According to Oskaloosa Fire Chief Mark Neff, Mahaska County is under a burn ban effective immediately. Due to high winds and dry conditions, no burning should be done until further notice.
OCSD Board Announces Finalists for Superintendent of Schools
(Oskaloosa, IA) – The Oskaloosa School District Board of Education has announced two finalists for district superintendent. The finalists are Paula Wright, Superintendent of Schools in Chariton, Iowa; and Todd Meyer, Superintendent of Schools in Jackson County, Minnesota.
The public is invited to the Candidate Meet and Greet Community Forums, scheduled to take place on Monday, April 30 at the Oskaloosa Elementary School Commons at 1801 Orchard Ave.
5:30 p.m. Paula Wright, Superintendent of Chariton Community School District
6:30 p.m. Todd Meyer, Superintendent of Jackson County Central School District
Attendees may complete candidate impression forms to share input with the board to assist in their final decision. Candidates’ resumes, are available on the Oskaloosa Community Schools Website at http://www.oskaloosa.k12.ia.us/.
ABOUT PAULA WRIGHT
Paula Wright is currently serving as the Superintendent for the Chariton Community School District in Chariton, Iowa. She studied Educational Leadership at Iowa State University, completing her Certificate of Advanced Studies in 2005. Paula earned a Master of Science Degree from Drake University in Educational Administration and a Bachelor of Science Degree from Simpson College in Elementary and Special Education. Paula has teaching experience in Special Education, 2nd, and 4th grades and had previously served as an Elementary Principal for nine years prior to assuming the Superintendent role in 2007. In her free time she enjoys quilting, swimming, bicycling, and spending time with family and friends. Paula is grateful for the opportunity to explore what the Oskaloosa School District has to offer and is excited for the possibility of helping the Oskaloosa School District foster an environment where all students can embrace the power of learning.
ABOUT TODD MEYER
Todd Meyer is the current Superintendent at Jackson County Central School District in Jackson, Minnesota. He has led the district for 10 years. Prior to that, Mr. Meyer served for three years as the Superintendent at Nicollet School District in Nicollet, Minnesota. During his career, he has been a High School Principal, Middle School Principal, and K-12 Principal in Pipestone and Nicollet, Minnesota; and Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Before going into administration, Mr. Meyer taught High School Social Studies for 12 years in Watertown, South Dakota; and in Farmington and Northfield, Minnesota. He was born and raised in Spencer, Iowa and got his educational degrees from the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
Each of the finalists will spend the day visiting the Oskaloosa Area School District and participating in a series of meetings with district employees and community members. The board will also interview the finalists for a second time during their visit to the district and plans to discuss final candidate selection on Monday evening after completing the interview process and reviewing stakeholder feedback.
The finalist announcement is the culmination of a comprehensive search conducted by the board with the assistance of the search firm, Ray and Associates. The search process included many hours of reviewing application materials, interviewing semifinalist candidates and carefully assessing the qualification of candidates in relation to the candidate profile determined by the board, district employees, and community members. The board evaluated 11 applicants from a pool of 46 from across the country, and interviewed six semi-finalists before narrowing the search to the two finalists.
Oskaloosa Indians Track & Field, Golf Recaps
Oskaloosa Boys Golf Team Recap
The Osky boys golf team played in a 20-team field and finished in 5th place which is a solid finish. Spencer Tucker finished as the runner-up and Hogan Rockhold finished tied for 4th out of around 110 players. It is Hogan’s career low round.
Full results weren’t available, so here are Oskaloosa’s scores:
- Spencer Tucker 76
- Hogan Rockhold 79
- Austin Hafner 84
- Noah Van Veldhuizen 93
- Joe Glasgow 101
- Carter Parks 110
- Team: 332 (5th place)
Oskaloosa Track & Field Recap
In track & field, With 6 personal records set and 2 season best relays the Osky girls had a night of improvement at the Pella Tulip Time Relays.
Individual champions included: Sophia Dykstra in the discus and Ava VandeWall in the High Jump.
Personal records were set by: Sophia Dykstra in the disc and the shot put, Brooke Allen in the 100 m hurdles, Maliyah Martin the shot put, Hannah Flaherty in the 100 m dash and a split 400 time by Marleigh Denburger in the Sprint Medley Relay.
The season best relays came in the 4×100 and 4×200 with the team of Brooke Allen, Ava VandeWall, Lauren Coon and Savannah Wiltse.
Emma Kelderman finished in a tie for 17 at the Drake Relays tonight with a height of 5-2. (10 other jumpers also went out at this height.) She achieved the goals that she set out for herself tonight and is looking forward to returning to the “blue oval” in 3 short weeks for state.
Old Dominion Extend Tour
Old Dominion has extended their “Happy Endings Tour.” The ACM Vocal Group of the Year has added 13 more shows to their schedule, which will keep them on the road through December.
The new shows, which will feature special guests Michael Ray, High Valley and Granger Smith on select dates, kick off October 4th in Knoxville, Tennesee, and run through December 15, 2018 in Duluth, Minnesota.
Check out the dates below and click here for more info.
- October 4th: Knoxville, TN – Knoxville Civic Coliseum
- October 6th: Rochester, NY – Main Street Armory
- October 11th: Amarillo, TX -Amarillo Civic Center
- October 12th: Las Cruces, NM – Pan American Center
- October 26th: State College, PA – Bryce Jordan Center
- October 27th: Roanoke, VA – Berglund Center
- November 29th: Estero (Ft. Meyers), FL – Germain Arena
- November 30th: St. Augustine, FL – St Augustine Amphitheatre
- December 7th: Huntington, WV – Big Sandy Superstore Arena
- December 8th: Grand Rapids, MI – Deltaplex Arena
- December 13th: Bismarck, ND – Bismarck Event Center
- December 14th: Fargo, ND – Scheels Arena
- December 15th: Duluth, MN – Amsoil Arena
Source: Billboard
Ottumwa Man Arrested for Attempted Murder
(OTTUMWA, Iowa) – On April 20, 2018, at approximately 5:07 PM, the Ottumwa Police department received a report of a motor vehicle accident that had occurred in the 900 block of South Sheridan Street in Ottumwa. Officers arrived on scene and determined that a domestic dispute had occurred at that location which involved a male subject who had physically assaulted a female. The suspect departed the location in a vehicle and returned a short time later. The suspect then drove his vehicle over the female victim who was still lying on the ground from the prior assault. The male suspect then fled the area.
The victim was identified as Tiffany Lynn Seddon, age 31, of 1017 S. Weller, Ottumwa. Seddon was transported to Ottumwa Regional Health Center and then Mercy Hospital in Des Moines for treatment of her injuries sustained in the assault.
Joseph Benjamin Dobbe, age 40, of 1017 S. Weller, Ottumwa, was identified as the suspect in this case. Dobbe was located at his mother’s residence located at 301 Bridge View Drive, Melrose, IA. Authorities responded to this address to attempt to arrest Dobbe. Dobbe refused to surrender to police and a standoff ensued for several hours.
The standoff ended after Dobbe began suffering from a medical problem which required him to be transported to a hospital in Centerville, Iowa. Dobbe was then transferred to Mercy West Hospital in West Des Moines. Dobbe was eventually taken into custody on April 21, 2018, after he recovered from his medical problem and was transported to the Polk County Jail.
Dobbe has been charged with Attempt to Commit Murder, a Class “B” felony, and Willful Injury, a Class “C” Felony.
Please note that a criminal charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Jr. Babe Ruth Begins Season at the Lacey Recreation Complex
(OSKALOOSA, Iowa) – It was a beautiful evening for baseball as Jr. Babe Ruth hosted a double header at the Lacey Recreation Complex on Tuesday, April 24. Osky Grey played Osky Maroon in a season opener double header bringing fans to the stands.
Babe Ruth season is officially underway with upcoming games Tuesday and Wednesday and Friday of next week.
Meow-Meow the Cat from SMAS
Meow-Meow is KBOE 104.9 FM & KMZN 99.5FM & 740AM‘s Pet of the Week from Stephen Memorial Animal Shelter.
At the moment, Meow-Meow is quite pregnant, so she won’t be ready to go to a new home for a couple of months. However, if you’re looking for a friend, she’s a great option for you. She loves to talk and will engage with just about anyone who is willing to listen.
If you are interested in Meow-Meow and would like to learn more about her (or any of her other furry friends at Stephen Memorial Animal Shelter), stop on out during business hours and have a meet-and-greet. 
Update: Sarge, our Pet of the Week from last week, has recently been adopted by our General Manager Rick Watts! Congratulations to both Sarge and Rick for finding each other.
Whalen, Carter, VanDerWal & Griffiths Take Opening Night Wins at Southern Iowa Speedway
Story by Jeremy Fox; Photo courtesy of the Southern Iowa Speedway (Osky), taken by Carroll Hoover Photography
Oskaloosa, Iowa (April 25th, 2018) – This past off-season was crazy and many wondered if there would be any racing action at the Southern Iowa Speedway. After the Southern Iowa Fair Board Race Committee met along with long-time competitor Nathan Wood, they worked together to make racing happen and numerous sponsors stepped up for to tie it all together and make the season possible.
After mother nature washed out last week, the roar of engines was back to life at the Musco Lighting Southern Iowa Speedway presented by KBOE 104.9 FM on Bill & Ray’s Truck Repair, Kool Seamless Gutters and Musco Lighting Night. It was also the first Kid’s Night, where there were many giveaways and car rides for the kid before the races.
A total of 61 cars checked in to do battle at the Monster Half Mile, 20 Hobby Stocks, 13 Sport Mods, 15 Stock Cars and 13 Sport Compacts.
First feature of the night was the Finish Line Auto Sales Sport Compacts 10-lap feature. Travis Musgrove was to start on the pole but it would be Bill Whalen Jr and Nathan Moody leading the field to the green. Unfortunately on the start, Moody made contact with another car coming down the front stretch. Moody’s night would end after he ended up on his side. On the restart, Whalen got a great restart and began to pull away until another caution came out for Jason Breuklander having mechanical issues and coming to a stop in turn one. Whalen held off Jimmy Haring and Tyler Haring for the win. Jimmy Haring finished second, Tyler Haring was third, Kyle Boyd finished fourth and Billy Cain was fifth.
The Midstate Machine Stock Cars feature saw the caution come out before a single lap scored in the books when Danny Thrasher spun collecting Howard Gordon Jr. and Carl Yaw Jr. Nathan Wood took advantage of his outside front row starting spot by jumping out to the early lead but Cayden Carter was working his way through the field and took the lead away from Wood on lap six. Carter and the field saw the caution come out on lap 17 forcing a green-white-checkered finish. Carter held off Wood to take the opening night win. Wood held off Mike Hughes, who worked his way through the field from 11th to finish 3rd. Brett Lowry and Dustin Griffiths was 4th and 5th.
Carter’s Manufacturing & Van’s Racing Sport Mods feature was the only feature to go caution free on the night. “The Tileman” Jason Hall led the first three laps for the feature before Jason McDaniel took the lead away on lap four. However McDaniel’s lead was short as Curtis VanDerWal worked his way to the top spot at the halfway point. VanDerWal went on to take the win ahead of McDaniel, Brayton Carter, Cory Van Zante and Blaine Webster.
Final feature of the night was the Parker Tree Service Hobby Stocks feature and it was Mike Kincaid who jumped out to the lead on lap one. Aaron Martin took advantage of a slight bobble by Kincaid on lap two to take the lead away. Martin led until lap six when the only race caution came out when Derek Kirkland came to a stop in turn three after his steering wheel came off. Dustin Griffiths grabbed the lead away from Martin and never looked back despite a late race charge by Scott Shull. Griffiths won with Shull in second. Eric Stanton, Martin and Brandon Cox rounded out the top five.
Next Wednesday night will be Binns & Stevens Dust Control and Supreme Lawn & Landscape Night at the Races. It’s also College Night meaning any college student is admitted free with their student ID. Adult prices are just $8, Military & Veterans are $5, Kids (6-15) $3, and 5 & Under get in free. Stock Cars, Sport Mods, Hobby Stocks and Sport Compacts are on the card with Hot Laps at 7 PM and racing to follow.
For more information, “Like” Southern Iowa Speedway – Osky on Facebook or contact the Southern Iowa Fair Board at 641-673-7004.
Musco Lighting Southern Iowa Speedway presented by KBOE 104.9
Bill & Ray’s Truck Repair / Kool Seamless Gutters / Musco Lighting Night
April 25th, 2018
Midstate Machine Stock Cars
Feature – 1. 10CC Cayden Carter, Oskaloosa; 2. 52 Nathan Wood, Sigourney; 3. 11 Mike Hughes, Oskaloosa; 4. 4M Brett Lowry, Ottumwa; 5. 10G Dustin Griffiths, Hedrick; 6. 14 Derrick Agee, Moberly, Mo.; 7. 54 Mike Brown, New Sharon; 8. 72 Mike Harward, Floris; 9. 20RT Ricky Thornton Jr., Clive; 10. 19 Donnie Pearson, Oskaloosa; 11. 22R Todd Reitzler, Grinnell; 12. 409 Howard Gordon Jr., Oskaloosa; 13. 84 Danny Thrasher, Agency; 14. 73C Carl Yaw Jr., Pleasant Hill; 15. 62 John Hunnell, Des Moines.
Heat 1 – 1. Reitzler; 2. Wood; 3. Thornton; 4. Carter; 5. Griffiths; 6. Hughes; 7. Harward; 8. Yaw.
Heat 2 – 1. Brown; 2. Agee; 3. Lowry; 4. Pearson; 5. Gordon; 6. Thrasher; 7. Hunnell.
Carter’s Manufacturing / Van’s Racing Sport Mods
Feature – 1. 1V Curtis VanDerWal, Oskaloosa; 2. 85 Jason McDaniel, Eldon; 3. 01 Brayton Carter, Oskaloosa; 4. 34Z Cory Van Zante, Sully; 5. 7 Blaine Webster, Ottumwa; 6. 95J Jason Hall, Grinnell; 7. 29 Colton Livezey, New Sharon; 8. 8T Tony Johnson, Oskaloosa; 9. 22V Jarret VanDenBerg, Oskaloosa; 10. T16 Taylor Elliott, Webster City; 11. 77F Jeff Frana, Ottumwa; 12. 55R Steven Berry, Ottumwa; 13. 5 Matt Beal, Oskaloosa.
Heat 1 – 1. Van Zante; 2. VanDerWal; 3. Webster; 4. Carter; 5. Elliott; 6. Frana; 7. Beal.
Heat 2 – 1. Livezey; 2. McDaniel; 3. Hall; 4. VanDenBerg; 5. Johnson; 6. Berry.
Parker Tree Service Hobby Stocks
Feature – 1. 10 Dustin Griffiths, Hedrick; 2. 57 Scott Shull, Eldon; 3. 7B Eric Stanton, Carlisle; 4. 73 Aaron Martin, Richland; 5. 66 Brandon Cox, Norwalk; 6. 12 Mike Kincaid, Cincinnati; 7. 3 Travis Bunnell, Hedrick; 8. 42T Tyson Overton, Carlisle; 9. 47 Darin Dezwarte, Knoxville; 10. 55X Rick Goldsberry, Runnells; 11. 14 Christian Huffman, New Sharon; 12. 7K Kelsie Spilman, Hedrick; 13. 20H Brock Hopwood, Ottumwa; 14. 71S Dave Seddon, Knoxville; 15. 96R Jamie Songer, Ankeny; 16. 1R Rick Van Dusseldorp, Oskaloosa; 17. 13M Riley Meinders, Oskaloosa; 18. 2K Derek Kirkland, Centerville; 19. 55 Benji Clemons, Norwalk; 20. 54 Jesse Williams, New Sharon.
Heat 1 – 1. Huffman; 2. Griffiths; 3. Kincaid; 4. Martin; 5. Overton; 6. Goldsberry.
Heat 2 – 1. Martin; 2. Cox; 3. Hopwood; 4. Van Dusseldorp; 5. Dezwarte; 6. Spilman.
Heat 3 – 1. Kirkland; 2. Shull; 3. Williams; 4. Seddon; 5. Songer; 6. Clemons.
Finish Line Auto Sales Sport Compacts
Feature – 1. 00W Bill Whalen Jr., Riverside; 2. 2H Jimmy Haring, Oskaloosa; 3. 5 Tyler Haring, Oskaloosa; 4. 99 Kyle Boyd, Ottumwa; 5. 52 Billy Cain, Bloomfield; 6. 02 Cody Phillips, Ottumwa; 7. 23B Jason Breuklander, Oskaloosa; 8. 14A Brandon Allison, Oskaloosa; 9. 42 Brandon Housley, Ottumwa; 10. 0 Ryan Havel, Iowa City; 11. 01C Bryan Claussen, Eddyville; 12. 23M Travis Musgrove, Beacon; DQ 41 Nathan Moody, Oskaloosa.
Heat 1 – 1. Housley; 2. Havel; 3. Moody; 4. Musgrove; 5. Tyler Haring; 6. Cain; 7. Claussen.
Heat 2– 1. Phillips; 2. Whalen; 3. Breuklander; 4. Allison; 5. Jimmy Haring; 6. Boyd.
Statesmen Come Up Just Short vs. Wildcats
(CANTON, Mo.) – The William Penn Statesmen (13-32, 7-22 Heart) traveled to Canton Missouri to take on the Culver-Stockton Wildcats (28-23, 20-14 Heart) in a Heart doubleheader on Tuesday.
The Statesmen would battle hard but fall short in a couple of one run games by the scores of 4-3 and 7-6.
WPU 3, CSC 4
After surrendering two runs in the bottom half of the first inning, the Statesmen would get on the board in the third with a three run frame. The scoring started on a 2 RBI double by Roxanna Jensen (Sr., Coto de Caza, Calif., Psychology) to center-field. Jensen would finish 1-3 in the game. Dalaney Bice (So., Woodward, Iowa, Human Services & Psychology) would follow with a single, scoring jensen, to put the Statesmen ahead 3-2.
The Wildcats would get 2 runs back in the bottom of the fourth with the go-ahead run coming via a RBI single.
Katie Springer (Jr., Riverside, Iowa, Undecided) highlighted William Penn in the circle as the Junior would log 3.0 innings of 2 hit ball and allowing no earned runs.
WPU 6, CSC 7
After falling behind 5-1 in the early going of game two, the Statesmen would begin to mount a comeback in the top of the fourth as they would scratch for 2 and trim the Wildcats lead to 5-3. Rachael Trapp (Sr., Broken Arrow, Okla., Biology) would drive in a run on a sacrifice fly, scoring Alexa Blazek (Fr., Henderson, Nev., Biology). Later in the inning Sonia Reddy (So., Tracy, Calif., Exercise Science) would bring another runner home with an RBI single.
The Wildcats would get one of the runs back in the bottom half of the fourth and the Statesmen would respond by scoring a pair in the fifth on some sloppy play by the Culver-Stockton defense (2 errors).
In the seventh, the Statesmen would complete the comeback and tie things up at 6 when Reddy would come around to score on a double by Bice. Reddy finished the nightcap 2-4. Lexi Herbert (Jr., King City, Mo., Secondary Education) would also produce a multi-hit game going 2-4 with 2 RBI.
Unfortunately, the Statesmen would fall in the bottom of the seventh in walk-off fashion.
Next Up: William Penn will travel to Des Moines to take on rival Grand View in a conference doubleheader on Wednesday beginning at 3:00 PM.
Tyler Steward Delivers for Dutch Baseball
The beginning of the day looked bleak for the Central College baseball team after it fell 7-0 in the opener of its doubleheader against Nebraska Wesleyan University Tuesday but freshman right-handed pitcher Tyler Steward (Norwalk) delivered for the Dutch in a 12-0 seven inning victory in the closing game.
Central continues Iowa Conference play Friday in Waverly, as the Dutch begin a three-game series against Wartburg College with a single nine-inning affair starting at 6 PM with a doubleheader beginning Saturday at 1 PM.