CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (KCRG) – An 18-year-old was charged after police found a gun in the parking lot at Cedar Falls High School Monday afternoon. 18-year-old Ayden Granger is charged with carrying firearms on school grounds, a class D felony, and possession of marijuana. Police received a report at 1:34 p.m. of a gun in an occupied vehicle in the school parking lot. Officers located Granger and arrested him after further investigation. Authorities did not provide information about whether students were present or whether school was placed on lockdown.
DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Media Iowa State Capitol Bureau/KCRG) — A West Des Moines small business adviser announced his campaign for state treasurer on Monday. John Norwood, a Democrat, previously ran for secretary of agriculture in 2022. Norwood founded TBL Ventures, serves as a business advisor with Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program, and is a former Polk County soil and water commissioner. State Treasurer Roby Smith, a Davenport Republican and former state senator, announced in December that he would seek a second term. Smith’s victory over longtime Treasurer Mike Fitzgerald, a Democrat, made him the first Republican to hold the statewide position in 40 years.
DES MOINES, Iowa (Iowa Capital Dispatch/KCRG) – Iowa private university leaders say they are worried about their peers and the setting of a dangerous precedent in the state as Iowa lawmakers move to establish new degree programs at community colleges and tax endowment funds filled by donors. Legislation to establish bachelor’s degree programs at Iowa’s community colleges and tax university endowment funds have already seen amendments as they made their way through subcommittees and the full Iowa House Higher Education Committee. However, Iowa Association of Independent Colleges and Universities President Gary Steinke said even with guardrails in place, there’s no middle ground. It’s less about the details of the legislation at this point, he said, than it is about “unfair competition with private business,” and reactions to the bills have been “extremely negative.” “They understand what legislators don’t seem to understand, and that is … private business cannot survive competing against a tax-supported public institution, or business, or anything else,” Steinke said.
MONTICELLO, Iowa (KCRG) – A former Monticello high school cheerleading coach will take a plea deal next week in a sexual exploitation case. 38-year-old Jessica Rubin is charged with sexual exploitation by a counselor in connection with an alleged sexual relationship with a student. Rubin attempted Monday to plead guilty to two reduced charges of assault causing mental illness. Under the proposed plea deal, she would have received a one-year suspended sentence on each count, two years of probation, and fines. The plea deal would have allowed her to avoid prison time and sex offender registration. A judge rejected the plea Monday, citing missing information and illegible documents. It was also not signed by prosecutors. Court documents say Rubin was the cheerleading coach for Monticello High School wrestling when she allegedly had a sexual relationship with a student. The student told Child Protective Services the relationship lasted from January through September 2021. The high school principal reported the relationship to the school resource officer on January 10, 2023. Rubin was arrested and charged with sexual exploitation by a counselor. Rubin is scheduled to enter a plea on February 9.
