Home Care In Alburnett, IA

Building projects, new curriculum and a focus on the workforce capturing the attention of school district’s new leader

Grace King

ALBURNETT — As the next superintendent of the Alburnett Community School District, Will Dible already is enthusiastic about the kids, families and community.

Dible, 37, said he will enjoy working on the single-building campus where the district’s administrative offices and K-12 classrooms are housed. “When I’m needing a kid fix, I can walk out of my office and into the classrooms,” he said.

Dible — who was unanimously approved for the job by the Alburnett school board — will begin work effective Saturday in the 700-student district in northern Linn County. He’s moving to the community from Spencer — about 240 miles away — with his wife, Jenna Dible, and their three children: Mason, 7, a rising second-grader, Sullivan, 5, who will be in alternative kindergarten this year, and Estelle, 3, who will attend preschool in the fall. His salary will be $150,000 a year, plus benefits.

This will be the first superintendent position for Dible, and it will be “big learning curve,” he said.

He studied secondary education at the University of Iowa. Initially, he was studying chemistry, but when an education class he took was “the most fun” he had ever taken, he switched majors.

“It’s been a very fulfilling career,” Dible said. “The kids drive you nuts sometimes, but they are fantastic.”

Dible was principal of Spencer High School in the 2,200-student school district for two years. Before that, he was the district’s director of school improvement, where he focused on curriculum and instruction, professional development, data analysis and human resources. Dible also has experience as a high school science teacher and instructional coach.

His experience at Spencer schools has “done a great job” preparing him to be Alburnett’s superintendent, Dible said.

With his background in human resources, Dible said he also will heavily emphasize recruitment and retention of staff in Alburnett. While he is not aware of staff shortages in the school district right now, he said educators across the state are in “short supply.”

“The number of applicants we have for a position is minuscule compared to five to 10 years ago,” he said.

While at Spencer schools, Dible began a project-based program called No Boundaries, modeled after the Cedar Rapids-based Iowa BIG. The Iowa BIG program challenges high school students to team up with businesses. This gives its students the ability to learn and use real-world skills such as leadership, accountability and teamwork on projects about which they are passionate, while earning high school credit.

An Iowa BIG satellite location opened in Alburnett for the first time at the start of the 2021-22 school year. While students in the Alburnett Community School District have had the option of enrolling in Iowa BIG in the past, they had to travel to Cedar Rapids.

Dible said he was attracted to Alburnett schools because he believes small schools can “give you a very well-rounded education.” He is looking forward to learning the “values” of the community and how the community and school district can better support each other, he said.

Under his leadership, Alburnett schools will complete a building project made possible when voters passed a $11.5 million bond issue in March 2020.

As a part of the project, the district has remodeled its culinary, industrial technology and business and agriculture program classrooms. Other projects are the completion of an auditorium, music rooms and a multipurpose building with a gym. The current gym in the original Alburnett school building is being remodeled to add eight classrooms.

To finance the projects, voters approved a measure allowing the district’s property tax levy rate to exceed $2.70 per $1,000 of assessed taxable value, but not to exceed $4.05. The school board also authorized use of the district’s portion of an existing 1-cent sales tax for schools to add up to $3.4 million to the bond financing.

Alburnett school board President Jason Martin said Dible is a “really good fit” for the district. Current Superintendent Dani Trimble “did a very nice job” of putting the district in a financially stable position that will contribute to its success, Martin said.

Trimble, who is resigning effective Friday, will become superintendent of the Ballard Community School District in Huxley in central Iowa. Trimble has led the Alburnett district for more than a decade.

“Will is going to have to hit the ground running,” Martin said. “We have to finish up our building project, there is new legislation in Des Moines we need to address and we’re getting in to 3DE” — a curriculum created with Junior Achievement to create equitable access to high quality education through public-private partnerships that better reflect the real world and prepare students for life beyond the classroom walls.

Junior Achievement is a national nonprofit that teaches students work readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; [email protected]

Junior guard, who scored 25 points in a 62-58 victory Friday night over Northeast, is flourishing after he and his 3 siblings were adopted out of foster care

Jeff Johnson

ALBURNETT — The conversation with Alburnett boys’ basketball coach Jeff Christopherson began with the obvious.

It wasn’t easy for the Class 2A ninth-ranked Pirates to obtain a 62-58 district semifinal win Friday night over Northeast. But they obtained that win to advance to a district final Tuesday night against Monticello.

It’s a bottom-line deal in the postseason.

“The game of basketball is not scored like gymnastics or anything like that,” Christopherson said. “It doesn’t have to be pretty, you’ve just got to get the job done. Especially this time of year because everybody who is left is good. Nobody’s hiding.”

Eventually the coach was asked about Jordan Caton. The junior guard had a game-high 25 points, nailing some clutch free throws down the stretch, to help his team survive.

The 5-foot-9 junior point guard makes the Alburnett student section (and others) go “whoa” at times with a sick change of direction on his dribble, his ultra quickness and other skills. There is obvious talent there.

“I think he has a high ceiling,” Christopherson said. “I think summer will (tell) how far he can go. I know he wants to play at the next level, and he’ll do the right things to be able to do that. His parents are very supportive.”

More than you might ever know.

Tom and Ashley Caton of Alburnett adopted Jordan, his sister and two brothers out of foster care in October 2016. Nina is a freshman in high school, William a seventh-grader and Rico a fifth-grader.

“I was born in California and moved to Iowa when I was, like, 6 or 7,” Jordan Caton said. “I got adopted by my family here in Alburnett when I was in about fifth grade. My brothers and sister were all in foster care at the time with different families. We ended up in this family for about a year, and then they ended up adopting all of us.”

“We couldn’t have kids, but we decided for foster care to just kind of make a difference,” Ashley Caton said. “We didn’t know if we’d be able to adopt kids or not, but we knew that kids needed to be in our lives somehow. Jordan and his brothers and sister came to us, and we couldn’t say no. They are such good kids.”

Jordan Caton said he and his siblings ended up in Iowa because they had a biological grandmother who lived here. He was asked about life before meeting Tom and Ashley.

“It was hard,” he said. “I grew up at a really young age, had to mature. I took care of my siblings because my mom wasn’t around. I definitely had to grow up at a young age. Life has taught me a lot.”

Which perhaps is why he seems to show very little emotion when he’s on the basketball court. He just plays.

“Growing up, I didn’t have the best experience with friends, school or sports. Hard times,” he said. “Getting with this family is the best thing that could have happened to me. I found a love for basketball.”

“He just has a natural gift to play,” Ashley said.

A natural gift that would have been wasted had Tom and Ashley Caton not provided him a stable environment. A home.

“We’re here to give the kids an opportunity to do what they want to do,” Tom Caton said. “If you think about how things could be, given stories like ours, we honestly couldn’t be more proud of the kids. How great of kids they are, how humble of kids they are. Jordan is a great kid. He works hard, stays out of trouble, and we couldn’t be more proud of him and his siblings.”

“I’m so grateful. They saved our lives,” Jordan Caton said. “The judge, he could have said no, and we’d all be in different homes right now. It’s been a journey, and how far we’ve come, everything has worked out. We’re all happy. We’re one big family now.”

AT ALBURNETT

NORTHEAST (58): Jacob Tegeler 6-12 0-1 12, Gavin Kramer 6-13 4-6 16, Clayton Meyermann 9-16 2-2 20, Chase Lee 2-9 0-0 6, Jimmy Weispfenning 2-3 0-0 4, Curtis Eberhart 0-0 0-0 0, Michael Frame 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-54 6-9 58.

ALBURNETT (62): Braydon Osborn 7-14 2-3 16, Tytan Bowers 1-6 0-0 2, Mason Neighbor 1-4 1-2 3, Jordan Caton 8-16 5-6 25, Adam Neighbor 2-4 0-0 5, Grayson Carolan 1-1 0-0 2, Payton Baker 2-5 4-5 9. Totals 22-50 12-16 62.

Halftime - Alburnett 28, Northeast 21. 3-point goals - Northeast 2-12 (Tegeler 0-1, Kramer 0-3, Meyermann 0-1, Lee 2-6, Frame 0-1), Alburnett 6-19 (Osborn 0-5, M. Neighbor 0-2, Caton 4-6, A. Neighbor 1-3, Baker 1-3). Rebounds - Northeast 37 (Tegeler 12), Alburnett 26 (Osborn, Caton 5). Total fouls - Northeast 14, Alburnett 12. Fouled out - None. Turnovers - Northeast 14, Alburnett 4.

Comments: (319)-398-8258, [email protected]

Neighbor wins 1 of 2 Pirates’ titles; City High state champion Ben Kueter rolls to 220-pound title to earn Outstanding Wrestler honor

K.J. Pilcher

CEDAR RAPIDS — With a name like Rowdy, he was destined to be a wrestler.

The name fits Alburnett freshman Rowdy Neighbor well as a competitor. It also occasionally describes his temperament off the mat. Plus, it’s a solid icebreaker.

“It’s good to start a conversation,” Neighbor said. “I’d say it matches my personality. My parents hit it spot on.”

Neighbor was rough, wild and dominant, capturing the 106-pound title of the J-Hawk Invitational Saturday at Cedar Rapids Jefferson. Pleasant Valley crowned four champions to win the team title with 242 1/2 points, topping runner-up Dubuque Hempstead by 40 1/2.

In a championship match named by wrestling gods (Rowdy vs. Pins), Neighbor faced Dubuque Hempstead’s Mitchell Pins. Neighbor dominated throughout, scoring a first-period takedown, adding five nearfall points on two turns in the second and closed with one more takedown in the third for a 10-0 major decision,.

“It’s something we preach,” Alburnett Coach Clayton Rush said. “You put points up against somebody and that softens them up a little bit. Rowdy has a few opportunities to do that and he did.”

Rush said the final included Neighbor’s strengths. He converted a head to the inside single-leg attack. Neighbor showed his scrambling ability with a crotch-lift and rode hard with his legs.

“He’s put a lot of time in wrestling,” Rush said. “He knows his hips, where he’s at on the mat and match situations really well. He kept his head and stayed composed. He attacked and scored points.”

Neighbor reached the finals with a second-period pin over Evan Simpson and owns a 29-7 record. He was one of two Alburnett champions, joining 145-pounder Carson Klostermann. Gunnar Keeney (152) was also second for the Pirates.

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“I felt I was there on the mat and in my head,” Neighbor said. “Everything clicked.”

Neighbor was joined by his brother, Brody, who was second at 132. Rush said he thought the name was “awesome” and that there are some similarities between the two siblings.

“Brody is more rowdy, but not as much anymore,” Rush said with a laugh. “Rowdy can be rowdy in a good way.”

Klostermann rolled through his bracket, throttling Forest City’s Hayden Hoffmeyer, 16-3, in the finals. He racked up four takedowns and six nearfall points. He recorded two pins in his first two matches. Klostermann is now 32-3 this season.

“He attacks with more of an edge,” Rush said of Klostermann. “He wants to rip your arms off and wants to get a wing (pinning maneuver). That developed before Christmas, continued through break and you’re still seeing that.”

Both are reaping the rewards of their training efforts. They have elevated their work in practice and transferred it into competition.

“Not that other guys haven’t been, but they’ve been focused on another level, working in areas they know they’re successful,” Rush said. “You can tell there’s a different level of focus.”

Rowdy has high aspirations. He said he wants the Pirates to reach the state duals and is determined to reach the state podium in Des Moines. Work begins again immediately.

“You’ve got to make it there first,” Rowdy said. “Step by step. Go back to practice and fix the flaws. ... Going to keep it rolling from there.

“I’m starting to climb. We need to peak at sectional, district and state.”

Iowa City High’s Ben Kueter produced another dominant performance. The Little Hawks’ two-time state champion and top-ranked 220-pounder was his typical buzz saw self. Kueter built a 17-3 lead over Muscatine’s Evan Franke before ending it with a pin in 2:21.

Kueter posted bookend falls Saturday, sandwiching a 21-6 semifinal win over Fort Madison’s Daniel Sokolik between them. He moved to 20-0 and captured the tournament’s Outstanding Wrestler award voted on by coaches.

Kueter became the first recipient of the award after it was named in honor of Wyatt Schultz, the late owner/editor of The Predicament and contributor to The Gazette’s “Pinning Combination” podcast.

The Little Hawks crowned three champions and placed fifth with 180 1/2 points. Cale Seaton and Kael Kurtz were dominant as well. Seaton also went pin, technical fall and pin, decking Fort Madison’s Logan Pennock in 2:58 of the 120 final. Kurtz cruised to a 20-5 technical fall over Pleasant Valley’s Duncan Harn for the 126 championship.

J-HAWK INVITATIONAL

At C.R. Jefferson

Teams – 1. Pleasant Valley 242.5, 2. Dubuque Hempstead 202, 3. Cedar Falls 194, 4. Fort Madison 193.5, 5. Iowa City High 180.5, 6. Alburnett 172, 7. Muscatine 120, 8. Waterloo East 118.5, 9. Forest City 98, 10. Davenport North 73, 11. C.R. Jefferson 68.

Championship matches

106 pounds – Rowdy Neighbor (A) major dec. Mitch Pins (DH), 10-0; 113 – Jeffery West (DN) pinned Mitchell Murphy, 2:51; 120 – Cale Seaton (ICH) pinned Logan Pennock (FM), 2:58; 126 – Kael Kurtz (ICH) tech. fall Duncan Harn (PV), 20-5; 132 – Kellen Moore (FC) dec. Brody Neighbor, 5-3; 138 – Jack Miller (PV) dec. Henry Koehn (CF), 2-1; 145 – Carson Klostermann (A) major dec. Hayden Hoffmeyer (FC), 16-3; 152 – Dylan Whitt (CF) major dec. Gunnar Keeney (A), 19-7; 160 – Teague Smith (FM) pinned Josiah Schaetzle (DH), 2:59; 170 – Caden McDermott (PV) dec. Eli Sallis (WE), 5-3; 182 – Rusty VanWetzinga (PV) pinned Lawrence Taylor III (WE), 4:48; 195 – Drew M. Campbell (CF) dec. Isaac Thacher (FM), 6-4 SV; 220 – Ben Kueter (ICH) pinned Evan Franke (Mus), 2:21; Hwt. – Luke Vonderhaar (PV) pinned Jeremiah Timmons-Henderson (DN), 1:03.

Outstanding wrestler – Kueter (ICH)

Gorrarian Award (Most pins in least time) – Vonderhaar (PV), 3 pins in 2:20.

CEDAR RAPIDS — An Eastern Iowa youth is the seventh child to be granted a wish by The Make-A-Wish Foundation through donations collected at Lindale Mall.

Lindale Mall, 4444 First Ave. NE, has been collecting donations since 1999 for Make-A-Wish, nonprofit that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages 2 and 18.

It took five years for the mall to collect enough money to grant a wish from coins thrown into the mall’s Make-A-Wish fountain. The current average cost of a wish in Iowa is $15,000.

There are over 350 children in Iowa waiting for their wish, according to wish.org. For every wish granted, there are three more children with critical illnesses waiting on their wish. About 15 wishes nationally are granted every day, and every 20 minutes a child is diagnosed with a critical illness.

The mall recently partnered with Iowa BIG students at Alburnett High School to improve the Make-A-Wish fountain’s visibility.

Iowa BIG is a project-based learning program available to some Eastern Iowa high school students. An Iowa BIG satellite location opened in Alburnett for the first time at the start of the 2021-22 school year.

While students in the Alburnett Community School District have had the option of enrolling in Iowa BIG in the past, they had to travel to Cedar Rapids to take the course. The district decided to open its own location last year after the Linn-Mar Community School District ended its five-year partnership with Iowa BIG to start its own project-based learning program available to all of its high school students.

Bekah Peterson and Amelia Stiffler, Iowa BIG students at Alburnett High School, worked with mall managers to get decals placed on the floor explaining donations thrown into the fountain go toward Make-A-Wish.

As people pass the fountain, they make their own wish while throwing in pennies, dimes and quarters, said Becky Eckley, general manager at Lindale Mall.

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“We started talking about how we can get the word out. Cedar Rapids should know more about this,” Eckley said.

The most recent wish was granted to an 18-year-old in Eastern Iowa. The Gazette did not receive permission from the national Make-A-Wish office to use the recipient’s name or mention the wish she was granted.

Wishes include anything from a having quinceanera, — the celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday — being a firefighter for a day, meeting a unicorn or get a puppy, according to wish.org.

The most recent recipient of a wish from Lindale Mall shopped for a dress as a part of her wish, which was altered by Lucy’s Alternations in the mall. Von Maur in the mall donated shoes and accessories to go with the dress, Eckley said.

In August 2021, Make-A-Wish Iowa received its largest donation in the organization’s history. The Gerdin Charitable Foundation of Solon donated $1.65 million, which will help fund 50 wishes a year over three years.

“We really like to give back to the community in any way we can,” Eckley said. “I think it’s just important people realize when they do put whatever they put in that fountain, it does go to a great cause.”

Those who wish to donate can throw coins into the Make-A-Wish fountain at Lindale Mall or visit Make-A-Wish online at wish.org/iowa.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; [email protected]

Adam Macke, who taught language arts in the Alburnett School Community District, has had his teaching license revoked by the state for having an inappropriate relationship with a student.

Macke had been teaching for Alburnett Schools as recently as last school year.

Newly released records from the Iowa Board of Educational Examiners show it was Alburnett Schools' superintendent Danielle Trimble and a secondary principal in the district who made the complaint against Macke to the state. Their complaint is what set in motion an investigation that led to Macke's Iowa teaching license being stripped away.

Records say during the 2017-2018 school year, Macke "solicited and encouraged an inappropriate relationship" with a student who was a junior at the time.

Among the issues investigators found included a series of text messages where Macke and the student expressed their affection for one another.

Macke the report notes even went as far as to tell the student he planned to get a divorce.

Another teacher mentioned in the report says he once walked in on Macke and the student sitting so close behind a desk in Macke's classroom it made him uncomfortable.

Macke admitted to the BOEE he would hug or put his arm around the student in question but he later defended his actions in an email he sent to Superintendent Trimble. Macke explained in part that allowing the student to sit close to him, "...didn't bother me and seemed to help her feel better. I didn't think about the perceptions others might have." Macke added that he and the student also talked about how they "must not, under any circumstance, become physical, outside of a brief hug..."

The Linn County Sheriff's Office also found 17 calls between the student and Macke. One call was for 105 minutes.

In the end, authorities chose not to turn the case over to the Linn County Attorney's office, citing that while they found Macke to have allowed for the relationship to extend beyond a normal teacher/student relationship, there was, in their view, not a "physical/romantic relationship". The Sheriff's Office said the case was subsequently closed.

Linn County Sheriff Brian Gardner said he is confident his office did a "thorough" investigation into Macke and that law enforcement agencies require a higher burden of proof of illegal activity before they can take action than the BOEE is subject to.

Macke was placed on leave by the district in December 2017.

Superintendent Trimble declined an interview request but said in an email the district did not fire Macke nor force him to resign.

Mackle did respond to requests for comment.