Dana Millard for MPCSD School Board

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 11:59 am CDT

Dana Millard announced her candidacy for the Mt. Pleasant Community School Board, running for the At-Large 4-year term position. Passionate about developing our Southeast Iowa Communities and STEM Education, Millard has spent the last 9 years working in Economic Development with an emphasis on connecting workforce and education. She served on the Governor’s STEM Council for 8 years, operating as Regional President for the past 2 years, bringing a variety of STEM programs, resources, and funding to Southeast Iowa.

“I’m an advocate for STEM and Career Education, I plan on using my connections both at a local and state level to provide more opportunities to the Mt. Pleasant School District.”

Currently a small business owner and a consultant for the Southeast Iowa Small Business Association, Dana has two kids in the Mt Pleasant School District, her stepdaughter Madelynn is a Sophomore, and her son Finley is in Kindergarten.

“With two kids in the district at very different levels, in addition to my background, I feel it’s a good time for me to get more involved and lend my expertise.”

School board elections will be held on November 7th.

SEISO Join Iowa Culture Leadership Cohort

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 10:43 am CDT

Southeast Iowa Symphony Orchestra has been selected to participate in the second class of the Iowa Culture Leadership Cohort program. The State Historical Society of Iowa and the Iowa Arts Council selected 11 Iowa arts, culture, history, and humanities organizations.

This program was launched in 2022 and helps participants build leadership skills.

Participants engage in workshops where they learn from experts in their field and take part in mentorship opportunities. They also can apply for financial support to help advance their goals.

“We created the Iowa Culture Leadership Cohort a year ago to identify and support Iowa’s next generation of cultural arts and history leaders,” State Historical Society of Iowa Administrator Susan Kloewer said. “The program gives participants opportunities to sharpen their skills as their organizations look to the future.”

“This program addresses an important need that Iowans brought forward in our last strategic planning process,” Iowa Arts Council Director David Schmitz said. “Through the emphasis on capacity building and peer learning, we hope that participants are better empowered and equipped to continue strengthening the missions of their organizations.”

Tony Keefe – New LeeComm Director

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 8:13 am CDT

Tony Keefe has been named Director of LeeComm, effective September 21, 2023.  He replaces Travis Solem who took the Director position at Warren County 911 at the end of August.

Keefe is a detail-oriented public safety communications leader with 10 years of experience in emergency communications, all at LeeComm. He most recently served as the Communications Center Supervisor.

He is a graduate of Central Lee High School and the University of Dubuque.  He has a B.A. in Communications and has recently completed the Registered Public Leader course through the Association of Public Safety Communications Officers (APCO).

Keefe was appreciative of Solem’s work during his time and is ready to get started in his position. “I am humbled by the PSAP Board’s decision to trust me in this position.  Travis left a strong organization for me to lead, and I look forward to working with the great staff that we have in place.”

 

Mt. Pleasant Travels to Marion for Marching Band Contest

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 6:56 am CDT

The Mt. Pleasant High School Panther Marching Band will kick off their competitive season at Marion, Iowa, on Saturday. The Linn-Mar Invitational is historically full of great bands from all over, and that seems to be the case this year.

22 different bands will be in competition on Saturday, with the first band performing at 9:00am. Mt. Pleasant will follow at 9:15am, an early performance, but they are hoping that their show will stick in the judges heads all day.

The Panther Marching Band is just one of 12 in the 3A classification field. These performances will span the length of the day, with the last band taking the field at 3:40pm, followed by the award ceremony. The full schedule is below.

 

BAND Class PERFORMANCE Clinic
Musical Pride of Springville Marching Band 1A 9:00 9:15
Mount Pleasant Panther Marching Band 3A 9:15 9:30
West Delaware “Pride” Marching Band 3A 9:30 9:45
Anamosa Blue Raider Marching Band 3A 9:45 10:00
Independence Mustang Marching Band 3A 10:00 10:15
Break — 10:15 – 10:25 —
Crestwood Marching Cadets 3A 10:25 10:40
Solon Marching Spartans 3A 10:40 10:55
Vinton-Shellsburg Viking Regiment 3A 10:55 11:10
Benton Community Marching Bobcats 3A 11:10 11:25
Break — 11:25-11:35 —
Clear Creek Amana Clipper Marching Band 3A 11:35 11:50
Marion Scarlet Spectrum Marching Band 3A 11:50 12:05
Mount Vernon Marching Mustangs 3A 12:05 12:20
Xavier High School Marching Saints 3A 12:20 12:35
Lunch Break — 12:35 – 1:05 —
Linn-Mar Junior Varsity Color Guard EX 1:05 —
Cedar Rapids Jefferson Band of Blue 4A 1:15 1:30
Ankeny Marching Hawks 4A 1:30 1:45
Lewis Central Titan Marching Band 4A 1:45 2:00
Western Dubuque Bobcat Band 4A 2:00 2:15
Norwalk Warrior Marching Band 4A 2:15 2:30
Break — 2:30 – 2:40 —
Waterloo West Wahawk Marching Band 4A 2:40  
Washington ‘Warrior’ Marching Band 4A 2:55 3:10
John F Kennedy High School Marching Band 4A 3:10 3:25
C.R. Prairie Hawks Marching Band 4A 3:25 3:40
Linn-Mar Marching Lions EX 3:40 4:05
Award Ceremony — 4:05 —

Sports, September 22nd

By Slaten Swords · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Football

It’s Homecoming week for Mt. Pleasant as the Panthers play host to last year’s Class 3A runner-up Mt. Vernon tonight. KILJ will be on the call with the pregame show at 7:15 pm. 

In other Class 3A District 4 matchups, Washington will hit the road to take on Keokuk and Fort Madison will travel to Davenport to face off against Assumption. 

Fairfield will take on Benton Community tonight in a road game. 

Mediapolis will face off against West Burlington-Notre Dame tonight as both teams battle for winning records. 

Columbus will face off against Highland at 7 pm.

Central Lee will travel to Albia tonight. 

Danville will compete against Wapello at 7 pm tonight.

Van Buren County will hit the road to face off against Louisa-Muscatine tonight at 7 pm.

WACO will take on Easton Valley tonight.

New London will be suiting up tonight to take on HLV with kickoff at 7 pm.

Winfield-Mt. Union will look to keep the momentum going against English Valleys tonight for their Homecoming match. 

High School Volleyball

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Fairfield on the road next Tuesday. 

Winfield-Mt. Union finished 2-1 at the Southeast Iowa Super Conference (SEISC) tournament pool play last night. The Wolves defeated Danville in straight sets 21-16 and 21-19 and swept Lone Tree 21-17 and 21-5. Holy Trinity Catholic dished out the Wolves’ lone loss in straight sets 21-5 and 21-11. Audrie Gipple tallied 11 kills and four aces with Aurey Meeker notching 20 assists. Winfield-Mt. Union finished 2nd in the pool and advanced to the finals tomorrow, September 23rd. 

Holy Trinity Catholic will also be advancing to the SEISC finals tomorrow after finishing the pool with an undefeated record. 

Danville finished 1-2 in pool play with a loss to Holy Trinity Catholic in straight sets but a sweep of Lone Tree by scores of 21-7 and 21-6. The Bears will take on Central Lee on September 28th at home. 

Burlington Notre Dame will be advancing to the finals after sweeping their pool of Hillcrest Academy, Columbus, and Van Buren County. Lauren Krieger finished pool play with 55 assists and Aviana West tallied 23 kills. 

Mediapolis finished second in pool two with sweeps over Highland and Pekin but a loss to West Burlington two sets to zero. Jaydon Wirt collected 53 assists and two aces over the three contests. West Burlington finished undefeated in pool play to advance. The Falcons and Bulldogs will compete tomorrow in the finals. 

Central Lee advanced to the finals tomorrow after tough wins against WACO and Wapello, each game involving a third set. The Hawks also swept Louisa-Muscatine, but fell to New London two sets to one. Taylor Jones picked up 16 kills against WACO, 12 against Louisa-Muscatine, and 15 against Wapello. 

The SEISC Tournament finals will take place at SCC tomorrow at 5 pm.

Cross Country

Mt. Pleasant and WACO will compete in the Washington Invitational on September 26th. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will run on September 25th in Iowa City. 

Danville will run at Williamsburg on September 26th for a meet. 

College Football

#24 Iowa will be tested tomorrow, September 23rd, against #7 Penn State at 6:30 pm. 

Iowa State University will take on Oklahoma State tomorrow to begin Big 12 play. 

For the Hawkeye broadcast, tune into KILJ 105.5 FM and the Cyclone broadcast will be on 98.5 FM and AM 1130. 

This Day in Sports History

1912 – Philadelphia second baseman Eddie Collins becomes only player in MLB history to steal 6 bases in one game for a second time as A’s beat St. Louis Browns, 8-2.

1969 – San Francisco Giant Willie Mays, becomes second player to hit 600 home runs.

1991 – Miami Dolphins coach Don Shula records his 300th career NFL victory.

Burlington Police Department Hiring

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 6:29 am CDT

The Burlington Police Department is seeking individuals who want to become part of their team and family. If you are looking for a rewarding career with great pay, great benefits, and a great retirement with a team and family atmosphere, they are looking for you.

They have a lot to offer including working 14-15 days per month without taking a single vacation day. The ability to take 7 continuous days off using only one vacation day 10 months out of the year, every other weekend off, and many specialized units to become a part of.

Application deadline is Friday, September 29th at 5pm.

Visit https://www.policeapp.com/Entry-Level-Burlington-IA…/2492/

for more information and to apply.

2023 Mt. Pleasant Homecoming Court

By Yorke Prough · Friday, September 22nd, 2023 at 6:25 am CDT

Mapleleaf Athletic Complex was full of excitement for many reasons. The crisp fall air wasn’t the only thing to enjoy, as the seniors defeated the juniors during powderpuff girl’s football. This is a long-standing tradition that has seen winners throughout the year hoist their hands in the air in victory, while the losers hang their heads low.

For the first time since the completion of the concrete parking lot at Mapleleaf, high school students were able to participate in the best part of boom night. Teenagers watched in awe as an effigy was burned in front of their eyes. When it comes to school spirit, few do it better than Mt. Pleasant.

The Homecoming football game is this evening, with the high school gym being transformed into a dance floor tomorrow night. It is a special night for many, but few will enjoy it as much as the court, who will be crowned that evening.

Your Mt. Pleasant 2023 Homecoming Queen is Josie Gilmore who will be joined arm-in-arm by the 2023 Homecoming King Payson Coleman.  Also in the court are Emma Starr and Phoenix Watson, Andi Scott and Ben Newton, Courtney Raub and Logan Borders, and Bailey Jalas and Carson Andreason. A huge congratulations must be given to the royalty, and a huge thank you to Lomont Molding for sponsoring this coverage.

 

Prep Volleyball: Holy Trinity Catholic Ranked #2 While West Burlington Clings on to the Top 15

By Slaten Swords · Thursday, September 21st, 2023 at 4:13 pm CDT

Prep Volleyball- The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) released their fifth edition of the volleyball rankings for the season and the top teams kept their spots, but the bottom of the rankings involved some scrambling of teams.

Ankeny Christian is still the team to beat in Class 1A, but there’s a new #2 in Holy Trinity Catholic as the Crusaders have now won 12 straight games including a three set to two victory over Class 2A’s #10 team in West Burlington last Thursday. North Tama moved back one spot to #3. Janesville has ripped off four wins in-a-row elevating the Wildcats to 9th on the list after previously being unranked. Edgewood-Colesburg participated in the West Delaware Invite over the previous weekend and it did not go well for the Vikings as they dropped all five of their matches, resulting in a collapse in the rankings as the Vikings went from 4th to 12th. Gladbrook-Reinbeck’s slide down the rankings concluded in their exodus of the top 15, the only team in Class 1A this week.

In Class 2A, the top eight teams remained with Denver and Sumner-Fredericksburg switching spots to be ranked 4th and 5th, respectively. Aplington-Parkersburg jumped up the list from 15th to 9th after beating previously ranked Gladbrook-Reinbeck and still ranked AGWSR twice and in straight sets. Additionally, a sweep over #11 Wapsie Valley has the Falcons soaring high. West Burlington tumbled from 10th to 15th after losses to Holy Trinity Catholic and Wapsie Valley. No teams were dropped from the top 15.

The top three teams stayed put in Class 3A with Western Christian on top followed by Mount Vernon and Des Moines Christian. Union was the first team to fall down rankings as they went from being ranked 4th to 7th. Mid-Prairie hopped up a spot from 10th to 9th. Anamosa and Tipton ranked 14th and 15th, respectively, after previously being unranked. Osage and Roland-Story were knocked out of the top 15.

Lewis Central is now ranked 6th with Norwalk switching spots to now be ranked 7th. Besides that one move, the top 10 in Class 4A is identical to last week’s rankings with Clear Creek-Amana still unbeaten and rightfully ranked #1. Bondurant-Farrar’s mixed bag of wins and losses, including a fall to #12 Dallas Center-Grimes, resulted in the Blue Jays’ removal from the top 15. Pella jumps into the top 15 at the #14 slot.

The top three finally shifts in Class 5A with previously ranked #3 Ankeny sliding down to #5 and Waukee Northwest filling in the void. Dowling Catholic and Ankeny Centennial are still locked at #1 and #2, respectively. Iowa City Liberty’s loss to Dubuque Senior resulted in the Lightning streaking from 10th to 15th and the Rams bullying their way up the rankings from 12th to 10th. Muscatine’s loss to West Liberty last weekend caused their departure from the top 15. Iowa City High, previously unranked, took over the vacancy in the #13 slot in the top 15.