Gazette Daily News Briefing, January 25
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Wednesday, January 25.
A little snow is coming to the middle of your week. According to the National Weather Service there will be snow likely Wednesday morning, mainly between 7 a.m. and 10 a.m. in the Cedar Rapids area. There always may be pockets of fog before 8 a.m. Besides that it will be cloudy, with a high near 32 degrees. There will be a 60 percent chance of snow during the day, with 1 to 2 inches possible, and a 50 percent chance of snow during the evening, with less than an inch of additional snow predicted to fall.
Surrounded by school choice advocates and private school students, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed an expansive private school education assistance bill into law Tuesday, just hours after Republican lawmakers delivered her top legislative priority after three years of trying.
All public school students and thousands of private school students will become eligible to receive a nearly $7,600 education savings account per year to pay for tuition and other expenses at a private school. The program is expected to cost $107 million in the first year and by 2027, when phased in, will cost $345 million.
It was the first bill of the three-week-old legislative session to be signed into law, after a flurry of activity over the last two weeks to fast track it to Reynolds’ desk.
Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad will take over as president of the World Food Prize Foundation, considered the preeminent award for global agriculture.
Branstad, the longest-serving governor in Iowa’s history and former ambassador to China, said he’s hoping to raise the visibility of the organization and continue to fund research into the quantity and quality of agriculture.
The organization gives an annual $250,000 award to an individual for their “achievements in improving the quality, quantity, and availability of food in the world,” according to a press release. Cynthia Rosenzweig, an American agronomist, received the award in 2022.
A boys’ basketball game between Fairfield and Iowa City High at Fairfield ended early Monday night after an on-floor altercation, with ensuing allegations being made of a “racially charged” comment directed toward City High’s head coach during the game by a game official.
City High Principal John Bacon and Iowa City Community School District Superintendent Matt Denger sent an email to staff, students and families at the school Tuesday that was shared with The Gazette in support of Little Hawks Coach Brennan Swayzer.
Swayzer, who is Black, was ejected from the game in the second half after the alleged comment was made, as was a Little Hawks fan.
With two minutes remaining in the edgy game and Fairfield ahead 77-63, a foul was called on City High’s Evan Lampe on an out-of-bounds play underneath the City High basket, with Lampe proceeding to shove the player he fouled, Fairfield’s Tate Allen, to the ground and then appearing to push him again when Allen was on the ground.
Benches cleared, and the teams were sent to their respective locker rooms after order was restored. City High then decided it did not want to complete the game due to the hostile situation, and was securely escorted to its bus for the drive home.
