Indian Hills Community College had the numbers behind them upon passing a bond measure in November 2021. More than 12,000 voters in 17 Iowa counties gave their approval for a $28 million referendum designated to fund a brand new campus and additional major improvements. The bond, which needed 60% support to pass, cleared that hurdle with more than…

Citizenship classes are often taught directly to the test. Creating meaningful dialogue within the confines of a set vocabulary list, 100 questions, and a time limit can often prove difficult. Creating not only new citizens but citizens who are connected to their community and who are leaders/advocates for the people in their community is the main…

As part of the national Future Ready Librarians initiative at the Alliance for Excellent Education, Mark Ray and Shannon McClintock Miller serve as national advocates for school library programs and librarians. Mark and Shannon began their library advocacy careers in school libraries. For eight years, Shannon was the district librarian in Van…

The invitation to write a brief summary highlighting Belin-Blank Center partnerships that support talent development in youth led my mind to channel the 1946 Frank Capra movie, "It's a Wonderful Life." The existential storyline from that classic film reveals the merit of relationships when considered from the vantage of nonexistence. The…

Skilled, ethical use of social media can advance social justice, impact policy, engage and educate the community, and elevate social workers. To assure that MSW students develop these skills, we created an assignment that required students to use a professional social media profile to advocate for a cause or policy based on findings from a needs…

An ethics project is described that challenged students to collaborate with disability rights authorities to co-write a code of ethics for a Center of Independent Living. Experiential and reflective assignments analyzed how the construction of knowledge and language is never value-neutral, and people with disabilities need to have a voice in…

The purpose of this document is to provide a historical perspective of the evolution of special education in Iowa through the voices of the people who created the system of support for individuals with disabilities. In addition to the interviews, extensive historical literature reviews were conducted. One hundred and thirty individuals were…

Dr. Wangari Maathai--"environmentalist, human rights advocate, global peace worker, and community builder"--passed away in 2011. The first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Dr. Maathai left a legacy even greater than the 47 million trees that her organization, the Greenbelt Movement, has planted across Kenya since 1977. As…

Background: Few teachers and special education specialists are aware of the materials and resources available to support science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instruction for the scattered and isolated 3000 students with sensory and motor disabilities in Iowa's K-12 schools. Additionally, faculty at many community colleges and regent…

Expansion of newborn screening (NBS) has been driven primarily by a combination of advances in technology and medical treatment, and the sustained advocacy efforts of consumers and voluntary health organizations. The longstanding leadership of the March of Dimes has been credited by many as a critical factor in the expansion and improvement of…

This 1994 Iowa Kids Count book presents data collected as part of a national program to track trends in child well-being. The purpose of the publication is to provide trend information needed by policy makers and the public to establish results-based policies to improve child well-being. The first part of the book describes the changing status of…