Bleeding Heartland
An independent website about Iowa politics
 Bleeding Heartland
Protesters outside the State Historical Society of Iowa facility in Iowa City on August 23 (photo by Robert Duffey)

The theft of history


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Sondra Feldstein on horseback

Preserve farmland and hold Polk County supervisors accountable


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Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts reads to preschoolers in January 2024

Toddlers know, so why can't school officials learn?


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2023 staff photo outside East High School (slated for expansion if voters approve the Des Moines Public Schools bond issue)

Poll testing how Ian Roberts arrest could affect DMPS bond vote


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Beth Macy (photo by Meredith Roller)

Beth Macy, author of 'Dopesick' and 'Paper Girl,' coming to Des Moines


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Johnston's unified front for public education: Davidson, Schippers, Smith


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ICE robbed more from our community than a public servant


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Autumn color in the pastures

Autumn on a small northwest Iowa prairie remnant


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Claire Celsi with Josh Hughes at her campaign kickoff in 2018 (photo by Al Womble)

What I learned from Claire Celsi


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Iowa needs a Farm Bill geared toward conservation


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Many Iowans can't get COVID boosters. Kim Reynolds isn't helping


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Trouble in River City, 2025 edition


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Then Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts (photo courtesy of Des Moines Public Schools)

Leaving more questions than answers educates no one


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Quick fixes don't solve difficult problems


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All photos are by Katie Byerly

Iowa wildflower Wednesday: Spatterdock (Yellow pond-lily)


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Fact-checking the Dr. Ian Roberts situation


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Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts at the ribbon cutting ceremony for Lincoln High School’s new athletic complex August 21, 2025 in Des Moines. (Photo courtesy of Des Moines Public Schools)

Ian Roberts resigns as Des Moines superintendent, lawyer says


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Dr. Ian Roberts (photo courtesy of the Des Moines Public Schools)

We’re upset about Dr. Roberts' detention—for good reason


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Des Moines school board members Kimberly Martorano, Jackie Norris, and Maria Alonzo

Board puts DSM superintendent on leave, decries "misinformation"


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Dr. Ian Roberts

ICE detains Des Moines Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts


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