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Iowa City’s new elementary plans could include specialized academies, paired schools

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Iowa City’s new elementary plans could include specialized academies, paired schools


The Iowa City Community School District (ICCSD) is considering restructuring its current elementary school model, anchored by a desire for smaller class sizes, specialized academies, and new preschool centers.

The local school board – which covers elementary schools in Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty, held a special work session on Tuesday, July 23, to discuss ways to eliminate inefficiencies within each of the district’s 20 elementary schools and create more consistent class sizes.

The vast, multi-option plan is called “Reenvisioning our elementary schools.”

The work session highlighted areas of concern the school board wanted addressed. They explored five different plans, which included a move to 18-section schools, optimal-size schools, paired schools, academy schools, and preschool centers.  

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Superintendent Matt Degner emphasized that the plans discussed Tuesday serve as an introduction and that work is just beginning. The district will gather feedback from the board and the community and decide how to proceed.

“We anticipate like to continue to come back around each of the pieces of this and to hear your feedback and community’s feedback and then continue to just evolve with time,” Degner said. “Tonight (is not) necessarily looking for your opinions or factual statements on these things, but just more information at some level setting for us but get started.”

More: Battery-operated passenger train from Iowa City to North Liberty possible as soon as 2025

Exploring academy schools

The school district proposed a preliminary plan for “academy schools” and how they would benefit the district.

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The ICCSD defines an academy school as  “A public school offering special instruction and programs not available elsewhere, designed to attract a more diverse student body from throughout a school district. Students enroll through an application process based on program interest.”

The district has considered developing academy schools several times over the last 18 years. The goal of an elementary academy is to provide a different learning experience for students and their families while also increasing open enrollment. Specialized academies could include performing arts, world languages/language immersion, leadership, and science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). The academies would create ideal class sizes while maximizing building capacity.

“We feel that the academy schools will be specialized curriculum-focused programs, students that have that interest will be able to go and to be able to explore those in a much richer capacity than they can you’re familiar with the elementary right now,” said Eliza Proctor, Executive Director of Elementary Schools. “There would be diverse learning environments, pulling students from the district, and students and families would feel that they have the choice to enroll in the program and that the teaching methods would be a little bit more innovative.”

Expanding early childhood education

The reenvisioning plan also touched on expanded preschool centers. The district highlighted two options during Tuesday’s meeting − placing preschools inside elementary schools and or building dedicated preschool centers.

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The plan suggests offering expanded care within an elementary school, with full-day or part-day options and before- and after-school care. This approach would seamlessly integrate existing programs like “Shared Vision” into the expanded structure.

Dedicated preschool centers would cater specifically to three and four-year-olds, with the potential for extended care before and after school. While locations in Iowa City and North Liberty are being considered, this option could take longer to establish.

More: Cambus adding electric buses, upgrading facility through $16.4M federal grant

Benefits and operational efficiency of 18-section K-5 schools

The board first discussed a plan for 18-section schools at the K-5 level, meaning that each grade level would use three separate sections (essentially classrooms) within the school. This plan would have instructional benefits, including more consistent class sizes, efficient use of staff, and maximized building efficiency. The plan also includes dedicated special teachers, whom ICCSD identifies as educators who teach art, music, and physical education.

“It not only has an impact in terms of what we believe is instructional benefits, it also has operational benefits in terms of standardizing the workload of custodians, our secretaries, and other buildings support staff,” said Deputy Superintendent Chace Ramey. “Instructionally, the 18-section approach will allow us to really maximize our special teachers and allow them to be a part of that entire educational ecosystem in those schools.”

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More: Lavender fields forever: Calyx Creek offers flower-filled vacation destination

Enhancing building collaboration with paired schools

The board also discussed “paired schools,” which involves splitting the grade levels between two buildings. One building serves kindergarten through second grade, and the other serves third through fifth.

The board has previously discussed this idea known as “sister schools.”

Data from Mann and Lincoln Elementary schools were analyzed during Tuesday’s work session. Both buildings currently have class sizes averaging between 18 and 19 students, with 21 sections combined.

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If the ICCSD adopted the paired school model, there would be nine sections for K-2 in one building and nine sections for grades 3-5 in the other building, totaling 18 sections. The average class size would be 20 or 21 students.

Currently, there are some grades with only one section, which means students and teachers have limited opportunities for peer interaction and collaboration. The paired school model would provide better collaboration among teachers in the same grade level while allowing students to have more peers in their grade, enhancing social opportunities.

Jessica Rish is an entertainment, dining and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. She can be reached at JRish@press-citizen.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_



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Vote: Who Should be Iowa’s High School Athlete of the Week? (4/19/2026)

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Vote: Who Should be Iowa’s High School Athlete of the Week? (4/19/2026)


Here are the candidates for High School on SI’s Iowa high school athlete of the week for April 13-18. Read through the nominees and cast your vote.

Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. PT on Sunday, April 26. The winner will be announced in the following week’s poll. Here are this week’s nominees:

Taylor Roose, Pella boys track and field

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Roose competed in three events at the Norwalk Invitational, winning all three in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and long jump.

Daxon Kiesau, Urbandale boys track and field

Kiesau swept the throwing events at the Norwalk Invitational, taking first place in the shot put and the discus.

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Alex Burger, Southeast Valley boys track and field

Competing at home, Burger dominated, earning four gold medals. He won the 400-meter hurdles and the long jump while running on the winning 4×200-meter relay and shuttle hurdle relay.

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Kolby Hodnefield, Clear Lake boys track and field

Hodenfield, a defending state champion, broke the meet, venue and school record in the 200 and the 400 at the Clear Lake Invitational. He added victories as part of the 4×100 and 4×400 relays. Both relays also set meet records.

Easton Moon, North Polk boys tennis

Moon has started off his senior season on the courts unbeaten, winning all four matches while dropping just one game in 44 played.

Ava Lohrbach, Gilbert girls golf

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One of the top golfers in the state, Lohrbach has had a hot start, firing a 35 in her nine-hole debut and a 72 for her 18-hole opener.

Nathan Manske, Algona boys golf

An elite quarterback and basketball player, Manske is showing his golfing skills this spring, coming out with a state-low 30 in a nine-hole event.

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Ella Hein, Tipton girls track and field

Hein set school records in the 400-meter run and long jump at the Tiger/Tigerette Relays while also locking in the Blue Standard and qualifying for the Drake Relays. She won the long jump (18-6) and was second in the 400.

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Maeve Bowen-Burt, Iowa City High girls track and field

The sophomore helped the Little Hawks land three Drake Relays events on the last night of qualifying, advancing in the 400 hurdles, along with the sprint medley and 4×400 relays.

About Our Athlete of the Week Voting

High School on SI voting polls are meant to be a fun, lighthearted way for fans to show support for their favorite athletes and teams. Our goal is to celebrate all of the players featured, regardless of the vote totals. Sometimes one athlete will receive a very large number of votes — even thousands — and that’s okay! The polls are open to everyone and are simply a way to build excitement and community around high school sports. Unless we specifically announce otherwise, there are no prizes or official awards for winning. The real purpose is to highlight the great performances of every athlete included in the poll.

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Houston icon George Foreman laid to rest in Iowa, drawn by a peaceful 1988 visit

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Houston icon George Foreman laid to rest in Iowa, drawn by a peaceful 1988 visit


The late boxing great George Foreman lies buried in a cemetery in the northwestern corner of Iowa – a place he has no connection to outside of a lone visit to the region nearly 40 years ago.

Foreman died March 21, 2025, at the age of 76 in Houston and was buried in Logan Park Cemetery at Sioux City, Iowa, a month later, city officials confirmed. Foreman’s family returned Thursday to his burial site, holding a news conference with Sioux City Mayor Bob Scott to reveal Foreman’s burial place, marked by a large monument that bears an image of him as a teen following his Olympic gold medal boxing win.

The family explained in a statement released by Sioux City officials that he had visited the Iowa city in 1988, and often recalled the sense of peace he experienced there.

After traveling to the city on April 17 last year to bury Foreman, his family said they immediately understood the region’s appeal.

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“Our father lived a life of purpose, faith and gratitude,” the family said in a statement released by Sioux City officials. “To see him laid to rest in a place that brought him peace means everything to us.”

Scott joined the family at Foreman’s monument that lies just a few miles north of the Missouri River in an upper Midwest city of nearly 87,000 people. The cemetery overlooks the scenic Loess Hills, created by windblown silt deposits that reach up to 200 feet high (about 61 meters) and line the river along the Iowa border for 200 miles (322 kilometers).

“Their story is a reminder of how one place can stay with someone for a lifetime,” Scott said.

A native Texan, Foreman rose to fame when he made the 1968 U.S. Olympic boxing team, winning gold in Mexico City. He became the heavyweight champion of the world in 1973 by defeating the great Joe Frazier, only to lose the title a year later to Muhammad Ali in the famous “Rumble in the Jungle.”

A full 20 years later in 1994, Foreman became the oldest man to win the heavyweight championship at 45, defeating Michael Moorer in an epic upset.

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Foreman retired in 1997 with a 76-5 career record.

He then moved on to the next chapter in his life as a businessman, pitchman and occasional actor, becoming known to a new generation as the face of the George Foreman Grill. The simple cooking machine sold more than 100 million units and brought him more wealth than boxing.

A biographical movie based on Foreman’s life was released in 2023.

Copyright © 2026 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.



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GOP governor candidate Zach Lahn pitches Iowa-first platform at Dubuque town hall

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GOP governor candidate Zach Lahn pitches Iowa-first platform at Dubuque town hall


DUBUQUE, Iowa (KCRG) — About 50 Iowans braved the threat of severe storms to hear from Republican candidate for governor Zach Lahn at his town hall in Dubuque Friday night.

Lahn, a farmer and businessman, said his campaign is about solving the long-term systemic issues facing Iowans.

One priority is addressing what Lahn calls a cancer crisis in Iowa, as the state has the second-highest cancer rate in the country. Solving the crisis means ensuring Iowans have access to clean, nitrate-free drinking water, working with farmers to reduce agricultural runoff.

“Iowans are just ready for something that they should be able to count on, like clean drinking water,” Lahn said. “We have ways to clean up the drinking water in Iowa that isn’t on the backs of farmers, but is working alongside with them because they’re drinking the water too, and they want to do what’s right.”

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Lahn also wants to stop Iowa’s “brain drain,” as more of Iowa’s college graduates left the state for opportunities elsewhere.

“Don’t leave! Give me some time! I’m going to fight to keep you here,” Lahn said. “I was one of these kids. I thought I had to leave the state to find something better. We have to prioritize Iowa’s incentive dollars to make sure they’re going to grow Iowa businesses that are going to be here for the long haul, so our kids have places to work.”

Running a distinct campaign feels challenging this election, as Lahn is one of five GOP candidates who want to be Iowa’s next governor, facing U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra, former Department of Administrative Services Director Adam Steen, state Rep. Eddie Andrews and former state Rep. Brad Sherman.

Iowa Auditor Rob Sand is the only Democrat running for the state’s top office.

Lahn said he stands out by promising Iowa will be for Iowans, pledging to ban the use of eminent domain for private gain and tax out-of-state landowners and data centers at higher rates to lower property taxes.

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“It always goes back to follow the money, so when it comes to not being a weak-kneed Republican today, I believe the paramount piece of that is answering only to the citizens of Iowa, not to special interests to pad their bottom line, but what’s best for the people of Iowa,” Lahn said.

Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.



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