Iowa
Iowa Dept. of Education received $900K in grants to expand summer food service programs
DES MOINES, Iowa (KCRG) – The Iowa Department of Education is receiving $900,000 in grants to expand the Summer Food Service Program and Seamless Summer Option.
These programs provide meals and snacks to those 18 years of age and under while they’re out of school over the summer.
In a press release, Governor Kim Reynolds says the new state-directed Summer Meal Program Expansion Grant will launch more summer meal sites to serve more children in currently underserved areas across the state.
The meals can be served at various sites like schools, churches, community centers, parks, libraries and camps. The expansion will allow additional local sponsors and partners to apply to participate in the programs.
“Many children rely heavily on these meals during the school year to provide them with the fuel and nutrition to grow healthy and become successful–the summertime is no different,” said Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Director Kelly Garcia. “Together, we are leveraging public-private partnerships to care for our children most in need.”
The new funding comes after Iowa rejected $20 million in federal funding for the summertime EBT program last year.
Iowa state Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott released the following statement in response to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ announcement:
“While I appreciate the governor finally doing something for hungry children in our state, the competitive grant program announced today amounts to crumbs for Iowa kids. Gov. Reynolds could have accepted $29 million in federal food assistance that would’ve reached 240,000 children in every corner of the state. The $900,000 state program she announced today is tiny by comparison – and forces Iowa communities to compete for a sliver of that much-smaller pie. It’s not enough to meet the real needs facing our state. And it doesn’t make up for her decision to let Iowa kids go hungry.”
“While summer feeding programs have their place, they are not accessible to all Iowa families. Families must bring their children to and from the site every day, which is impossible for most working families. There are many Iowa school districts and entire counties that don’t even have a feeding site. As a result, these programs assisted less than 20,000 children last year. The governor could have expanded these programs AND participated in the Summer EBT program. But instead, she put politics before the health and wellbeing of our kids.”
Senate Democrats’ efforts ensured that Iowa kids were eligible for the Summer EBT program in 2023, and the caucus united behind legislation to require the state to adopt the program again in 2024. However, Republican politicians led by Gov. Reynolds, killed the legislation, and refused to participate in Summer EBT, taking $29 million in food aid away from children and families in need.
For more information on the new grant, click here.
Copyright 2024 KCRG. All rights reserved.
One Iowa high school athletic department is facing extremely low numbers in multiple sports, prompting school officials to begin searching for programs to share with.
Exira-EHK High School has already cancelled the upcoming 2026 Iowa High School Athletic Association varsity football season, going instead with a junior varsity-only series of games. According to a report by Western Iowa Today, they have also shared softball with Audubon.
The Exira-EHK/Audubon softball team is currently ranked No. 1 in Class 1A of the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. A total of 11 of the players on the 23-girl team are from Exira-EHK. They are 15th in the latest High School On SI Iowa Top 25 State Rankings as they prepare for postseason play.
Enrollment For Exira-EHK School District Continues To Drop
Enrollment at the high school level for the Spartans is down by over 20 students, with the expectation for even more of a drop in overall enrollment moving into the 2026-2027 school year.
Tom Petersen, the Exira-EHK athletic director, was part of a community-wide meeting earlier this week alongside Trevor Miller, the school superintendent.
“I’m going to continue to campaign, keep working (to get more kids out),” Petersen said. “It’s just part of being an AD and a coach. I have tried every scenario that I can to try and make it that our kids could go and play varsity (football).
“It’s not the state’s fault, it’s not our fault; it’s the middle of a two-year cycle. I coached here for 20 years in football and it’s crushing (to not have a program).”
Petersen also mentioned during the meeting that he is struggling to fill several coaching vacancies, including the head boys basketball position. He said that they have received zero applications for that coaching vacancy.
Spartans Currently Share Multiple Sports With Audubon
Along with baseball and softball, the Exira-EHK school district also shares girls basketball, boys wrestling, girls wrestling, boys tennis and girls tennis with Audubon. Petersen is proposing to the school board a share agreement for boys basketball, boys track and field, and girls track and field, in addition to the other sports.
Last fall, the Spartans went 4-5 overall, as they won 22 games over a stretch of seasons after going 0-7 in 2020. Exira-EHK was 12-1 in 2013 and had three consecutive years of at least eight wins after that.
The schools are a combination of the towns of Exira, Elk Horn and Kimballton.
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CORALVILLE, Iowa (KCRG) – Coralville Police say a person has drowned at the Coralville Aquatic Center Tuesday afternoon.
The call went out shortly after 4 p.m. to 1513 7th Street for a drowning report.
Officers, lifeguards and paramedics gave lifesaving aid to the person. They were taken to the University of Iowa Health Care, where they were pronounced dead.
The identity of the victim has not been released. The incident is under investigation.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
Iowa
Iowa City Man who ran over people in homeless encampment sentenced to nearly two decades in prison
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – An Iowa City man who pleaded guilty to driving into five people at a homeless encampment last August has been sentenced to serve nearly two decades in prison.
On August 15, 2025, Roman Aguilar Ventura drove his vehicle while under the influence through an encampment near Shelter House, an organization that assists homeless people.
Ventura pleaded guilty to several charges in March, including Operating While Under the Influence, two counts of Willful Injury Resulting in Bodily Injury, and three counts of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon. He also pleaded guilty to Driving While Barred and Driving While License Denied or Revoked.
In addition to his sentence, Ventura will also be subject to a six-year suspension of his drivers license, in addition to substance abuse treatment.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
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