This week I made the official announcement that I would be running for re-election to the Iowa House of Representatives in 2022. I am so appreciative of the encouragement that I have received from both the people at the Statehouse and many constituents in my district. Being your State Representative has given me opportunities that I would never have had otherwise and I am grateful.
I love being that “squeaky wheel” for my constituents when they face a problem with the state or federal government. Sometimes I can at least help speed up the process that results in a solution. I look forward to continuing to be a voice for the people of North Iowa and most especially, for the people who work so hard to educate our kids and also, for the kids themselves and their parents.
I pledge to continue to be a moderate, common-sense voice at the State Capitol. As a retired educator, I will never stop fighting to make sure our kids get the best education possible.
As I have previously mentioned, my duties as Ranking Member on the Education Committee include seeing each bill that is assigned to the committee so I can name a member of my caucus to the subcommittee that will determine whether the bill should move forward. We have had a wide variety of bills presented that include: new teacher preparation, Teach Iowa grants, dropout prevention, Advanced Opportunity programs, Last Dollar Scholarship Fund, prohibiting immunization requirements, teacher certification and several that propose regulating the teaching of Social Studies and Civics.
I’m pleased to report that the bills we have passed in committee to date have been non-controversial and bi-partisan.
Now serving my first year on the Budget Subcommittee for Administration and Regulation, I am finding that I really enjoy learning details about the various departments: what they do specifically and the funding that they need. So far, we have heard from several administrators whose presentations have been very informative.
I want to apologize if I have been slow in responding to an email or a text. So far, I can only compare this year’s session to “drinking from a firehose”. And I love it! So, please be patient; I will get back to you!
