Editorials: Our school standing erodes

As Beavers return from summer break to their dens on campus, and we start to think about filling the backpacks and watching for school buses, we wax nostalgic for the good old days. Iowa was Number One in education, literacy and college entrance exams. Educational attainment was a core state value.

Iowa is middling now in education. Still Number One in hogs and eggs.

Appropriations for higher education are lower than they were 20 years ago. Tuition is higher. Vouchers cut into funding for public education, which had been struggling since the 2008 recession. The legislature just had to mess with Area Education Agencies. We’re on a steady slide.

Storm Lake is a center for education. It is a huge part of our economy. Iowa Central Community College is finishing a new campus here. Buena Vista University is of incalculable benefit and service to the community and region. Public and parochial schools offer choice and good jobs.

The strongest communities in Iowa similarly are built around education: Sioux Center, Decorah, Waverly, Dubuque. They vote for politicians who continue to tighten the noose on schools. They ban books and put blinders on curriculum, not trusting teachers or principals or school boards. This was not the route to Number One.

We can’t sell exciting big cities, oceans or mountains. Iowa could always sell itself as the smart state. Not anymore. We are allowing an illustrious network of private colleges erode through closings and consolidation — Iowa Wesleyan closed, while Mount Mercy and St. Ambrose merged, and even Drake is bailing water. These colleges pulled in students from other states who often would stay in Iowa and start businesses or engage in a profession. Look at what Buena Vista does for Storm Lake. Look how Iowa Central trains students for jobs in the trades. Iowa State University should be a force for progress but is being sold off to whomever will fund its research, as state aid dwindles.

Don’t just thank a teacher when you drop off the kids. Demand from your legislators that Iowa be Number One in education again. We know we can do it, because we did for generations. Our values may have changed as we grow dimmer and duller. We shall see if Iowans are comfortable losing ground on education to the rest of the nation. It is no inducement for young families to stay, when they can make more money and have better schools in Minnesota. We are losing that competition.

High yields, low prices

Ag commodity prices took another dive this week as the USDA estimated the largest soybean crop on record and the third-largest corn harvest. Crops here are thriving. High yields may take some of the sting out of lower prices. A lot of people argued that they would give up price protection in return for the freedom to farm. This is a cost of freedom, baby. Farmers always shoot the moon for yield. That is why we have excess fertilizer in the river.

We used to restrict production to support prices but the grain trade and the chemical companies weren’t so crazy about that model. The benefit was cleaner water, better soil conservation (at least keeping the soil in the field), more diverse production, and greatly enhanced wildlife habitat. We changed all that in the 1980s by getting rid of set-asides. Corn got cheaper and farmers got fewer. More seed and fertilizer were sold. The Raccoon River became endangered in no time.

Like we said above, we are prone to nostalgia in that way. Iowa was less polluted, there were more farmers, and prices were relatively better when we had stronger guard rails in the farm bill. Farmers made a lot of money over the past three years. Now prices have tanked. We hope yields can make up for it. Maybe, unless you are among the 20% of farmers under financial stress already. Then you give it up to a larger, more established farmer. Pork prices don’t need Donald Trump talking them down, they’re doing that job without his help. Cheap corn, cheap hogs, the old saying goes. We know where that leads: to hogs held in fewer hands with a firm grip around your gullet. We have one heckuva crop coming, though, and if you are selling storage that is a good thing. If you are a livestock integrator, it could be lovely. Not so much for the farmer.