Our state’s worst winter roads. Iowans love curling. Workforce study identifies skills gap. And water and cancer concerns.

3/4/2026

It’s a well-known stereotype to those who frequent Iowa’s roadways that, even though most every Iowa winter comes with ice, snow, sleet and whatever a snow-squall is, drivers in the area suddenly forget the rules of driving when the conditions take a turn. 

A survey by RVWindshieldReplacement.com (sounds like they’ve got a stake in this game) surveyed drivers on the major roads Americans are most likely to avoid during winter weather. The top three in Iowa were I-35 between Des Moines and Minnesota; U.S. Route 20 in northern Iowa; and I-80 between Coralville and the Quad Cities. 

Some local roads of concern, whether it be snow season or not, are any stretch of I-235 between 7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m.; Fleur Drive during flood season; Ingersoll Avenue during construction season; Mills Civic Parkway during the holiday shopping season; and don’t even bother trying to get through downtown during the Farmers Market. If Iowa State Sen. Kerry Gruenhagen gets his wish to bring the Chicago Bears to Iowa, we recommend steering clear of wherever the stadium may end up, too. Not just because of the traffic, but to avoid Bears fans. …

It has become normal for us Iowans to resist national trends. Apparently, we even do so while watching the Winter Olympics. According to Reviews.org, the top five most-watched Winter Olympics sports are snowboarding, ski jumping, figure skating, ice hockey and speed skating — all of which have levels of danger, deft skill and athleticism. 

Which of all of these sports dominates the online search habits of Iowans? None. It’s curling. Yes, curling. Nine of the other 16 states that had the most-searched sport of curling are in the south, and those residents were probably just trying to figure out what ice looks like. …

The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce released its 2025 Workforce Survey results with some interesting findings. It showed that more than half of the respondents plan to hire from one to 25 employees in 2026. About 40% plan on maintaining their current number of staff members. Despite a strong demand, employers report skills gaps across all experience levels, from interns to executives, with “professionalism, communication, digital literacy, time management and role-specific technical skills cited most often,” according to the results. It also found that high-school-aged workers remain underrepresented in the workforce. 

The main takeaways from the survey were related to youth unemployment and the barriers young people are facing in Iowa to find jobs. A lack of suitable roles, a lack of work readiness, scheduling conflicts with school or business needs, and supervision or training needs were listed as the four largest barriers. It says the findings reinforce that employers need help designing and supporting youth roles through training, supervision support, scheduling models and wraparound services rather than simply being asked to hire more youth. 

The conclusion of the survey said, “Central Iowa’s middle-skills gap cannot be closed without earlier, more equitable and better coordinated youth engagement.” Some of its recommendations were to launch a middle school career discovery lab that focuses on project-based learning, develop work-based learning ladders to connect career talks, and offer job shadows or high school internships and postsecondary apprenticeships. …

The Boys and Girls Club of Central Iowa received a grant from Variety – the Children’s Charity of Iowa to fund new furniture for the Bernie and Bernice Baker Club located at Amos Hiatt Middle School on the northeast side of Des Moines. Construction help will come from Baker Group, Graham Construction and HRTLAND — Heartland Companies. …

Missed your last credit card payment? Not only is that irresponsible, it is apparently not sexy either, at least according to financial media company MarketBeat. According to its survey, single Iowans put the credit score cutoff at 541. So, you not only need to pay for dinner, but you should bring your credit score with you, too. …

Six Iowa teachers were announced as regional 2026 Iowa STEM teacher award recipients. The annual award honors six teachers from one of each of the state’s six STEM regions for their contribution and dedication to science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Two central Iowa teachers received the award this year.

One was an agriculture teacher in the Ames Community School District, Anna Brooks. One of her colleagues who nominated her said she exemplified excellence in STEM education by blending innovation, collaboration and student-centered learning. 

The other resides in the metro within the Waukee Community School District, Jared Almandinger, a medical and bioscience research instructor. His goal is to ensure his students recognize STEM’s universal relevance and understand STEM’s presence across all fields. …

Several states, including New York, Georgia and Vermont, have introduced pauses on new permits for data centers. Data centers have become a major topic of conversation nationally, specifically the lack of public support for them. According to Data Center Watch, $98 billion in planned AI data center development was derailed in a single quarter last year by community organizing and pushback.

At least two bills in the Iowa legislative session this year have related to data centers. HF2198 by Adam Zabner “requires the economic development authority to aggregate and post all tax incentives provided to a business in a searchable database for public viewing on the authority’s internet site within 30 days of the effective date of this provision.” HF2001, introduced by Nathan Willems, is a bill that “relates to the water efficiency of data centers, including requirements to implement water-efficient cooling technologies and encouragement for the use of nonpotable and recycled water sources.”

A statewide poll from Global Strategy Group says the 82% of Iowa voters would be more likely to vote for an elected official who makes protecting clean water in Iowa a priority. More than 72% said rising cancer rates are a “very serious problem,” even more so than the cost of living (61%). 

One bill relating to cancer’s increasing rise in Iowa is Senate File 63, proposed by a group of democratic senators of Weiner, Dotzler, Donahue, Winckler, Celsi, Blake, Trone Garriott, Knox, Bennett, Townsend, Stated, Petersen, Quirmback, Wahls and Bisignano, would appropriate money to be used by the department of health and human services to create an Iowa Cancer Research program within the division of public health department to support cancer research projects at the at the public institutions of higher education in the state. ♦