Rural Iowa. Photo by Josh Berendes on Unsplash.
"Climate change is real. Iowa shouldn't pretend otherwise," the Des Moines Register (March 9, 2025) editorially urged — and the omission of the term "climate change" (as well as "evolution") from a proposed revision of the state's science standards was cited.
References to climate change, evolution, and the age of the earth were removed from the proposed revision of Iowa's state science standards, reportedly after the committee charged with reviewing and revising the standards completed its work, as NCSE previously reported.
Public outcry was massive. "Iowa Department of Education officials said they received over 5,000 written comments about the standards and that over 200 people attended four public forums," according to the Register.
"The extensive public involvement in the standards-revision process is commendable," the Register commented, "But it's alarming that somebody with influence thought that muddying these waters was worth considering."
A team to revise the standards in light of the public comments convened on March 4 and 5, 2025. The board of education is expected to review the newly revised standards at a future meeting; its next meeting will be on March 20, 2025.
