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…

For the past two decades, the presidency and both houses of Congress have been hotly contested by the two major political parties. Yet, geographically, the United States seems to be increasingly marked by "red" areas where the Democratic Party lacks any ability to even dream of winning office and "blue" areas where the…

Higher levels of civic and community engagement in higher education are positively associated with students' academic performance and they also build upon citizenship skills such as informed voting. Yet, while these are worthy and important outcomes of higher education, students from disadvantaged backgrounds can have more difficulty navigating…

To make a difference in their communities, students need to develop the "knowledge, skills, values, and motivation to make that difference" (Ehrlich 2000, p. vi). Taking advantage of Iowa's role in the 2008 presidential nominations, I designed three "civic learning" projects: a collaborative fact-checking weblog, a nonpartisan…

Stories of transient students missing deadlines or being misled about their voting rights are nothing new. But this year, the role younger voters played in Barack Obama's win in Iowa's Democratic presidential primary seems to have motivated a wave of college students in other states. Some of those students--and the campaigns courting them--are out…

Most of the material for this issue of the "Goldfinch," which explores the life of Carrie Chapman Catt, came from the archives of the State Historical Society of Iowa. Carrie Chapman Catt (1859-1947) was an Iowan who advocated woman suffrage and spent 26 years actively working for that cause. The issue contains a biography of Catt, and…

This report provides tables and charts on the results of Iowa's school bond issues from 1960-1970 inclusive. Although the report does not analyze the results of the school bond issues, it does observe that the time of year, the month, and the week in which school bond elections are held seem to have a substantial effect upon election results. (JF)

A study was conducted to find out how the topics of the Nineteenth Amendment and women's suffrage were handled at the time by news publications in rural areas. Several components were used to carry out the objective: one was to investigate newspaper coverage of the amendment and in addition broaden that search to include women's suffrage; another…

In spite of a nationwide concern for the crumbling infrastructure of school buildings, the prospects of passing bond issues to repair or replace buildings are elusive. This study examined positive and negative factors that affected the outcomes of school bond elections in four purposefully-selected school districts in Iowa. Variables that…

TO DETERMINE CAUSAL FACTORS IN THE SUCCESS OR FAILURE OF SCHOOL BOND ELECTIONS, A STUDY WAS MADE OF SCHOOL BOND ELECTION RESULTS FROM 1960 THROUGH 1964 IN THE 209 IOWA SCHOOL DISTRICTS MAINTAINING A PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL, JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL, OR COMMUNITY COLLEGE. SEVENTY-NINE PERCENT OF THE REPORTING DISTRICTS (154 OF 195 TOTAL) SUCCESSFULLY PASSED…

THE SUPERINTENDENTS OF 195 OF 209 SCHOOL DISTRICTS HOLDING BOND ISSUE ELECTIONS DURING A 5-YEAR PERIOD RESPONDED TO A QUESTIONNAIRE. OF THESE, 20 OF THE 24 WHOSE BOND ISSUES INVOLVED VOCATIONAL EDUCATION WERE INTERVIEWED IN A TWO-PHASE STUDY TO ANALYZE THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS, IDENTIFY THE VARIABLES ASSOCIATED WITH SUCCESS OR FAILURE, AND TO…

This issue features articles and activities that concern the history of the presidential election process in the United States, with a special focus on Iowa's role in that process. The following features are included: "Lights, Camera, Action!"; "Presidential Whoopla"; "From Tree Stumps to Living Rooms"; "Wild…

This handbook contains learning activities on political participation for use in secondary level American government or civics courses. It is designed to orient students and teachers to politics and the political process, to be successful at political endeavors, and to become involved in political activity within the school and local community.…

FROM 1960 THROUGH 1964, 24 OF IOWA'S 209 SCHOOL DISTRICTS HELD SCHOOL BOND ISSUE ELECTIONS IN WHICH PART OF THE ISSUE WAS ASSIGNED FOR VOCATIONAL EDUCATION PURPOSES. INTERVIEWS WITH 20 OF THE 24 SUPERINTENDENTS YIELDED INFORMATION FOR A DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF (1) THE PERCEIVED IMPORTANCE OF THE VOCATIONAL EDUCATION PORTION OF THE TOTAL BOND…