Iowa

What are the best companies in Iowa? See which 30 made Forbes 2024 ‘Best Employers’ list.

Published

2 years ago

September 5, 2024

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What are the best companies in Iowa? See which 30 made Forbes 2024 ‘Best Employers’ list.

Principal Financial Group, Ankeny Community School District among top employers

Each year, Forbes releases its “America’s Best Employers By State,” list which includes nearly 1,300 companies nationwide.

Thirty employers in Iowa were featured on this year’s list, with 14 companies headquartered in the state and seven based in the Des Moines metro area. The companies that made the list fall into a range of industries, including education, health care social services, and government.

To create the list, Forbes worked with data company Statista to survey more than 160,000 U.S. employees at companies with at least 500 workers. Survey participants were asked a series of questions including:

How likely they were to recommend their company.
To evaluate the companies they’ve worked for within the past two years.
To evaluate organizations, they knew within their industry or through friends or family who worked there.

Responses were collected from all 50 states and Washington D.C. and weighted based on recent data to compile the list.

Here are the best employers in Iowa, according to Forbes:

Top-rated employers headquartered in the Des Moines Metro

2. Principal Financial Group

3. Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield

7. Ankeny Community School District

13. Broadlawns Medical Center

22. State of Iowa

23. Des Moines Public Schools

25. UnityPoint Health

More: Looking for a new job? These Iowa companies rank among the best for pay

Top-rated employers based in Iowa

8. UI Health Care (formerly University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics), Iowa City

12. Iowa State University, Ames

16. Pella Corporation, Pella

17. Mercy Medical Center, Cedar Rapids

18. University of Iowa, Iowa City

26. Cedar Rapids Community School District, Cedar Rapids

29. Transamerica, Cedar Rapids

What are all of the Iowa companies on Forbes’ ‘Best Employers’ list?

The list from Forbes also included companies headquartered in other states that have large presences in Iowa. Here’s the complete list of employers in Iowa ranked by Forbes along with their headquarters location:

Kwik Trip/Kwik Star, La Crosse, Wisconsin
Principal Financial Group, Des Moines
Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Des Moines
United Parcel Service, Atlanta
Nationwide Mutual Insurance, Columbus, Ohio
UnitedHealth Group, Minnetonka, Minnesota
Ankeny Community School District, Ankeny
UI Health Care, Iowa City
Hormel Foods, Austin, Minnesota
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, D.C.
Amazon, Seattle
Iowa State University, Ames
Broadlawns Medical Center, Des Moines
John Deere, Moline, Illinois
Target, Minneapolis
Pella Corporation, Pella
Mercy Medical Center, Cedar Rapids
University of Iowa, Iowa City
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C.
Menards, Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Marsh & McLennan, New York
State of Iowa, Des Moines
Des Moines Public Schools, Des Moines
FedEx, Memphis, Tennessee
UnityPoint Health, West Des Moines
Cedar Rapids Community School District, Cedar Rapids
Sammons Enterprises, Dallas
United States Postal Services (USPS), Washington, D.C.
Transamerica, Cedar Rapids
PepsiCo, Purchase, New York

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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Iowa

Iowa Boys High School Tennis Team Rankings Released

Published

8 hours ago

March 30, 2026

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Iowa Boys High School Tennis Team Rankings Released

The Iowa Boys Tennis Coaches have released team rankings for the start of the 2026 season in Iowa boys high school tennis.

Starting off the year in the No. 1 spots will be Waukee Northwest in Class 2A and Cedar Rapids Xavier in Class 1A.

Iowa City West, Johnston, Pleasant Valley and Linn-Mar round out the Top 5 in 2A while Dubuque Wahlert Catholic, Sergeant Bluff-Luton, Decorah and Waverly-Shell Rock complete the 1A Top 5 behind Cedar Rapids Xavier.

Both Waukee Northwest and Cedar Rapids Xavier claimed the team state titles a year ago. The Wolves earned 5-0 wins over both Dowling Catholic and Iowa City West before besting Cedar Rapids Prairie in the finals, 5-1.

Cedar Rapids Xavier silenced Boone and Decorah, earning a 5-3 victory over Dubuque Wahlert Catholic in the championship match.

State Team Tennis Makes Change For 2026

New for 2026 Iowa boys tennis season will be substate team tennis, as the Top 32 teams from each classification advance to participate. Previously, all teams started play in team state just like individual state qualifiers.

Eight substates with up to four teams each will compete. There will be one host site for each substate for the semifinal round and the substate final.

Here are the Iowa boys high school tennis team rankings from the Iowa Boys Tennis Coaches.

Iowa Boys High School Tennis Team Rankings

Class 2A

Waukee Northwest
Iowa City West
Johnston
Pleasant Valley
Linn-Mar
Ames
Dowling Catholic
Cedar Rapids Prairie
Cedar Rapids Washington
West Des Moines Valley

Class 1A

Cedar Rapids Xavier
Dubuque Wahlert Catholic
Sergeant Bluff-Luton
Decorah
Waverly-Shell Rock
Pella
Central DeWitt
Boone
Ballard
Shenandoah

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Iowa

Iowa basketball forward planning to return if granted extra season

Published

20 hours ago

March 30, 2026

Press Room

Iowa basketball forward planning to return if granted extra season

Iowa basketball just capped one of its most magical seasons in years with its first trip to the Elite Eight since 1987.

While the Hawkeyes’ Cinderella run through March Madness closed with a 71-59 loss against No. 3 seed Illinois, Iowa reached the doorstep of the Final Four and that should pay dividends for years to come. Head coach Ben McCollum and Iowa will work to retool for another NCAA Tournament run as soon as next season.

Cooper Koch and Tate Sage each authored enthusiasm for the future with their performance as underclassmen over the course of the season and during March Madness in particular. Iowa will return forwards Alvaro Folgueiras and Cam Manyawu and guard Kael Combs from the core that led the Hawkeyes to 24 wins and an Elite Eight berth.

Iowa head coach Ben McCollum had mentioned earlier in the year that it wasn’t ruling out the possibility of forward Tavion Banks returning for the 2026-27 season either. Banks would need a waiver for additional eligibility, stemming from his career beginning in the JUCO ranks at Northwest Florida State for two seasons.

“If I get another year, I will be here next year on their side to help them out,” Banks said.

The hope is that Banks could get a Diego Pavia ruling, which earned Pavia another season of football eligibility at Vanderbilt. Pavia sued the NCAA in November of 2024, arguing that his JUCO seasons shouldn’t count toward his overall years of NCAA eligibility. A federal judge in Tennessee granted Pavia an injunction in December of 2024, opening the door for other former JUCO athletes to potentially receive waivers for more NCAA eligibility.

But, Banks is aware of the uncertainty surrounding whether or not he will indeed receive another season of eligibility.

“I don’t know the future. God will plan it all out for me. I wish them the best of luck and I’ll be cheering for them and I’m sure I’ll be a part of Hawkeye nation,” Banks said.

It would be a major boon for McCollum and for the Hawkeyes if Banks is inded able to return for the 2026-27 men’s college basketball season. Banks has played with McCollum each of the past two seasons at Drake and at Iowa, and the 6-foot-7 forward was Iowa’s second-leading scorer this past season, averaging 10.2 points and 4.6 rebounds per game on 52% field goal shooting.

Banks keyed Iowa’s second-round upset of top-seeded Florida, scoring a team-high 20 points in the win over the Gators.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes and opinions. Follow Josh on X: @JoshOnHawks

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Iowa

NW Iowa family witnesses field catch fire firsthand Saturday

Published

1 day ago

March 29, 2026

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NW Iowa family witnesses field catch fire firsthand Saturday

BRONSON, Iowa (KTIV) – As recovery continues in Northwest Iowa from Saturday’s field fires, one family witnessed the fire firsthand.

On Saturday. March 28, more than 50 organizations from three states responded to a large field fire in Woodbury County.

Several of these organizations worked throughout the night to assist in emergency operations.

Ruth Smith, a Bronson resident, says she and her family saw the fire burn in their backyard, and before she knew it the field in her backyard was fully engulfed in flames.

“Came out and was looking out the back window and we could see the flames, out there in the field there,” said Smith. “It just, you know, spread so fast.”

Residents from Lawton, Bronson, and Moville had to evacuate their homes for their safety, including members of Smith’s family.

“My daughter and son,” said Smith. “They grabbed some of their stuff and threw it in bags, went down to my in-laws’ house.”

From her house, Smith says she could see her neighbor’s shed catch fire and how she felt throughout the night.

“The emotions are scary when the wind is that crazy and you know the ground is that dry and it spreads really fast,” said Smith.

A common fear for residents like Smith is the fear of running out of water.

“We’re out here and they’re no fire hydrants, so it’s pretty scary,” said Smith.

Derek Stanfield, the Salix fire chief says a portable water site has been set up at Lawton-Bronson High School.

“We are dumping water in these holding tanks and as trucks need water, they come here, we fill them out of the tanks,” he said. “That allows these trucks to get back on the road, get water, get back, so we don’t run out.”

Center now open in Bronson for those impacted by Saturday’s field fire

Woodbury County Emergency Management says a respite center is now open at Lofted Views Event Center, located at 2086 210th St. in Bronson.

Those impacted by the fires are encouraged to seek assistance by visiting the center to meet with American Red Cross case workers.

Management says for concerns about recovery efforts, residents can call (712)-222-4400.

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