Eastern Iowa Community College’s Gaekle Hall was one of the first buildings on the Muscatine campus. After six decades and a $2.2 million renovation, it is again one of the most modern buildings on campus.

Using a $1 million Career Academy Incentive Fund grant from the Iowa Department of Education to jumpstart the renovation, EICC’s leadership reimagined the aging building with larger classrooms, state-of-the-art technology and modern space for the campus’s career academies.

The facility will house existing career academies in business, information technology networking and cybersecurity, teacher preparation and a new career academy for game and simulation development. EICC partnered with local school districts in Columbus, Louisa-Muscatine, Muscatine, Wilton, West Liberty and Durant to create and expand those career academies.

The Iowa Department of Education has opened the new application period for the 2026-27 Career Academy Incentive Fund. Grant applications will be accepted through Nov. 13, 2026, for the fall grant cycle. 

The Career Academy Incentive Fund supports increased access to career academy programs through regional centers and highlights partnerships between school districts, community colleges, business and industry and other partners. Successful proposals promote equitable access to high-quality career and technical education programs and include at least one school district and one community college. Priority consideration will be given to applicants who focus on programming delivered to at least four school districts. The Department will also consider tier 2 proposals that improve or expand existing career academies delivered through a regional center.

Through the 2019 Secure an Advanced Vision for Education (SAVE) initiative, the Career Academy Incentive Fund annually awards up to $5 million in grants for projects that support career academy partnerships between community colleges, school districts, business and industry and other education and community stakeholders. Opportunities supported by the Career Academy Incentive Fund increase student access to higher education, industry-recognized credentials, valuable connections with employers and the discovery of potential career pathways.

For more information, please contact Bureau of CTE and Postsecondary Readiness Administrative Consultant Heather Meissen at heather.meissen@iowa.gov.

Want to use Lightcast Analyst more effectively? Join fellow Iowa Lightcase Analyst users Nov. 30 at 9 a.m. for our first peer-led training session, where you’ll learn directly from colleagues who use the tool every day.

For this session, Paula Nissen will walk through her most common use cases and share best practices she’s developed with Lightcast Analyst. Whether you’re new to the platform or a regular user looking for fresh ideas, you’ll leave with practical approaches you can put to work right away.

Make plans to join on Zoom.

For more information, contact community colleges Administrative Consultant Robin Shaffer Lilienthal at Robin.Lilienthal@iowa.gov.

The Iowa Department of Education is seeking applicants for two education program consultant positions that support Iowa’s community colleges and schools.

Education Program Consultant (Data and Reporting) This consultant joins the Bureau of Community Colleges data team. The job manages the student, staff and course databases from all 15 community colleges for state and federal accountability reporting. The work includes cleaning data, automating validation, giving technical help to stakeholders, and coordinating high school equivalency diploma (HSED) records.

Education Program Consultant (Career and Technical Education) This consultant joins the Career and Technical Education Bureau. The job works directly with schools and community college educators to strengthen applied science programs in engineering, manufacturing, architecture, construction or transportation. The work includes professional learning, grant review and guidance on federal Perkins requirements.

Iowa Code section 261E.2 requires districts to provide students and parents with information regarding participation in Senior Year Plus (SYP) programming, including concurrent enrollment courses. 

Starting this fall, in academic year 2026-27, districts must upload and have documents and/or websites containing SYP information reviewed annually through CASA during the annual desk review process.

To support districts in this new review process, the Department has created this checklist with key information that should be provided to students and families and included in your Senior Year Plus materials. Senior Year Plus programs at the community college may also find the checklist useful as a resource for handbooks and for advising purposes.

Please contact Education Program Consultant Lisa Washington at lisa.washington@iowa.gov with questions.

Nominations are now open to find Iowa's top agriculture educator. 

Each school year, the state's top agriculture educator is presented with the Golden Owl Award, honoring outstanding achievements and excellence in the field. Nominations for this year's honor are open through Dec. 1.

Sponsored by the Iowa FFA Foundation
, Nationwide Insurance and other agricultural partners, the award spotlights agriculture educators across the state who go above and beyond in the classroom. Students, colleagues, school staff and community members can submit nominations honoring teachers who build student leadership, bring innovative, hands-on learning into their classrooms and make a lasting impact on their schools and communities.

Seven educators will be named finalists in early 2027, each receiving $500, an engraved plaque and recognition as one of Iowa's top agriculture educators. The Golden Owl Award winner, announced at the Iowa FFA Convention in April, will receive $3,000, in addition to recognition as Iowa’s top agriculture educator.