The Warme Wire: Week two
I had lots of visitors from our district this week at the Capitol, which is always welcome and encouraged! It was great to brainstorm ways to tell Marshalltown’s unique story with Director of Tourism Dylan Does on Iowa Tourism night and to see the Marshall County Veterans Affairs team of Kevin Huseboe and Shari Coughenour on Veterans Day at the Capitol, a day to honor and remember the brave men and women who have served our country. From pork producers and vegetable farmers, to American Legion members, to physician assistant and teaching students, each conversation gives me a chance to LISTEN and informs the policy work I am here to do.
It was fun to visit with Future Farmers of America (FFA) members from Marshalltown and West Marshall during their day on the hill. The students asked great questions and shared some thoughtful ideas with me. I also asked the students what they’ve learned from FFA that will help them in life, and the most common answers were leadership and public speaking. The future is bright with these young leaders!
I would like to extend a heartfelt congratulations to Janelle Carter and her team for their outstanding work on the Willards-Hopkins Historic Rehabilitation project in Marshalltown. They were rightfully honored this week with a “Best Development Award” at the Iowa State Capitol, and I was glad to participate in the celebration.
We are starting to see a steady flow of subcommittee meetings as we work on various bills and proposals. I led my first subcommittee meeting on a bill in the Transportation Committee. The bill is focused on helping address workforce needs in rural Iowa, and I’m proud to be working on measures that can support the growth and vitality of our rural communities.
I’ve received many emails regarding policies on cell phones in schools. This is a critical discussion and I truly want to hear from all viewpoints across the district. I have spoken to many parents, teachers, school administrators, medical professionals, and law enforcement leaders about cell phone policies in preparation for this session.
Personal freedom, parental choice, and local control are key values of mine as a conservative lawmaker. At the same time, we have a crisis of youth mental health and decreased learning outcomes in our state that breaks my heart. There is extensive compelling data that smart phones and social media negatively impact youth mental health and learning, especially among girls.
The impact of cell phones during the school day is akin to secondhand smoke. If some parents choose not to give their children phones, all are still impacted by the distractions and lack of social interaction that happens when the focus is on these addictive devices. I saw this firsthand as a substitute teacher in four public school buildings in our district and see the mental health impacts directly through my current work at YSS. I’m also a mom to two daughters in 7th and 9th grades attending Iowa public school, and I want deeply to get this right for my daughters, their friends, and all the kids in Iowa.
I’ve yet to see any exact bill language coming from Governor Reynolds’ proposal but look forward to reviewing it in detail and doing whatever I can to support good policy that improves mental health, safety, and learning for our youth.
As always, thank you for your ongoing support. It’s an honor to represent you at the Capitol, and I will continue to work hard on your behalf. I look forward to the coming weeks as we tackle important issues and continue making progress for our community and state.
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Kara Warme, a Republican from Ames,
represents District 26 in the Iowa Senate.