Iowa's Quality of Life
 Nick Litwiller |
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Rhonda Greenway |
I’m from Van Meter, a rather small town just west of Des Moines. I’ve actually lived in Van Meter for about 15 years and it’s a community I absolutely love. I graduated from our school, a K-12 institution, a little over a year ago with a class of slightly under 40 young adults. To me, Van Meter is truly the best of both worlds. I had the benefit of going to a small school with excellent instructors who genuinely cared about the students. It’s the strong, tight-knit family environment that every community should aim for. Additionally, our school has the benefit of being close to the West Campus of DMACC and this allows for the students to take college credits while in high school. On the flip side, I could drive into West Des Moines in 10 minutes and have virtually any opportunity at my fingertips. Van Meter has continually progressed thanks to the wonders of westward expansion. We’ve built an athletic complex with baseball, soccer and softball fields, added numerous housing areas, expanded the school and established various community nights. During the summer the Park & Recreation Board shows movies in the park. They’ve also reorganized our former Kids’ Day into a weekend long festival called Raccoon River Daze. The school itself never fails to continue progressing. For instance, this year they are going one to one with laptops for the students. I’m not going to lie; I’m a wee bit bitter. I didn’t get a laptop until I graduated from high school. My younger sister will be a sophomore this year and she’ll get a Macbook because Van Meter values its quality of life. Regardless of my irritation towards this being instated post my graduation—I do love my hometown and I’m incredibly happy with their progress. |
Oct 2, 2009 4:04 PM
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Leadership Iowa University is a program of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry (ABI) Foundation. The program is designed to bring together two ABI Foundation programs, Leadership Iowa and Business Horizons, to create a unique opportunity for college students. Leadership Iowa University will educate, inspire and develop young leaders as the foundation for Iowa’s future economic growth and encourage their on-going involvement in local communities and the state to create a better future for all Iowans. |  |
