A Mixed Bag in Iowa

Iowa is in the public education news lately.

The Daily Wire reported earlier this month that,

“…Iowa led the nation with the first Workforce Pell Grant program in the country approved by the U.S. Department of Education. According to a press release from the Department, it is ‘a major milestone in expanding faster, more affordable pathways to careers in high-skill, high-wage, and in-demand industry sectors and occupations.’”

“Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds explained that ‘Now, the Workforce Pell program will allow schools to fast-track students within eight to 15 weeks into rewarding careers with little-to-no debit, expanding high-quality career opportunities and paving the way to a stronger and more resilient economy.’”

“Director of the Iowa Department of Education McKenzie Snow said, ‘With the nation’s first Workforce Pell application, Iowa will identify postsecondary programs with the best completion, employment, and earnings outcomes, ensuring students get a strong return on their investment and employers have the skilled talent pipelines they need here in Iowa.’”

“While many states continue to operate within outdated systems and rigid bureaucratic structures, Iowa is a national leader in rethinking how education dollars, workforce programs, and student opportunities can better align with the needs of families, educators, and employers. This shift is already visible in Iowa’s recent actions.”

Now, if only Iowa had high standards for their young learners in reading, the Hawkeye State would really have something to “toot their horn” over.

Last week, The 74 reported that,

“Every few years, testing experts at the U.S. Department of Education weigh state assessments against their ‘gold standard,’ the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also know as ‘the nation’s report card.’”

“In a review released in 2021, two states stood out, but not in a good way. Both Iowa and Virginia established fourth grade reading standards that only measured up to ‘below basic’ on NAEP.”

“In Virginia, the revelation sparked a public outcry.”

“Former Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin seized on the discrepancy, often called the ‘honesty gap,’ to push through tougher standards and assessments. His administration drew attention to the mismatch and Aimee Guidera, his education secretary, traversed the state, preparing parents for the uncomfortable truth that many of their children’s scores would soon be going dramatically down. News coverage kept up with the heated debate for and against the changes.”

“But in Iowa, Governor Kim Reynolds, also a Republican, has stayed silent on the matter. In fact, there’s been so little reaction to the gap that some state capital insiders had no idea it existed.”

To be fair, Iowa (nor Virginia) isn’t the only state out of alignment with our national test. Most states, unless they are committed to watching how the politics unfold, struggle with low standards while most elected leaders like to see high test scores.

The good news for Iowa is that,

“Largely behind closed doors, the state is now updating its assessment system. It adopted new standards in 2024, and this past spring, administered new tests based on those standards. But so far, state officials have devoted scant public attention to the matter.”

Even though Iowa was one of the last states to adopt high-stakes state testing, the state needs to focus on their testing and how it relates to NAEP, the “nation’s report card.”

It will be hard to build effective school-to-work pathways when Iowa kids can’t read, write, and problem-solve.

Til tomorrow. SVB