OSKALOOSA, Iowa – Inside a classroom at Oskaloosa High School, winter coats are folded neatly beside stacks of sweatpants, socks, and snow pants. Students move with purpose, checking sizes, comparing prices, and carefully tracking budgets. For more than 30 years, this scene has played out quietly each December, as Oskaloosa High School Peer Helpers work […]
by Tim Henderson, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 16, 2025 A shutdown-delayed jobs report released Dec. 16 showed an increase of 64,000 jobs in November, rebounding from a large loss of 105,000 jobs in October. Unemployment ticked higher to 4.6%, the highest since September 2021. The October loss was the largest since December 2020, during a […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 16, 2025 Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Roblox, the popular online gaming company, for allegedly putting Iowa children in danger of sexual exploitation. Roblox, an online game platform, has over 80 million daily users, “many of those are Iowans and most of whom […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 15, 2025 U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks said Monday the health care bill she is leading in the U.S. House would address the “root causes” behind rising health care premiums while not seeking to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies. The “Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act,” sponsored […]
The 2025 Lighted Christmas Parade held on Saturday, December 6, was a huge success. Thank you to all who participated, volunteered, and sponsored the 38th Annual Lighted Christmas Parade. “It was a night to remember,” shared Angella Foster, Oskaloosa Main Street Director. “Seeing the joy on people’s faces, from the little children marveling at the […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 14, 2025 Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday ordered all flags in Iowa lowered in honor of the two Iowa National Guard members killed in Syria. The two service members were killed Saturday in Palmyra, Syria, by a lone gunman suspected to be affiliated with ISIS. The two […]
***Update*** Superintendent Mike Fisher said Tuesday morning that his Iowa administrator license is now back in “good standing” after the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners processed his renewal. Fisher told Oskaloosa News that the license expired because he forgot to pay the renewal fee. He said he paid the fees online over the weekend as […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 11, 2025 Former Gov. Terry Branstad, the nation’s longest-serving governor and a former U.S. ambassador to China, was granted the Iowa Award Thursday, the state’s highest citizen award. Branstad became the 26th recipient of the award, joining the ranks of other notable Iowans including President Herbert Hoover, Nobel […]
by Robin Opsahl, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 11, 2025 Economic uncertainty due to tariffs and the effects of the federal government shutdown are expected to continue to impact Iowa’s economy, members of the Revenue Estimating Conference said Thursday as they met to discuss Iowa’s finances heading into the 2026 legislative session. Though the three-person panel […]
by Shauneen Miranda, Iowa Capital Dispatch December 10, 2025 WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture will spend $700 million to support regenerative agriculture as part of the Make America Healthy Again agenda, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Wednesday. The USDA pilot program for regenerative agriculture […]
