Iowa

Opinion: Some books that won’t be banned in Iowa school libraries

Published

1 year ago

August 6, 2023

Opinion: Some books that won’t be banned in Iowa school libraries

FILE – Iowa’s Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds delivers her inaugural address, Jan. 13, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa. Reynolds is backing a bill that could result in the removal of books from school libraries in all 327 districts if they are successfully challenged in any one of them. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

It’s back to school time. A time to buy school supplies, new clothes (I have daughters) and maybe receive a list of books that will be removed from the school library.

We found out recently that school officials in the Des Moines suburb of Urbandale have compiled a list of nearly 400 books that would no longer be available in libraries or coursework. Some titles are banned for K-8 while others are banished from K-12. The Des Moines register made a database of the list

It’s all due to Senate File 496, which requires to removal of books with sexual content and bars lessons about LGBTQ themes from K-6. Schools have been told the Department of Education has no plan to provide guidance on book removal. The more vague the rules are, the bigger the chilling effect on educators.

The original list includes some well-known books, such as “The Color Purple.” Of course, many of the books are written by LGBTQ writers and authors of color. They yanked kids books if they dared to have a LGBTQ character. A biography of Pete Buttigieg, who is gay, is also on the list.

But Urbandale school officials have announced they will slice the number of books on the list. Good news, but not great.

That will potentially free up some shelf space. So I’ve compiled a list of books to replace them that will be more acceptable to Republican lawmakers.

“The Catcher in the Templeton Rye” — A gripping story of small-town entrepreneurship in a state that’s open for business. Includes helpful cocktail recipes for 17-year-old restaurant bartenders.

“Are You There God? It’s Us, Moms for Liberty” — This wholesome title tells the coming-of-age story of Karen, a 30-something suburban mom, who joins the crusade to have books removed from school libraries. The saga takes her from shouting at her local school board to the Statehouse. In the end, Karen triumphs. Kids will no longer learn about these books. And she learns a little bit about herself.

“Most Counties Aren’t Blue” — A political thriller explaining Iowa’s ascent to become a Republican-dominated red state and its victory over woke, socialist, communist, Marxist extremists who want to provide more funding to public education, not kick kids, disabled Iowans and the elderly off food stamps and recognize civil rights. Oh, the horror.

“Fifty Shades of Gray, Brown and Some Kind of Foamy Green” — This thin volume tells the story of Iowa’s efforts to improve water quality. We’re making so much progress! Winner of the Iowa Farm Bureau Book of the Year award.

“Heather Has Two Mommies She Can’t Talk About in Class” — Heather is a fourth-grader. And that’s all you need to know. No reason to go into any more detail.

“I Know Why the Caged Hog is Totally Comfortable” — Iowa pig farmers band together to fight California liberals who have the audacity to think sows shouldn’t be jammed into gestation crates where they can’t stand or turn around. Who will win the “War on Breakfast?”

“Gender Queer? Certainly not here” — Noted expert Bob Vander Plaats provides his views on human sexuality and gender. Maybe you think transgender people should be allowed to live their lives as their authentic selves without fear of harassment, discrimination or worse. Well, think again.

“The Handmaid’s Guide to Living in Iowa” — Iowa’s abortion ban won’t seem so bad thanks to these helpful tips from handmaids. Sure, the ban is tied up in the courts, for now, but there’s no time like the present to plan for state-sanction forced birth. As a bonus, a middle-aged guy will mansplain the reasons women should quit complaining about losing reproductive rights and how they should just stop having sex. With a forward by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird

“The Hate U Campaign On” — Gov. Kim Reynolds explains how she won the 2022 election after exposing Iowa’s public schools as liberal indoctrination facilities with drag queens, pornographic books and pronouns lessons. In a particularly stirring passage, Reynolds explains how her heart truly goes out to families who can no longer access gender-affirming care for their own kids. The governor also provides a handy guide for teachers who now must forcibly out transgender students. Includes a forward by Betsy DeVoss and a private school voucher request form.

“A Farewell to Public Schools” — Republican lawmakers explain how they can provide billions of dollars in publicly funded private school scholarships, sock away billions in surplus dollars and eliminate the state income tax without having any negative effect on public school funding. Faith-based math is sweeping the country, so your kids better be ready.

(319) 398-8262; todd.dorman@thegazette.com

Opinion content represents the viewpoint of the author or The Gazette editorial board. You can join the conversation by submitting a letter to the editor or guest column or by suggesting a topic for an editorial to editorial@thegazette.com

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Iowa

Rosemount H.S. Marching Band wins at Iowa competition

Published

7 hours ago

October 12, 2024

Press Room

Rosemount H.S. Marching Band wins at Iowa competition

The Rosemount High School Marching Band is celebrating a big victory from a competition earlier this fall. In late September they took home the Class AAA Championship trophy at the Bands of America regional competition in Waukee, Iowa. Members of the band joined the FOX 9 Morning News to talk about the win and share how they are getting ready for another big competition this weekend at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

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Iowa

Iowa high school football scores for Week 7

Published

15 hours ago

October 11, 2024

Press Room

Iowa high school football scores for Week 7

(This story was updated to add new information)

It’s Week 7 of the Iowa high school football season. Check out our list of IHSAA scores from Friday night’s action.

Stream Iowa HS football on the NFHS Network

Scores are listed in alphabetical order by winning team

IHSAA scores from Week 7 of Iowa high school football season

Friday’s games:

Ankeny Centennial 45, Des Moines Roosevelt 3
Bedford 77, Lamoni 0
Benton 38, Grinnell 7
Bettendorf 48, Davenport Central 0
Cedar Falls 38, Dubuque Senior 0
Cedar Rapids Kennedy 45, Dubuque Hempstead 14
Cedar Rapids Prairie 56, Cedar Rapids Jefferson 7
Cedar Rapids Xavier 35, Oskaloosa 0
Central City 64, Lone Tree 8
Central Lyon/George-Little Rock 23, Western Christian 7
Clarinda 47, Chariton 7
Columbus 48, Van Buren County 7
Creston 70, Knoxville 0
Crestwood 28, New Hampton 27
Davenport Assumption 34, Washington 6
Decorah 57, Marion 14
Dike-New Hartford 42, Aplington-Parkersburg 0
Don Bosco 62, Turkey Valley 0
Dowling Catholic 49, Urbandale 28
Dyersville Beckman 28, Iowa City Regina 15
East Mills 50, Exira-EHK 44
East Union 64, Murray 36
Easton Valley 61, Midland 21
Edgewood-Colesburg 84, Calamus-Wheatland 31
Emmetsburg 64, Eagle Grove 0
Fremont-Mills 40, CAM 28
Fort Dodge 55, Storm Lake 26
Fort Dodge St. Edmond 43, Colo-Nesco 6
Glenwood 20, Dallas Center-Grimes 17
Glidden-Ralston 48, Coon Rapids-Bayard 6
GMG 52, Meskwaki Settlement 0
Greene County 10, Southeast Valley 7
Harlan 24, Nevada 21
Highland 41, Louisa-Muscatine 6
Hinton 19, OABCIG 13
Humboldt 21, Algona 20
IKM-Manning 13, Southwest Valley 6
Iowa City Liberty 28, Ankeny 20
Jesup 35, Iowa Falls-Alden 6
Johnston 56, Council Bluffs Lincoln 7
Lenox 55, Southeast Warren 8
Lewis Central 28, Winterset 24
Linn-Mar 55, Davenport West 6
Logan-Magnolia 14, Council Bluffs St. Albert 10
Maquoketa Valley 35, North Linn 16
Marshalltown 26, Ames 21
Mediapolis 49, Davis County 20
MMCRU 41, Westwood 18
MOC-Floyd Valley 35, Sioux Center 14
Mount Vernon 56, Fort Madison 7
North Butler 22, Nashua-Plainfield 0
North Fayette Valley won by forfeit over Oelwein
North Iowa 46, Harris-Lake Park 40
North Polk 22, Indianola 21
Okoboji 49, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows 21
Osage 42, Waukon 6
Pekin 57, Wapello 0
Pleasant Valley 42, Muscatine 7
Remsen St. Mary’s 46, Woodbine 30
Riceville 57, Waterloo Christian 0
Ridge View 22, West Sioux 7
Riverside 41, Earlham 6
Roland-Story 28, Des Moines Christian 21
Saint Ansgar 53, West Fork 0
Sergeant Bluff-Luton 21, Carroll 0
Sibley-Ocheyedan 48, HMS 14
Sidney 62, Stanton-Essex 20
Sigourney-Keota 62, Colfax-Mingo 26
South Central Calhoun 41, Panorama 12
South Hardin 34, Hudson 21
Southeast Polk 31, Waukee 28
Spencer 41, Sioux City West 0
Spirit Lake 49, Garner-Hayfield-Ventura 6
Sumner-Fredericksburg 54, Central Springs 12
Treynor 36, Shenandoah 6
Tri-Center 34, Woodbury Central 8
Underwood 41, Missouri Valley 6
Van Meter 54, Centerville 0
Wapsie Valley 46, BCLUW 0
Wayne 30, Central Decatur 6
Webster City 42, Charles City 21
West Hancock 60, Lake Mills 6
West Lyon 50, Sheldon 0
Wilton 39, West Branch 20
Winfield-Mt. Union 68, Mormon Trail 8

Thursday’s games:

Le Mars 44, Fort Dodge 37
Pella 42, D.M. Hoover 10
S.C North 37, D.M. East 0

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Iowa

Kirk Ferentz’s Reputation On The Line In Iowa vs Washington

Published

23 hours ago

October 11, 2024

Press Room

Kirk Ferentz’s Reputation On The Line In Iowa vs Washington

The Iowa Hawkeyes are coming off of a 35-7 thumping at the hands of the Ohio State Buckeyes, and while a loss to Ohio State was expected, it was how Iowa lost that has Hawkeyes fans livid.

Iowa’s offense was absolutely lifeless, Cade McNamara looked lost and head coach Kirk Ferentz did not seem to have any answers.

Not only that, but Ferentz doubled down on McNamara remaining the starter after the game, saying that the quarterback actually showed improvement.

That’s why Ferentz’s reputation may actually be on the line when the Hawkeyes face the Washington Huskies this Saturday.

Iowa is just 3-2 on the season, as it also lost to the Iowa State Cyclones back in Week 2. A loss to Washington would drop the Hawkeyes to .500, and it would add more fuel to the “fire Ferentz” discussion that has been smoldering.

The Huskies are a new addition to the Big Ten and just beat the Michigan Wolverines, and while Michigan has not been as good as expected, Washington is no joke.

However, make no mistake: Iowa needs to beat these guys.

Here is the thing: barring a catastrophic remainder of the 2024 campaign at Iowa City, the Hawkeyes aren’t canning Ferentz. The man is under contract through 2029 on a hefty salary. It isn’t happening.

But Ferentz’s reputation is a different story.

The 69-year-old has been at the helm for Iowa since 1999 and is highly respected by the fans, but patience is running thin.

Last year, the Hawkeyes played three ranked opponents and lost by a total score of 92-0. They also just got destroyed by Ohio State. The Iowa fan base is tired with being second-best, and at this point, that is all Ferentz has offered them.

Sure, Iowa does not have the cachet or prestige of schools like Ohio State, Michigan or Alabama. It typically won’t land the very best recruits as a result. But the Hawkeyes’ inability to even put together respectable offenses over the years does reflect poorly on Ferentz, who is the longest-tenured coach in the country.

And Iowa fans are sick of it.

The Hawkeyes absolutely need to beat the Huskies this Saturday. Iowa should be better than Washington, and at some point, the Hawkeyes are going to have to display that they can consistently beat good teams.

Is all of the Ferentz criticism deserved? No, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that all of it is completely unfounded.

Ferentz can provide some nice pushback to all of the naysayers with a Week 7 win over Washington. Or, he can give fans more reason to complain with a loss.

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