandez@gannett.com.

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Iowa

Can Tre Singleton fill familiar role for Iowa State basketball? | Hines

Published

58 minutes ago

July 15, 2026

Press Room

Can Tre Singleton fill familiar role for Iowa State basketball? | Hines

It didn’t take Tre Singleton long to learn the lesson that has dawned on so many Iowa State basketball transfers before him.

“There’s not much to do around Ames,” the Northwestern transplant said July 14, “besides get better and be good at basketball.”

Perhaps not a slogan the Ames Chamber of Commerce will be adopting any time soon, but a sentiment – and, maybe, self-fulfilling prophecy – that the Cyclones themselves have turned into something of a brand, going back to the early days of Fred Hoiberg’s Transfer U tenure.

Get in the lab. Get better. Get wins.

Repeat.

“Cut all the distractions,” Singleton said of the setup. “It helps you key in on the things you need to work on to get better at.

“It helps me come in here every day with the focus of being better.”

That’s a focus Iowa State and its fans hope they’ll be able to appreciate this winter when Singleton is expected to take on a significant role for a Cyclones team that will reconfigure itself after losing three starters off last year’s Sweet 16 squad.

Most notably, Singleton has the look and feel of a Joshua Jefferson approximation. At least in terms of style and role. Expecting a transfer coming off a promising, but certainly not elite freshman season to just slide into the spot previously occupied by an All-American and first-round NBA Draft pick would probably be … unwise.

“I think it’s best to stay away from any comparisons to other guys because Tre needs to be the best version of himself,” said Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger. “There’s differences between him and Joshua, even though I know there’s a natural inclination to draw that comparison.”

That natural inclination comes from their similar size (both 6-foot-8 though Jefferson has 30 pounds on 215-pound Singleton), versatility as playmaking power forwards, ability to rebound and high-IQ play.

I think the expectation for Singleton (and Iowa State fans) is to see if the sophomore can operate in that same Jefferson role, if not with the same sort of production and overall impact.

“We see him as somebody who can create advantages for us offensively to make plays,” Otzelberger said. “He’s a gifted passer. He takes a lot of pride in making the right play.”

I think the high-end hope would be that Singleton can approach that Jeffersonian impact in a year or two.

“Tre,” Otzelberger said, “is a very gifted player.”

Singleton’s bet on Iowa State’s development model and the Cyclones’ bet on Singleton to maximize it seems like the sort of transfer portal match that’s often overlooked amid doom-and-gloom bellyaching about player movement.

I’m sure the dozens (dozens!) of Northwestern hoops fans would disagree, but Singleton’s move from a middling Big Ten program with a sparse NBA track record to a Big 12 contender with a strong developmental program seems like not only an inoffensive use of the portal but one that rewards both ascendant players and programs.

We’ll see how it plays out, but Singleton and Iowa State feels like a win-win marriage of skillset, opportunity and culture.

“I chose Iowa State,” Singleton said, “because it fits me as a person. “

Besides, Evanston has the lakeshore and a world-class city 20 miles away. Which, sure, I’d call amenities, but aspiring NBA players might consider distractions.

You take your wins where you can get them, I suppose.

Iowa State columnist Travis Hines has covered the Cyclones for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune since 2012. Contact him at thines@amestrib.com or (515) 284-8000. Follow him on X at @TravisHines21.

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Iowa

Meet the 3 Best New Food at the Iowa State Fair finalists for 2026

Published

13 hours ago

July 14, 2026

Press Room

Meet the 3 Best New Food at the Iowa State Fair finalists for 2026

It’s all about the food at the Iowa State Fair, and a panel of judges has named their top new foods coming to the fair in 2026.

From an initial list of 84 entries, the field was narrowed to 11 contenders. Judges tasted each of the 11 new foods and voted for three finalists during a Facebook livestream event from the fairgrounds on Tuesday, July 14.

Those three will compete for fairgoers’ votes for the 2026 Best New Food at the Iowa State Fair.

Last year, Winn & Sara’s Kitchen’s bacon chicken ranch eggroll took home the top honor.

These three finalists will face off in public voting Aug. 13-19 at the Iowa State Fair. The winner will be announced Aug. 21.

What are the top three new foods at the 2026 Iowa State Fair?

All-American Scrambled Egg Roll

Winn & Sara’s Kitchen will try for its third-straight win with a breakfast offering. The All-American Scrambled Egg Roll is stuffed with bacon, sausage, hash browns, eggs and cheddar, finished with cheesy ranch.

Cost: $15
Vendor: Winn & Sara’s Kitchen
Where: Next to the craft beer tent, west of the Jacobson Building

Porky Parm Gnocchi

The Pork Parm Gnocchi features gluten-free potato gnocchi with sausage, parmesan cream and pesto. It’s topped with an America 250 flag and a suvenir piggy pal.

Cost: $14
Vendor: Destination Grille
Where: Between the Jacobson Building and the Craft Beer Tent

Ultimate Minneapple Pie

An offering from a Minnesota State Fair vendor making its first Iowa State Fair appearance, the Ultimate Minneapple Pie includes fried apple pie with ice cream and apple syrup.

Cost: $14
Vendor: Minneapple Pie
Where: Near the Anne and Bill Riley Stage

More standout new foods at the 2026 fair

Here are the eight other items that rounded out the top 11:

1776 Dubai Strawberries from The Strawberry Station, $19. Fresh strawberries topped with milk chocolate, pistachio crème and crunchy kataifi. Find it at West Marketplace.
Cajun Cluck ’N’ Chaos from Cluckin’ Coop, $14. Cajun chicken sloppy joe with slaw, spicy pickles, pickled egg and pickle cotton candy. This lunch-cafeteria special is served right across the street from the Animal Learning Center at Little Hands on the Farm.
Crunchy Lamb Wrap from HoQ, $19. Deep‑fried naan stuffed with risotto, lamb and cheese. Located east of the Administration Building.
Garlic Dill Pickle Cheese Curds from Brad and Harry’s Cheese Curds, $9. Garlic‑dill mashup curds. You can find Brad and Harry’s Cheese Curds west of the Jacobson Building.
Star Spangled Swine from Whatcha Smokin’ BBQ, $15. Pork belly with apple‑chipotle rub and honey crystals. Located next to the Iowa craft beer tent, west of the Jacobson Building.
Strawberry Bliss from Iowa Specialty Crop Growers Association, $8. Shortbread, strawberry, meringue and milk chocolate. Located in the Agriculture Building, under the southwest stairs.
Stuffed Tater Kegs from Tater Todd and Hot Doug’s, $10. Loaded potato bites with breakfast or cheese options. Located in front of the Agriculture Building.
Sweet Americana from Over the Top, $13. Strawberry shortcake, lemon bar and blueberry crisp ice creams. Over the Top’s stand is on Grand Avenue, just outside the Varied Industries Building.

Previous winners of Best New Foods at the Iowa State Fair

2013: Zag’s Po Boys — Shrimp Corn Dog
2014: Multiple vendors — Funnel Cake on a Stick
2015: The Rib Shack — Ultimate Bacon Brisket Bomb
2016: Iowa Turkey Federation — Not Your Mamma’s Taco
2017: Steer ‘N’ Stein — Pork Almighty
2018: Applishus — Apple Eggroll
2019: G Mig’s Wrap Stand — Georgie’s Roast with the Most Wrap
2020: No fair due to COVID-19
2021: Cluckin’ Coop by the Iowa Egg Council/Iowa Poultry Association — Chicken Egg Salad with Fry Bread
2022: The Rib Shack — The Finisher
2023: What’s Your Cheez — Deep-Fried Bacon Brisket Mac-n-Cheese Grilled Cheese
2024: Winn & Sara’s Kitchen — Bacon Cheeseburger Eggroll
2025: Winn & Sara’s Kitchen — Bacon chicken ranch Eggroll

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.

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Iowa

Some Iowa originals to get the spotlight in RAGBRAI overnight town

Published

1 day ago

July 14, 2026

Press Room

Some Iowa originals to get the spotlight in RAGBRAI overnight town

RAGBRAI will feature popular Iowa party bands Hairball and the Pork Tornadoes on back-to-back nights.
Guthrie Center’s entertainment lineup will highlight original Iowa music, including The Nadas and The Weary Ramblers.

What would RAGBRAI be without Hairball and the Pork Tornadoes?

Cyclists on the July 19-25 ride will have the chance to rock with both of the venerable Iowa party bands as they perform on back-to-back nights.

They’re perennials on the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, as traditional as the Mississippi River tire dip. Hairball will bring its signature pyrotechnic, costumed arena rock tribute to the main stage in the overnight town of Boone on Tuesday, July 21, and the Pork Tornadoes will be in Marshalltown on July 22 to perform selections from their seemingly endless, genre-spanning repertoire.

Other headlining party-cover faves booked in RAGBRAI overnight towns will include the Spazmatics in Dyersville, Not Quite Brothers in Independence and Gut Feeling in Onawa.

But if you’re a fan of original music, make plans to spend a little extra time at the stage in Guthrie Center, the Monday, Day 2, overnight town.

While Gimikk, a RAGBRAI classic cover band that also proudly performs some originals, will be the headliner, don’t miss the other Iowa originals on the bill.

Most prominent are the Nadas, a fixture on the state’s music scene for nearly 35 years. Co-founders Jason Walsmith and Mike Butterworth got their start in Ames in the early 1990s while students at Iowa State University. Expanding into a five-member ensemble, they worked to build a following across the country and have sold thousands of records on their independent Authentic label featuring their original, alt-rock-leaning folk-Americana tunes.

Marking 25 years of the Nadas in 2018, Walsmith told the Register, “As long as it’s fun, we’re always going to do it.” And they still are, performing regularly and adding another album, “Come Along for the Ride,” to their lengthy discography in 2023.

Also on the bill: a duo that has launched with a bang. The Weary Ramblers, Iowans Chad Elliott and Kathryn Severing Fox, are songwriting and performing partners who got their start in 2022. Elliott, a veteran guitarist and singer on the Iowa scene, and Severing Fox, a classically trained musician steeped in jazz violin, released a debut album in 2024 that hit the top 10 on the Americana charts and produced a hit single, “Pretty Lights of Denver.”

In December 2025, they collected a major award for independent songwriters presented at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. With a second album starting to chart, they were back in Tennessee again in January to compete in the International Blues Challenge, and came home the overall winners for solo or duo act.

In growing demand as touring performers, they opened for the Des Moines Symphony at the annual Yankee Doodle Pops show July 3 on the grounds of the Iowa Capitol, drawing an enthusiastic response from a crowd of nearly 100,000.

Superintendent summons former students to put on a show

Steve Smith, the Guthrie Center RAGBRAI entertainment chair who tapped the Nadas and Weary Ramblers, is high on a third act: Hillbilly Air Show, the afternoon’s opener. They’re a country duo that includes former Navy fighter pilot Brick Imerman and whose songbook is rich with the tunes of honky-tonk balladeers like George Strait and Alan Jackson.

One thing Imerman, of Panora, and Elliott, a Lamoni native who lives in Jefferson, have in common: They spent their school days in Guthrie Center, where Smith was a teacher and now is superintendent of the regional school district.

“There’s just a personal connection,” said Smith, who counts himself a big fan of the musical careers his former students have forged. And he said he’s been kicking himself for 25 years after failing to book the Nadas for a school reunion when he had the chance,. He said he wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity a second time.

Smith said he got some pushback from other Guthrie Center RAGBRAI organizers for his unorthodox choices, but stuck by them.

He said he hopes the town’s show and an effort to keep food and beverage vendor prices reasonable will reward the riders for climbing some of the 2026 ride’s steepest hills coming into and leaving town.

So far, he said, he’s gotten a positive reception from veteran RAGBRAI riders who’ve heard about his eclectic music lineup.

“They said they don’t always go to the (overnight town) shows, but, ‘If you’re having them, we’re there,’” he said.

Hillbilly Air Show goes on at 2 p.m., followed by the Weary Ramblers at 4 p.m. and the Nadas at 6:30 p.m. Smith invites Des Moines metro residents who aren’t on the ride to join the party.

“We’re a town of 1,600 that’s going to be invaded by another 30,000 to 40,000, but we’re ready,” he said.