March 31, 2015 - Congratulations to the following students who have made the Rivermont Collegiate 3rd Quarter 2014-15 Honor Roll!  

DES MOINES, IA (03/25/2015)(readMedia)-- A coalition of education organizations which includes the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA), the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB), the School Administrators of Iowa (SAI), Iowa Area Education Agencies (AEA), the Urban Education Network of Iowa (UEN), and the Rural Schools Advocates of Iowa, gathered over 6,000 signatures on a petition asking the Iowa Legislature to adequately support supplemental state aid. Copies of the petition were delivered to members of the Conference Committee on Senate File 171 today.

"Clearly there is tremendous support for the needs of our students and schools. Iowans are demanding that legislators take action to fix the problems caused by years of inadequate funding in their neighborhood schools. It is not acceptable to expect students to sit in classes of 30-35 and receive the quality education they deserve, or study from textbooks that are old and worn. Our students are entitled to rigorous course offerings and programs that will help them compete in a 21st century economy," said Tammy Wawro, President of the ISEA.

"Iowa citizens make an investment in public education because as a society we believe that public schools support not only individual success, but shape and create our democracy and communities. Providing these centers of learning comes at a cost and it deserves our support," said Lisa Bartusek, Iowa Association of School Boards executive director

"Iowa schools have been underfunded for the last four years. A minimum of 4 percent supplemental state aid is now needed to avoid large disruptions to local district programming," emphasized Dan Smith, School Administrators of Iowa executive director.

Dr. Paul Gausman, speaking on behalf of the Urban Education Network of Iowa said, "The Sioux City Schools will reduce between $2 million and $2.3 million in personnel and programming, for anything less than 4 percent SSA, and 4 percent would even stress our budget (we have spending authority limitations rolling forward). If 6 percent SSA had become reality, we would not have to make that level of reductions. The personnel portion of these reductions include 20 Instructional Assistant positions (about $570,000), and three teaching positions (all of the personnel reductions are being accomplished through attrition).

The Our Children, Our Future coalition began gathering signatures in response to Governor Terry Branstad and House Republican's inadequate supplemental state aid proposal and subsequent inaction on passage of any aid before the budget deadline.

The Our Children, Our Future coalition is working together in support of adequate funding for Iowa's schools.

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Moline, Ill. - What starts here, changes the world one student at a time. Black Hawk College is proud to host the 2015 North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) Judging Conference, a three-day event at the iWireless Center in Moline, Ill. expected to see more than 1,000 attendees from across the United States betweenApril 8 and 10.

NACTA is an organization committed to advancing the scholarship of teaching and learning in agricultural, environmental, natural and life sciences, and this annual judging contest will bring that commitment to the heart of the Midwest in 2015.

"This conference is really an investment in the future of our agricultural young leaders." said Andrew Larson, an organizer of the 2015 NACTA Judging Conference and a recruiter for the Agriculture Department at Black Hawk College. "Our event will provide collegiate and high school students the opportunity to learn and develop valuable agricultural skill sets, while also getting the chance to network with key industry leaders and companies."

Attendees will range from 4-H members at the high school level to agriculture students at the collegiate level, and the main focus of the conference will be the judging competitions, which cover everything from soils and agribusiness to crops and livestock management.

The conference will also include the first Agricultural Networking Fair on Thursday, April 9, sponsored by Pfister Seeds. This networking fair is designed to provide participants and volunteers valuable opportunities to engage with industry leaders like John Deere and also give participants additional learning experiences in a unique environment.

Black Hawk College, along with many conference sponsors, are also organizing group activities in the Quad Cities to involve students and volunteers when they are not participating in a contest. These activities include a tour of the John Deere World Headquarters, a visit to the Niabi Zoo and a tour of the Figge Art Museum.

Interested participants can register for the conference, competitions and group activities on the 2015 NACTA Judging Conference website at www.BHCNACTA.com. Also posted online, a complete schedule of events for the weekend. Registration is open until March 25.

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ATLANTA, GA (03/16/2015)(readMedia)-- Neeraj Chawla of Moline, IL (61265) was named to the Dean's List of Emory College of Arts and Sciences, the undergraduate, liberal arts college of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, for the 2014 fall semester.

Students must be in the top 20 percent of Emory College or have approximately a 3.850 grade point average or higher to be named to the Dean's List.

Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate experience, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. Emory encompasses nine academic divisions as well as the Carlos Museum, The Carter Center, the Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, Georgia's largest and most comprehensive health care system.