Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“My job is to make sure that the institution I lead is prepared under its mission to meet every student where they are and get them where they want to go.” — Des Moines Area Community College President Lori Suddick, on navigating challenges posed by anti-diversity, equity and inclusion legislation and funding changes.
Lori Suddick started her tenure as president of DMACC on June 15. (Photo courtesy of DMACC)
As Des Moines Area Community College’s new president, Lori Suddick, sets up meet-and-greets and prepares for the upcoming fall semester, she said she’s making early observations of where DMACC is succeeding and where it could grow.
DMACC is “thriving” in its concurrent enrollment opportunities for students still in high school, Suddick said. However, adult learning is one area where she believes DMACC could pay more “intentional attention to.”
Larry Weber, left, spoke with U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn Aug. 7, 2026 in front of a new hydrologic monitoring station that will be installed and maintained with federal funding. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Hydrologic monitoring stations that help researchers compile flood and drought information useful for farmers and communities will soon be deployed across all of southwestern Iowa, following funding announced Friday by U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn.
The $500,000 in federal funding will add 18 hydrologic monitoring stations to Iowa’s existing monitor network, and help establish the Iowa Drought Information System.
THIS WEEK'S TOP STORIES
Farm bill progress stalled Thursday as the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee failed to move forward its version of the omnibus legislation due to a conflict over when states will shoulder a share of federal nutrition assistance costs.
Two Iowa nursing homes are facing sanctions for alleged quality-of-care violations tied to resident deaths.
A physician who worked 18 months at Iowa City’s Veterans Administration Medical Center has been denied a license to practice medicine in Iowa.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds called for Iowans to donate blood amid a national shortage this summer — and said she would “lead by example” with a donation Wednesday at LifeServe Blood Center.
A group of western Iowa businessmen are being sued over an alleged “brazen and coordinated scheme” to take over highly classified work for the federal government by poaching employees and stealing trade secrets from their employer.
Newly adopted rules from the Iowa Utilities Commission aim to “mitigate potential impacts” of proposed large-scale transmission projects.
An audit released Monday shows the state has made “substantial improvements” in efforts to inspect nursing homes and now meets federal requirements, state Auditor Rob Sand said.
Six years after it first opened, a care facility in rural Iowa that has allegedly been operating without the required licensure has been temporarily shut down by a court order.
A group of environmental organizations allege in a lawsuit that the Iowa Department of Natural Resources granted illegal discharge permits to a coal plant and its landfill in Ottumwa.
The escalating feud between states and online prediction markets was on full display at a summit of state lawmakers as legislators – including an Iowa state senator -- publicly scolded Kalshi and Polymarket, the two most prominent platforms, Stateline reports.
As Iowa’s Education Savings Account program continues to expand to include all K-12 families, rural public school districts are still trying to determine how the scholarships will affect their classrooms, budgets and enrollment.
Democrat Josh Turek said Friday he understands Iowans' struggles with high costs of living more personally than his opponent for the U.S. Senate seat in November, U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson.
NEWS FROM THE MIDWEST AND IOWA'S NEIGHBORS
Pritzker signs new laws requiring businesses to accept cash, pay employees for jury duty | Capitol News Illinois
Indiana Medicaid ‘back in black’ | Indiana Capital Chronicle
Kansas wheat harvest projected to be lowest in decades, adding to agriculture stress | Kansas Reflector
English literacy center serves Detroit immigrants despite climate of fear | Michigan Advance
During Operation Metro Surge, ICE arrested dozens of immigrant crime victims | Minnesota Reformer
Historic defeats for Missouri GOP priorities raise questions about what comes next | Missouri Independent
Nebraska will have two new political parties after efforts meet signature threshold | Nebraska Examiner
July heat produces ‘flash drought’ with more than half of North Dakota affected | North Dakota Monitor
For more than 100,000 Ohio Medicaid recipients, worries build about the future of home care | Ohio Capital Journal
Noem ‘not planning to run’ but doesn’t rule out a political future as her statue is unveiled | South Dakota Searchlight
A wheelchair ride across Wisconsin calls attention to Medicaid cuts | Wisconsin Examiner
FEDERAL FALLOUT
States Newsroom relentlessly reports on how changes at the federal level are affecting people at the state level — and how state governments are responding in this volatile political climate. We post new stories each day; here are just a few:
Tariffs didn’t start Oregon’s economic slowdown, but they exacerbated it, report finds | Oregon Capital Chronicle
Arkansas seeks 2-year reprieve for state’s hybrid Medicaid expansion | Arkansas Advocate
NC Democrats say voting rights are in danger again 61 years after passage of Voting Rights Act | NC Newsline
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