Coe College has received a $15,350 Institutionalizing Community-Based Pedagogies grant from the Associated Colleges of the Midwest. The grant will support the creation of a new Prison Learning Initiative at Coe which will provide a range of high-impact experiences for students and community members to learn about and become involved with the criminal-legal system in Iowa and the Midwest. 

Tara Tedrow has seen her share of students in distress. They’ll approach her after class, in tears, saying they’re overwhelmed and need an extension. Or they’ll send an e-mail apologizing for missing class because they’ve got “stuff going on.” Some share intimate details of their troubles; others simply allude to “personal issues.”

A group of 100 Iowa paraeducators was recently selected for a new mental health training fellowship offered by the University of Iowa’s Scanlan Center for School Mental Health.

When Raven Lee got a call from a staff member at Phillips Elementary School that her son was injured, she was told there was no need to rush to pick him up. On Oct. 20, 2021, Lee made the 30-minute drive from her job to the Des Moines school and took him to urgent care, she told the Des Moines Register. When picking up her son, school officials told her they were not sure what happened, but that her son, then in second grade, was sleepy.

In Missouri, St. Louis County jail detainees can now take college credit courses through St. Louis Community College. Inmates who have a high school diploma can take up to two classes a semester and earn three credits for each eight-week session. 

Students from Latin America at the University of Missouri are as diverse as their region, which consists of more than 30 countries and territories. “But we still, ultimately, share this label (Latinos) and this unity, despite our differences,” said Claudia Rodriguez, co-president of the Association of Latin American Students.

Tammy Smith-Hinchey, Nurse Coordinator with the St. Joseph School District (SJSD) in Missouri, wants to see the district educate students and families on coping mechanisms for opioid use, and focus on providing mental healthcare in the schools and community.