Author: Lisa Grilliot

This weeks Focus program looks back at news highlights during the past week (April 13-17).

Stories featured in this program can be found at KILJ.com under the news tab.

Teacher Appreciation Week is scheduled for May 4 – 8, 2026 in the Mt. Pleasant Community School District and the MP PTA outlined events to celebrate teachers.  The PTA is also recognizing National Walk, Bike, and Roll Day on Wednesday, May 13^th.  Salem Elementary School is planning their May carnival. Details for all of these events are forthcoming and KILJ Radio will keep you updated!  On Thursday, April 24 this week, Lincoln Elementary School is hosting bingo on family night from 6pm – 7pm.

A Mt. Pleasant man was arrested in Washington, Iowa, at 7:35pm Friday night.  Donald Williams, 27, was stopped with possession of a stolen bike and charged with theft in the 5^th degree.  Washington Communications reports that officers also found Williams in possession of a controlled substance: marijuana and methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.  Williams was transported to Washington County jail.

Access Energy Cooperative awards twelve $1500 scholarships each year, four in each of its three districts. The parents or guardians of the applicant must be a member of Access Energy Cooperative. Winners are chosen based on their academics, achievements, community involvement, and a submitted application with a few electric industry-related questions.  Congratulations to the following area high school students who received the scholarships: Addison Clark, Myah Starr and Rylie Copeman of Mt. Pleasant; Morgan Meyer of Wayland, Bailey Headley and Breanna Walton of Birmingham; Clae Cass and Dain Burkhart of Fairfield; Bailey Headley and Breanna Walton of Birmingham; Addison Dravis of Burlington; Audrey Sturdivant of Farmington; and Kamryn Walkenhauer and Zoe Long of Danville.

In memory of an applicant chosen as a 2026 scholarship winner, a $500 donation was made to the Emmelia Miller Memorial.

Access Energy Cooperative is a rural distribution electric cooperative, providing power to over 9000 homes, farms, businesses, and industries in 10 southeast Iowa counties.

In District 1:

Bailey Headley, daughter of Craig and Devon Headley, will be pursuing a career in education at Indian Hills Community College.

Breanna Walton, daughter of Justin and Tina Walton, plans to pursue a career as an Account Specialist

Clae Cass, son of Kirby and Hayley Cass, plans to attend Southeastern Community College to study business.

Dain Burkhart, son of Kelly and Amy Burkhart, will be attending the University to major in Electrical Engineering.

In District 2:

Addison Clark, daughter of John and Bree Clark, plans to major in Biology and Psychology at Simpson College followed by medical school to become a pediatric oncologist.

Morgan Meyer, daughter of Tim and Michelle Meyer, will be attending the University of Iowa on the pre-med track, majoring in Biology with a minor in Psychology and later applying to medical school to pursue a career as a family physician or a PA.

Myah Starr, daughter of Tony and Jennifer Starr, will be pursuing a career in radiation sciences at the University of Iowa.

Rylie Copeman, daughter of Jaime Yoder, will be attending the University of South Florida to pursue a career in nursing.

In District 3:

Addison Dravis, daughter of Randy and Sarah Dravis, plans to obtain a bachelor’s degree in pre-law at Western Illinois University followed by law school at the University of Iowa.

Audrey Sturdivant, daughter of Darren and Jaimie Sturdivant, will be attending Iowa State University to study at the College of Health and Human Sciences majoring in Elementary education, while working towards endorsements in mathematics and reading.

Kamryn Wolkenhauer, son of Jim Drain, plans to attend Georgia Institute of Technology to obtain a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering.

Zoe Long, daughter of Luann Martin, will be attending Southeastern Community College to study secondary education to become a special education teacher.

Mt. Pleasant received over an inch of rain as recorded by the Raindrop App in the past 24 hours.  Rain totals vary by area in the KILJ listening area, but most were close to an inch of rain or just over. Heavy rainfall in Mt. Pleasant on Friday night caused some streets to flood.   The intersection of N. Main Street and W. Franklin North of Mt. Pleasant was impassable around 6pm last night, and there was flooding on Lincoln Street north of the railroad tracks. The National Weather Service issued multiple tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings and watches for portions of Henry County and the surrounding area with heavy rain and gusting winds making travel difficult.  Southeast Iowa was in a tornado and/or severe thunderstorms warnings and watches starting at 12:40pm on Friday afternoon with the last of the storms moving out of the area in the late evening.

KILJ’s Information Center reported on many events in the community last week.  FOCUS takes a look at a couple of those stories.  To view KILJ news stories, please access KILJ.COM/News Tab.

Registration is open for Southeast Iowa Early Childhood’s annual Early Childhood Conference. The conference is being held from 8am – 3:30pm on Saturday, April 25, at the Fairfield Arts & Convention Center, 200 N. Main Street in Fairfield and is free. Sessions are available for HHS childcare credit hours. Receive hands-on tips and fun talks to boost little learners’ growth during the Early Childhood Summit!  Discover fresh ways to support little learners and connect with a community dedicated to nurturing young minds. Reserve your spot!