News

Jun 05, 2023

Two dead after semi

Two people are dead after a semi-trailer truck and a train collided Friday, the

Two people are dead after a semi-trailer truck and a train collided Friday, the Iowa State Patrol said.

The crash occurred at 1:36 p.m. in the 120th block of 115th Street east of Lisbon, Iowa, in Cedar County.

Police said that the driver of a 2016 Mack 600 truck was attempting to cross the railroad tracks and was struck on the driver's side by an eastbound train.

One person in the truck and one person on the train were killed, according to the crash report issued by the Iowa State Patrol.

The names of the deceased were not released Friday, pending notification of family members.

Iowa State Patrol troopers were assisted at the scene by Lisbon and Mount Vernon police, fire and ambulance, Mechanicsville Fire Department, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Iowa Department of Transportation.

The crash remains under investigation.

Gov. Kim Reynolds speaks during the 3rd annual Feenstra Family Picnic in Sioux Center, Iowa.

As filmmaker and writer Nora Ephron said during a '96 commencement address at Wellesley College, "Your education is a dress rehearsal for a life that is yours to lead." If that's the case, high school may be one of the greatest dress rehearsals of all.

It's a place where students explore their interests, dive into extracurricular activities, finally get the freedom to choose their own classes, and prepare for college or the workplace. For many of these students and their families, public education is key: 49.5 million students enrolled in public PreK-12 schools in 2021, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Of those, about a third were in high school, enrolled across about 23,500 public secondary schools nationwide.

For many anxious parents, getting their kids into the best of these public high schools is of the utmost importance. Some families even move homes to get into better school districts. However, among all of these thousands of schools, a few stand out for their academic excellence, incredible track records, and the future success of their young students.

Stacker compiled a list of the 30 best public high schools in Iowa using 2023 rankings from Niche. Niche uses eight weighted factors for its rankings. A majority of the score is based on academics and grades, but other factors include culture and diversity, health and safety, clubs and activities, resources, and surveys of parents, teachers and students. School districts are provided when available; otherwise, the city is listed instead.

- District: Western Dubuque Community School District

- Enrollment: 923 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Eastern Allamakee Community School District

- Enrollment: 105 (8:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Clear Lake Community School District

- Enrollment: 424 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Harlan Community School District

- Enrollment: 490 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Van Meter Community School District

- Enrollment: 251 (11:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: George-Little Rock Community School District

- Enrollment: 134 (10:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Southern Calhoun Community School District

- Enrollment: 288 (11:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: West Marshall Community School District

- Enrollment: 314 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Hudson Community School District

- Enrollment: 359 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Iowa City Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,155 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Williamsburg Community School District

- Enrollment: 581 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Grinnell-Newburg Community School District

- Enrollment: 489 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Cedar Rapids Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,189 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: MOC-Floyd Valley Community School District

- Enrollment: 444 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Cedar Falls Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,229 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Le Mars Community School District

- Enrollment: 624 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Johnston Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,772 (20:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A-

- District: Decorah Community School District

- Enrollment: 575 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Linn-Mar Community School District

- Enrollment: 2,233 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Bettendorf Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,523 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Ankeny Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,337 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Waukee Community School District

- Enrollment: 2,277 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Iowa City Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,572 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Ankeny Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,340 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Gilbert Community School District

- Enrollment: 534 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Cedar Rapids Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,661 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: West Des Moines Community School District

- Enrollment: 2,047 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Ames Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,370 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A

- District: Pleasant Valley Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,541 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A+

- District: Iowa City Community School District

- Enrollment: 1,466 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)

- Niche grade: A+

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Rescuers are at the scene of a building collapse downtown Davenport.