Rural hospitals brace for Medicaid cut’s impact
Drastic changes to Medicaid could bring financial woes for reliant institutions.
Grace Nelson, a third-year University of Iowa student from Sioux City, Iowa, was diagnosed with spinal mus cular atrophy at 18 months old and has been a powered wheelchair user since she was 3.
Nelson uses a personal care attendant for 14 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week — a program paid for through a Medicaid waiver to cover the home health care service.
Having an attendant is what makes it possible for Nel son to attend the UI and remain active on campus.
“Having to reduce those hours would be a huge det riment, and would not allow me to get to class, my extracurriculars, or get to my job,” Nelson said. “Reducing those hours would have a huge negative impact on my life, because I am so busy — I’m so involved on campus that those hours I do have, I need them.”
However, Nelson worries she may be forced to reduce the number of hours she has an attendant, or have that number capped, after congressional Republicans made significant changes to Medicaid in the reconciliation pack age passed by a Republican-controlled Congress earlier this year and signed into law by President Donald Trump on July 4.
All six members of Iowa’s congressional delegation voted for the bill, and some were on key committees that drafted the changes to Medicaid.
The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” makes drastic changes to the public health insurance program that could push Iowa medical providers that accept Medicaid to the brink, as they see an increase in uninsured patients, a decrease in Medicaid payments, and provisions allowing states to levy taxes on providers
All together, the changes spell a massive shift for the public insurance program that serves more than 70 million low-income and disabled Americans and over 500,000 Iowans. The changes are expected to reduce federal health care spending by $1 trillion over a decade — $9 billion just in Iowa — to pay for nearly $4 trillion in tax cuts enshrined in the reconciliation bill.
This is coupled with $50 billion in funding meant to transform rural health care over the next five years, which Iowa has already applied for, and rural health care experts say doesn’t make up for the massive changes to the public insurance program.
The changes are expected to send shockwaves through every corner of the health care sector. Still, they are expected to ravage rural hospitals, which rely on Medicaid reimbursement and already operate on razor-thin margins.
Threats of cuts have landed two Iowa hospitals on a list of hospitals at risk of closure. MercyOne Newton Medical Center and Manning Regional Healthcare Center are at the most immediate risk of closure due to negative operating margins and high Medicaid populations, respectively, according to the University of North Carolina’s Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research.
cap the rates states set for provider reimbursement at 100 percent of the published Medicare rate, which is often much lower than the rates paid by commercial payers.
The law also prohibits states from increasing “provider taxes,” a type of tax that states can charge medical providers to make up part of the state share for Medicaid spending, resulting in more federal match funding flowing to the state. Together, it spells fewer Medicaid dollars flowing to rural hospitals.
Changes to the limits on state-directed payments and provider taxes are expected to result in a $340 billion reduction in federal Medicaid spending and account for the largest portion of the decrease in spending among the nearly $1 trillion spending cuts, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) Study on the nonpartisan
How a herd of goats is reviving Iowa’s prairie
The project o ers a low-impact, sustainable approach to land management.
Off the Coral Strip Trail in Coralville, a dozen goats and their kids wander through the trees, tugging at vines and low branches on a sloped patch of prairie remnant. The animals aren’t just there for show — they are the newest tool in the University of Iowa’s push for sustainable land management.
Partnering with former UI educator and Restoration Specialist Tamra Elliott, the UI Office of Sustainability is using the goats to clear invasive plants that choke native growth and threaten the ecology in prairie remnants like those along the Coral StripTrail. According to the Iowa Prairie Network, prairie remnants are tiny surviving patches of Iowa’s original prairie, of which less than 0.1 percent remain, and they provide an important habitat for native plants and animals. Restoring them helps protect the soil and its nutrients and maintain plant communities.
Iowa producer sentiment falls with beef markets
Trump’s comments on beef imports drive down beef futures price.
Iowa producers are reporting damage to their bottom lines following the Trump administration’s plan to bolster the domestic beef supply, resulting in mounting financial struggles continuing to snowball as farmers remain unsure about the administration’s support of the agriculture sector.
During the 2024 presidential election, Illinois-based agriculture data journalism nonprofit Investigate Midwest reported President Donald Trump received 78 percent support from American farmers.
Iowa is the sixth-highest beef-producing state, at $3.47 billion in total value in 2023, according to WorldPopulationReview.
According to Tiffin cattle producer Steve Swenka, the U.S. beef supply is the lowest it has been since the 1940s. Despite the unmet demand which beef imports might satisfy, Swenka said the president selected a
Following Oct. 19 comments from the president about Argentinian beef imports, however, cattle futures tumbled during a critical time of year for producers, highlighting continued unrealized gains as profit margins continue to squeeze and input prices soar, leading to industry difficulties and dissatisfaction, with 53 percent of farmers supportive of Trump’s policies, according to an August Pew Research Study.
ongressional udget ce estimate of the ill s e ects
The program is a lifeline for rural hospitals and was started in , so states can direct state Medicaid administrators to pay more to certain providers like rural and critical access hospitals, to ensure rural hospitals can continue to pro vide critical access to services, said eith Mueller, the director of the ural ealth olicy esearch nstitute and professor of health management and policy at the niversity of owa s ollege of u lic ealth
Mueller said the program has ecome a key revenue source for rural hospitals that operate on tight margins and often serve communities with a high percentage of the population insured y Medicaid
The tate irected ayments program allowed states to set reim ursement rates at the average commercial rate under a enters for Medi care Medicaid ervices regulation, which is much higher than those pu lished y Medicaid
The ne ig eautiful ill ct strips that regu lation from federal guidelines
hris Mitchell, the president and of the owa ospital ssociation, said these changes will result in uncertainty for many rural hospi tals futures
They want to e focused on delivering health care, providing access to high uality care in communities all across the state, Mitchell said dditional cuts to the level that were passed in the ig, eautiful ill certainly threaten that efore the state directed payment program, providers had not seen an increase in Medic aid reim ursement rates for years, despite the continued skyrocketing cost of providing care This left rural providers in a ind, and the state directed payment program has een a life line for rural health, said noxville ospitals and linics evin incaid
The “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” enacts $1 trillion in changes
to Medicaid
The largest single portion comes from enacting work requirements to be eligible for Medicaid and the second largest portion comes from changes to provider payments.
ight now, there ust doesn t seem to e much of an appetite to fix the fundamental pro lem of ust paying appropriately in the first place, incaid said o what we re kind of stuck in is these legislative technical fixes, which ecome very complicated
The reconciliation ill grandfathers agree ments that hospitals have with state Medicaid administrators until , when the rates will decrease y percent every year until they reach pu lished Medicaid rates incaid said once those hit reductions egin, it will result in a massive hemorrhaging of rev enue for owa s hospitals noxville, which has relatively sta le finances, receives percent of its revenue from Medicaid a reduction in that percentage could eopardi e services irected payments are a really, really ig deal for owa hospitals, especially rural hospitals, incaid said e essentially have three years to kind of get ready for a massive decrease in the funding owa hospitals receive
The reconciliation ill also limits states a il ity to increase provider taxes, which states have leveraged to ring more Medicaid dollars into the state from federal matching funds
This decrease in revenue could spell the end for some of owa s rural hospitals, like ewton s hospital, which has had negative patient care margins and overall margins for the past three out of four years, according to data from the en ter for ealthcare uality and ayment eform owever, ewton s hospital isn t the only one at risk n fact, most rural hospitals operate on tight margins, where a sudden decrease in reve nue, such as those expected after the reduction in state directed payments, could force them to shut down Mercy ne did not respond to a re uest for comment from The Daily Iowan. ven ur an hospitals are not exempt from the ill s impacts, with the niversity of owa ealthcare, one of the largest providers in owa, rethinking the scope and si e of large capital pro ects aimed at increasing capacity n ugust, announced it would delay the construction of a massive inpatient tower and reevaluate its facilities master plan as it expects revenue to shrink due to changes to the Medic aid program The inpatient tower was illed as expanding s n addition to decreasing revenue from patients covered y Medicaid, hospitals are wrangling with work re uirements, more fre uent eligi ility redeterminations, and the expiration of enhanced tax credits all of which will increase uncompensated care at hospitals across owa, and hit rural hospitals the hardest
dding work re uirements for Medicaid eli gi ility is expected to result in a illion reduction in federal spending, making it the sec
Rural hospitals across Iowa
ond largest ucket of changes to Medicaid under the reconciliation ill, according to The provision is expected to take e ect an , , and re uire a le odied or those with out a disa ility preventing them from working adult eneficiaries etween the ages of and to work for at least hours per month The law also re uires certain adults, including par ents with children under , disa led adults, and those who are medically frail, to e exempt from the re uirements ep Mariannette Miller Meeks, owa, who sits on the ouse ommittee on nergy and ommerce, which crafted the ouse version of Medicaid changes, said that the work re uire ments would strengthen the system to make sure Medicaid is sustaina le and focused on the people it was created to serve This ill enhances oversight and ensures tax payer resources are going to those who truly need them, not waste, fraud, and a use, Miller Meeks said in a statement to the DI. n , there were Medicaid fraud con victions in the out of , investigations, according to the epartment of ealth and uman ervices ce of nspector eneral n owa, there were fraud investigations and only convictions en huck rassley, owa, who sits on the enate inance ommittee, which crafted the enate version of Medicaid cuts, said the ill prioriti es Medicaid for mericans and saves the program espite orchestrated efforts to mischar acteri e our program integrity measures with fearmongering and misinformation, the enate took a ig step to save Medicaid for people the program is intended to serve, rassley said in a uly statement ccording to the ongressional udget ce, work re uirements and other changes to Med icaid will result in million mericans losing access to coverage through Medicaid y Mueller, the professor, said the work re uirements are not effective when imple mented at the state level and instead result in a loss of coverage lot of the people who are no longer eligi le are actually working, Mueller, the professor, said of rkansas s work re uirements nstead, Mueller said, the administrative arriers to cov erage and proving that you are working often result in losing coverage rkansas got a waiver to implement work re uirements in the first Trump administration and later ended them ecause of the e ects The law also re uires states to redetermine a eneficiary s eligi ility twice a year if they ualify ased on income, and at least once a year if they ualify ased on age dditionally, the reconciliation package did not include an extension of enhanced orda le are ct, or , tax credits that o set the high cost of federal marketplace plans Tax credits for those making less than percent of the federal poverty level remain, ut enhanced credits have expired and lie at the center of the attle over federal health care spending that has resulted in the longest shutdown in merican history ithout the enhanced tax credits tax credits passed in the nflation eduction ct of and which expired on ov and already increas ing premiums, the average consumer can expect
Two Iowa hospitals, in Newton and Manning, are at risk of closure following changes to Medicaid in the “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act.”
the price of their plans to skyrocket, Mueller said This will result in fewer people finding cover age through the marketplace, and in turn, lead to an increase in the uninsured rate, which can e detrimental to critical access hospitals in areas with high rates of uninsured individuals ccording to merica s ealth ankings y the nited ealth oundation, owa has an unin sured population of percent Those owans often delay routine care, preventive care, and seeking care for minor medical issues until it ecomes an emergency, which costs patients and hospitals much more to treat than minor issues, Mueller said hen they do reach a situation where they a solutely need it, they end up, oftentimes, in the hospital emergency room, and if it s any kind of life threatening condition, the hospital admits them as an inpatient, Mueller said ow you ve got a hospital charge that won t get paid in full ecause they re uncompensated ospitals are re uired y law to treat anyone who comes to them for emergency care and give them life saving measures owever, the costs of treating uninsured patients end up eing trans ferred via increased prices to insured patients ospitals have to eat part of those costs, and that shows up in uncompensated care, and those costs ended up eing passed through to folks that do have insurance, Mitchell said t s frankly, death y a , cuts incaid said he understands the value of work and elieves everyone who can should work, ut he worries a out people who are eligi le ut will struggle to meet the new work re uirements n the surface, that sounds very reasona le, and seems to make a lot of sense, incaid said ow you ve got the actual implementation of that owever, incaid said he is working with the owa epartment of ealth and uman ervices to prevent people who are truly eligi le for Med icaid from losing coverage
The owa epartment of ealth and uman ervices did not respond to a re uest for com ment from the DI ural hospitals and experts look forward to seeing how the illion dedicated to rural health transformation, included in the reconcil iation ill, will help prepare rural hospitals for the cuts to come
ov im eynolds announced ov that owa has su mitted its grant application for the ural ealth Transformation und, which, if fully funded, would ring illion in funds to owa over five years to improve the state s rural health system
The grant is expected to expand the state s hu and spoke model of care, which concen trates complex care in ur an centers connected to rural providers that deliver community ased care
The ealthy ometowns program would accomplish this through six key initiatives, according to a news release announcing the grant application These include
• xpanding the hu and spoke model through investments in telehealth, med ical e uipment, and care for uninsured Iowans
• ecruiting health professionals to serve in rural areas through incentives
• ncreasing access to cancer screening and treatment, and forming hu s dedicated to cancer treatment
• o locating providers for coordinated care across disciplines
• nsuring seamless access to health records across the state to support con tinuity of care
• ringing care directly to rural residents through mo ile health services and health transportation
Mueller said he is excited to see what the funding can do however, he doesn t like that it is attached to the drastic cuts to Medicaid and that the program does not make up for the trillion reduction in federal healthcare spending e have the opportunity to redesign services with a focus on what we need to provide locally, like primary care, in ways we can do that etter with some workforce recruitment and retention improvement, Mueller said gain, this is not a one for one trade o to any provider, whether it s the hospital, the clinic, the long term care facility, ut it s thinking a out access to services in the rural community
Mueller said the funds are not enough to ridge the gap, and many rural providers won t e a le to sustain with the cuts to Medicaid ventually, he said, owa could see some hospi tals reduce services and lay o sta , some even could close their doors
There s no easy answer here, Mueller said
Director of the UI’s Office of Sustainability and the Environment, Stratis Giannakouros, said goats provide a much more sustainable way to restore the landscapes than any common landscaping methods.
“There’s no good way to [remove every invasive plant] effectively with human beings. It’s too labor intensive and expensive to hand pull all that stu , iannakouros said. “It turns out goats are really good at eating the stu that we don t want to e there and then creating room for the things we want to grow back.”
Studies from across the Midwest and former prairie region show goats can be a helpful and safe way to control unwanted plants and restore natural areas. At Grinnell College, researchers found goats grazing on invasive shrubs helped reduce their growth without harming the soil. In Missouri, goats were able to eat invasive plants and make room for native grasses to grow.
Tamra Elliott and her husband, Ryan Elliott, launched their goat-grazing business Go-At It in June 2025 after years of planning. The Elliotts’ herd of about 20 goats, including many retired dairy goats, is being used to restore prairie remnants and manage invasive species in places where mowers and burns aren’t practical.
“This is something that my husband and I have been thinking about for a long time but more for a fun retirement,” Elliott said. “We are both into plants, plant communities, and building habitats. Growing up, I was always into animals. One day, it clicked that instead of having an animal at home in a cage, you can actually build a habitat for them outdoors.”
Andy Dahl, UI campus arborist, said the goats’ work helps areas that otherwise would be impossible to manage. The goats are moved strategically to mimic natural gra ing patterns and fire cycles, helping prairie plants survive while controlling invasive species.
“Fire and animal browsing is what kept prairies the way they were back in the day, and without one or the other, you’re having a hard time,” Dahl said. “But this is going to be a tool. I’d like to continue doing this.”
Elliott said clearing these patches of brush might take a team of landscapers two weeks, but with the goats, it takes four days and is more cost e cient and sustaina le in the long run. The goats’ work also contributes to the local ecosystem by returning nutrients to the soil through natural grazing and waste.
“Mowing would have completely destroyed our soil,” Elliott said. “We want to protect a lot of those plants that are dormant by roots, not seeds. The goats let us do that.” Dahl said he thinks the program will only continue to grow.
“very detrimental time of year” to declare the U.S. will soon begin importing quadruple its normal level of beef from Argentina.
“This is the time of year when you start getting your calves weaned, your cows home for winter,” he said. “And then this is the time of year when those calves are marketed The first of the year, a very, very high percentage of this year’s calves get marketed in the next two to three months.”
Swenka is not alone in his concern.
Iowa Cattlemen’s Association CEO Bryan Whaley said producers across the state are stuck with newfound concern over their bottom lines.
Despite billions of aid to farmers from the Trump Administration, including a planned $12 billion farm aid package reported by NPR and set to reach producers after the government reopens, farm bankruptcies nationwide surpassed the 2024 total within just three months of 2025, reaching 82 total bankruptcies, according to Bloomberg Law.
“It’s caused a real challenging time for people to make decisions,” Whaley said. They’re having to relook at their margins, their breakevens, and obviously, with the high input costs that we have going on right now and interest rates that are still impacting our industry as well. It’s just a time of uncertainty.”
With most products in agriculture, timing is critical. Cattle, especially, require a specific and lengthy amount of time to e marketable. This makes recovering the beef
used across commodity markets native to industries like agriculture. In these markets, buyers and sellers sign contracts to sell current commodity goods at a set price and date in the future, giving them and the markets they represent the name “futures.”
Trump’s comments created massive volatility for producers, including increased supply eroding the price they would otherwise receive, with the market violently swinging downward in the days after, resulting in four consecutive limit-down trading days and ultimately cratering a week later at $223.63.
As of Nov. 9, beef futures are sitting at $221.15, according to TradingView.
Swenka specifically sells Angus steer and heifer seedstock, which focuses on herd development. He also sells privately, direct to customers, and not through a conventional marketplace.
Despite this, Swenka said he is still feeling price impacts, especially through futures trouble.
“While the market goes down, yes, that’s going to a ect me t won t necessarily a ect me today,” he said. “But, as our sales season, which is coming up, unfolds, what the market does in the next 30 days is going to directly a ect the price that we can get for our bulls.”
This behavior, according to Oklahoma State University Livestock Marketing Specialist Derrell Peel, is a part of, no pun intended, a “herd mentality,” common to futures markets, where uncertain traders pile too heavily on one side, leading to more violent swings in the market. He said trades are typically executed by computer programs the algorithms of which also tend to overreact.
“They use these programs that are preprogrammed to react when a trigger is tripped, and market psychology ends up eing a herd mentality that gets magnified even more when you computerize it,” he said. “I think it is an overreaction by a great amount, and the markets will settle down.”
These markets are a tool for participants, often farmers, to “hedge” against risk and are a commonly used risk management method for commodity traders.
Each goat has its own personality and “specialty,” Tamra Elliott said. Some of her goats, like Spot and Anna, are alpine and retired milking goats, so they prefer stripping bark from invasive trees. Others, like Thea, are natural climbers, reaching 12-foot high branches to eat the leaves.
The Elliotts have extensive backgrounds in ecology and land management, as Ryan Elliott works for the National Park Service, and Tamra Elliott formerly managed land at MacBride Nature Area for the UI.
supply a lengthy process, but Whaley said the quality of imported beef is not a worthy sacrifice for re uilding inventory Trump originally made the comments to reporters aboard Air Force One on Oct. 19, and the hite ouse later confirmed a planned increase in the tari rate uota from , metric tons annually to 80,000 metric tons annually, according to euters tari rate quota is a tiered import tax structure designed to limit the supply of foreign goods y placing higher tari s on amounts exceeding the quota.
The impact on domestic cattle futures and cash markets was almost immediate. A curious futures market, at first, slid upwards from $242.76 on Oct. 20 to $245.65 on Oct. 21, marking the highest point in the market in the last three weeks, according to data by TradingView. These price quotes represent 40,000 pounds of live steers or heifers.
According to Investopedia, futures markets are a trading tool commonly
According to Investopedia, futures are used to hedge risk, as locking in a set selling price ahead of time can avoid potential downturns for selling in strictly cash markets.
Limit down refers to price controls in futures markets, Peel said, where the market price is only allowed to move up or down a set amount each day to avoid dramatic price changes and control volatility.
However, following the limit down, the market can experience what is called “expanded limits,” dictated by the market overseer, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, or CME.
Those expanded limits are intended to facilitate future trading as the market trends downward. Limit prices for live cattle are $0.07 per pound with an expanded limit of $0.11 per pound, according to CME Group.
“If they go limit down [again], they’ll continue to trade in those expanded limits, and eventually they’ll go back to those daily limits, and hopefully we’ll see some return to stability,” Peel said.
“The goats don’t call in sick,” Dahl said. “They work at night. They take care of [landscaping] that we just don’t have the labor force to do.”
Giannakouros said any student who would like to get involved in the project should contact Tamra Elliott.
“She’s just a wealth of knowledge, and she’s so good at educating, and she has this desire to talk to anyone who will listen about how she works and pass on that knowledge,” Giannakouros said.
Shutdown strains IC military community
Commissioned cadets at the UI are missing out on roughly $6,000 in
The longest government shutdown in history is not only free ing pay for full time federal employees — it’s also cutting o scholarship funds of approximately $6,000 for commissioned cadets in the niversity of owa s eserve fficers Training orps, or T , detachments
second year student lla ert , a mem er of the rmy T program, said cadets in the program are already feeling financial pressures from the halt in pay She said since the start of the shutdown on ct , she and the other contracted cadets have missed out on approximately , each in T scholarship money awarded per semester ert said the government shutdown has also temporarily disrupted the monthly ook stipends some cadets receive “I was going to use the money for rent, groceries, and things like that because T is asically a part time o , so it s hard to find time to really work, she said m really ust living o of my summer o money right now, which has been kind of di cult ert said her tuition has een paid o , ut many of her fellow cadets aren t as lucky f, for some reason, the government is still shut down by the end of the semester, y that point, they re going to have to find a di erent way to pay their tuition, she said ert said cadets can t take a break from the program to catch up on their expenses
n order to continually receive their scholarship, which isn’t being awarded during the shutdown, cadets are still required to attend mandatory detachment events like morning workouts and professional o cer training t can e di cult, she said know a lot of people are struggling financially without having this scholarship money know a lot more people are picking up shifts at their o s ust to make ends meet
n ov , the ir orce and rmy
T detachments hosted their annual military ball together, a formal event cele rating military tradition and camaraderie
ert said it felt i arre to see Air Force personnel not in uniform at the all
The Air Force members were taking precautions to not violate federal regulations restricting official military representation and nonessential activities during the shutdown ert said she was unsure why the Army
T detachment were still a le to e in their uniforms
t was supposed to e a oint all,
ert said e were all in our uniforms, and it was supposed to e this ig thing nd ecause of the shutdown, o viously, the ir orce couldn t e in their uniforms ven though that might have seemed to
only a ect them, it also kind of a ects us en amin ot, a financial coordinator for Iowa Veteran Education Transition and upport, a service providing general wellness and financial support to the s military connected community, said the shutdown s financial implications are directly affecting the organi ation s clients He said the Department of Defense’s federal tuition assistance, a enefit paying money directly to the school for students who are either on active duty or in reserves, is being temporarily canceled during the shutdown
Students who started classes in August will still receive assistance, ut students who started shorter classes in cto er will face the funding cuts, ot said e don t have the a ility to control the income of these funds because they’re funded y the federal government, so we have to e the ones who say, nfortunately, you won t e receiving
those funds nd that puts students in a tough situation, he said ot said the program pays per credit hour for students, and with over 100 students using the tuition assistance program, it ends up eing a significant amount of funding that is cut o ot said veterans aid education programs such as the ill, a federal tuition assistance program for active duty service mem ers and veterans, are also being temporarily cut off during the shutdown
e cited a survey run y the ational Association of Veterans Program dministrators, an organi ation supporting administrators who help veterans navigate enefits, sent out to students in cto er
The survey pulled in responses nationwide, with percent of respondents saying they had not received their eterans id enefits
“It’s a pretty alarming number when
these are students who need this money to pay for tuition, rent, groceries,” ot said Then a little further down in this survey, when we ask, as the government shutdown had any negative impact on your enrollment percent said yes
Jackie Schmillen, director of public a airs at the owa ational uard, is one of many civilian employees going to work without pay since ct She said while the operations and pay of active duty ational uard mem ers haven t een a ected, owan federal technicians haven t een paid since the shutdown e also are starting to see the e ects with our part time force, she said The ma ority of them haven t een a le to go to drill or train because it is not deemed an accepted event o even our part time force is now going to be missing that little bump in their paycheck chmillen said many ational uard personnel were disappointed the shutdown has become the longest in history, barring sta from participating in nonessential military operations like the canceled Iowa vs regon flyover e re ust frustrated at this point, she said e re ust wanting to do our o s and continue to do them e will do what needs to e done to get the o done e ust want the government to e funded so that we can e at full speed
Hyper Energy Bar hits North Liberty
Iowa-based
The inside of Iowa City’s Hyper Energy Bar boasts a colorful space decorated with murals, sitting in between ReUnion rewery and The tu ed live n a typical day, the line will stretch out the glass doors and into Iowa City’s Pedestrian Mall as customers wait on a variety of fruity flavor com inations with names such as “Cosmic Lightning” and “Pink Power,” each cup with a striking color to match their creative names
The specialty drink company, renowned for its ca einated drinks, is set to open a new location in North Liberty in ecem er The new site will e yper Energy Bar’s second in the Johnson ounty area Hyper Energy Bar was originally run out of a food truck and opened its first physical store in aukee, owa, in Since then, Hyper has opened nine stores in Iowa, and according to Alex McNeal, general manager at the Iowa City location,
the energy ar plans to move into neigh oring states e ve ust een rapidly expanding, she said e ve expanded into llinois, ansas ity, and maha, so starting in the area and branching out like the states closest to us, ut eventually we want to go anywhere and everywhere we can
Hyper Energy Bar currently has four more locations, including North Liberty, listed on their we site as oming oon thers include rand sland and lkhorn, e raska, and elton, Missouri
McNeal said after the success of the Iowa City location, the company began to look at surrounding areas to build new stores The energy ar was also looking for new ways to make the store more accessi le, like including a drive through location in ohnson ounty orth i erty is kind of ust perfect because it’s by that big hospital, and there’s high schools there, she said
The Iowa City location opened in the ed Mall opened in ovem er and has een in high demand since McNeal estimates the store gets about 500 customers per day, according to the energy ar s customer logs The success of this location is part of the reason the business is looking for other locations in
The Iowa City location is slightly di erent than others, as it is the only walk in location the store has ther locations have seating and drive throughs availa le, which the new orth i erty location will emulate ust today even, starting from a out a m till may e an hour ago, it was ust a line out the door the whole day,” she said
McNeal said there has been great public interest in a new location, with the company sometimes receiving email re uests a out new store locations
“When people come in here, they’re asking all the time, ‘When are you going to open one in my town?’ We literally will get emails asking, ‘Can you open one in this state Mc eal said Jalani Mack, an Iowa City resident and
regular at the downtown location, said she heard about the North Liberty expansion through a ace ook post y the company he is particularly excited for the drive through aspect of the new location have to go
Tari s reshaping young UI investors’ strategies
As President Donald Trump’s tariff policies continue to reshape markets, e ects are eing felt even among young investors niversity of owa students, new to navigating the investment world, are finding themselves watching these devel opments closely ver the last year, Trump s tari poli cies or taxes on imported goods have shifted repeatedly, from threats of percent duties on hinese technology exports in early cto er to a ov deal on economic and trade relations These policy shifts have sent ripples through glo al markets s Trump s tari s continue to develop, so has the stock market, with the a stock market index tracking the performance of leading pu licly traded companies in the sinking percent after Trump threatened the percent tari dam onrad, a second year stu dent dou le ma oring in iochemistry and molecular iology, is a self taught investor of two years hen the pril tari s rolled out, impos ing a percent tari on all countries and higher reciprocal rates on those with the largest trade deficits, onrad was caught o guard, not expecting Trump to actually implement them hen he announced the tari s during his campaign, was kind of skeptical he would actually do it, onrad said ollowing the announcement, on rad felt the effects of the tariffs on his portfolio lost a out percent of my portfolio the first time it hit reali ed pro a ly needed to invest di erently, onrad said ationally, the country felt similar e ects with the companies drop ping percent in ust two days, wiping out an estimated trillion in stock value, eu ters reported ith continued uncertainty in the market, Conrad said he has limited his investment ve een limiting my portfolio and my exposure to safer ets that are less
affected nly a out percent of my portfolio is exposed to the roader market, onrad said ne common shift cited y inves tors was uying shares of international companies onrad pointed to oca Cola as an example of an international investment strategy They re an international company, so even if the is doing ad economically, other countries might not e, onrad said ni ingh, a second year stu dent, egan exploring investment opportunities in hina, where he saw an undervalued market, meaning the stock that is selling in the market for a price is presumed to e elow the investment s true intrinsic value didn t want to invest in merica at the time partly ecause of the tari s, ut also thought the market was overvalued, so wanted to hedge against a market decline
in merica, ingh said This follows a glo al trend nvest ing com reported a illion outflow in May from the stock mar ket ccording to nvestopedia, outflow refers to the movement of assets out of a country s a result, oth onrad and ingh expressed frustration with the tari s and its implementation t s an unfortunate reality that with these tari s, no reasona le investor wants them lot of the ortune companies, pretty much any market where they trade stocks, goes down with these tariffs in place, onrad said lthough ingh voiced concern over the government s interference in the market, he also expressed hope that the govern ment would put money from the tari s into the nation s trillion of de t and its enefit, if paid o , to the country
f resident Trump actually uses the tari revenue which right now is pro ected to e a out to il lion to pay o the deficit and the de t, then that could e positive for merica as a whole, ingh said ut m not too sure a out that ecause don t really trust the government to spend revenues wisely assistant professor of finance etra inagl said as an economist, the tari s make no sense This is ad news n the short run, prices that you would see are likely to go up hat s even more damaging, and we re likely to see, is uncertainty will go up imme diately, inagl said hile tari s are ad news for investors hoping to pull their money out of the stock market, inagl still heavily encouraged young investors to keep investing, adding it is an opportunity to uy stocks for sale f you have a short hori on, and you need to pull your money out of the stock market, this is ad news Many of our stu dents have long hori ons, so it s a good time to think a out uying, inagl said or any student investors, one angle is that the asset is going on sale hat you can do when there is a huge drop in the market value is that you can uy inagl still encouraged investors to remain optimistic toward the stock mar ket and the oost the market is seeing due to artificial intelligence, or hat is happening at the same time is this technological revolution, so there is still a pretty strong growth in the stock market, which is due to the fact a lot of com panies are growing ecause of the enefits of using products, inagl said ot everyone sees the market downturn as an opportunity or some families, the tari fueled volatility has meant significant losses, creating anxiety for newer investors watching their parents portfolios shrink My grandparents are retired, onrad said They are on a fixed income from the k and retirement accounts they have, which are invested in the stock market My parents are currently trying to retire with these tari s, it ri ed them going into retire ment t would e risky for them to do that right now They ve decided they ll pro a ly e in the o market for a few more years
Iowa revenue projected to drop in 2026
Economists a ribute shortfalls to tax cuts and a sluggish economy.
Iowa’s general revenue is projected to drop 9 percent, or around $800 mil lion, in fiscal year , according to recent pro ections y the owa evenue stimating onference The cto er projections are 4.7 percent, or $375 mil lion, lower than the March forecasts y the panel
niversity of owa economics pro fessor nne illamil attri utes the drop to a variety of factors, includ ing oth state and federal tax cuts, along with statewide economic insta ility t a federal level, this includes increased tax deductions for those and older from the ne ig eautiful ill ct signed y resident onald Trump on uly
The percent flat income tax rate, signed into law in May y owa ov im eynolds, went into e ect on uly illamil said it will hurt state revenue, ecause there will e less tax dollars coming into the state owa ep ave aco y, oralville, said state financial struggles are in part, ut not entirely, due to tax cuts, such as the new flat income tax rate aco y said he is one of the few state emocrats who support flat tax rates, as they ring cer tainty to owans with sta le income ut are ine ective in a time of mass layo s and economic insta ility certain part of that reduction is indeed due to tax cuts that owans deserve, aco y said hat epu licans didn t anticipate was such a poor economy, thousands of layo s, and the fact that people in owa are still not earning at the levels that they should e compared to other states ccording to the orld opulation eview, as of , owa ranks out of 50 states in average annual income, a dollar amount of $58,350. owa ep Timi rown owers, aterloo, critici ed the epu lican led e ort to cut taxes across the state and noted owa will have to dip into reserve funds, which contain nearly million, and eventually the Taxpayer elief und, to o set declining revenue. epu licans really are talking out of oth sides of their mouth when they say they want to save taxpayers money when they re recklessly going to have to spend it to make ends meet, rown owers said
eserve funds are used to maintain sta ility and cover udget shortfalls in the state, while the Taxpayer elief und is a taxpayer funded pool set aside when annual state tax revenue exceeds what was estimated in a given fiscal year owa ep ary Mohr, ettendorf, chairman of the owa ouse ppropriations Committee, said in a statement to The Daily Iowan that epu licans knew the percent flat tax rate would lead to a revenue decrease, which would re uire use of the relief fund hen we delivered much needed tax relief to owans last year, we knew we would need to tap into our very healthy Taxpayer elief und to manage the decline in revenue, Mohr said
in the statement The decision was made intentionally ecause owans were desperate for immediate relief from former resident iden s failed economic policies Mohr said dipping into the relief fund was planned when the flat tax legislation was passed, ut other factors, such as no tax on tips and overtime a federal tax code passed in the ne ig, eautiful ill ct and automatically adopted y the state of owa are also impacting the state revenue Mohr said the state is plenty prepared to cover the di erence made y the decline e have over illion in cash on hand, and our reserve funds are at their statutory maximums, Mohr said in the statement to the DI owa is in a etter position than most states to handle any economic uncertainties ecause of owa ouse epu licans responsi le approach to udgeting over the past decade aco y said the reserve money the state has een spending to offset declining revenue includes funds allocated y former resident oe iden for economic relief during the pandemic urrent overnor eynolds and epu licans misused the funds to cover their mistakes, aco y said in a statement to the DI rown owers said if revenue continues to drop as pro ected, the state will have to use million from the relief fund y fiscal year to maintain the status uo
aco y said the dropping revenue will result in a nearly million dollar drop in the state udget for fiscal year The owa udget is illion for fiscal year , which egan ct and runs through ept ,
rown owers said nonprofits and Medicaid users will feel the negative impacts of su se uent state udget cuts he said mental health programs in lack awk ounty, located an hour and a half northwest of owa ity, have recently laid o employees due to decreased funding a num er which rown owers expects to grow with additional cuts
The lack awk ounty ommunity utreach rogram has a waiting list of people who need help that can t get it, and they ve had to reduce their programming outreach altogether, rown owers said hat m afraid people don t reali e is this has a direct connection to someone in your community rown owers said state programs, such as the new ehavioral ealth ervice ystem, which went into e ect on uly after ov eynolds signed the ill into law in March looks good on paper ut will e ine ective due to udget reductions caused y revenue drops oth aco y and rown owers said education savings accounts, or s, which provide taxpayer funds to families for pri-
udget in his years of service meaning there is no set cap on funding for the program This is due to fluctuations in the num er of students who apply for vouchers on a yearly asis
illamil said economic factors, such as a reduction in ross omestic roduct, or , rising unemployment rates, and slow or loss of economic growth all play a part in the declining revenue, and the owa economy as a whole is soft, meaning it is slowing down. he said economic pro lems are not uni ue to owa and referenced research y Mark andi, a renowned economist from Moody s nalytics, a leading provider of economic research, which names states that are either experiencing recession or slowing down
According to an annual report from the ureau of conomic nalysis, owa moved from th to th for growth in owa decreased percent in uarter one, ut re ounded percent in uarter two of this year
vate education expenses, not only play a role in the decreasing revenue, ut present a cost needing reduction to prevent other udget cuts or the school year, owa is pro ected to spend nearly million on the education savings accounts There is illion allocated to the pu lic school system for fiscal year aco y said vouchers have een the only unlimited line item in the state
Iowa’s expenditures have outpaced its revenue for the first time in decades
Villamil said agricultural factors, such as low commodity prices, which includes the price of raw materials, such as oil or wheat, play into decreasing revenue because of its economic impact he said commodity prices vary over time, and prices have come down in recent years in what she called a cyclical phenomenon he said the trade war will also harm state revenue, particularly in owa, due to increasing prices for fertili er and the loss of soy ean exports to hina f sectors like agriculture and manufacturing are hurt y these higher input prices due to tari s, which are increases in their costs, they may hire less people or lay people o , and that is going to feed ack into lower individual income tax revenues in owa, Villamil said.
Iowa has seen a steady increase in appropriations and expenditures over the past two decades. However, Iowa is currently seeing a downward trend in revenues while appropriations continue to rise.
BACK ON TAP
With a line stretching out past the Pedestrian Mall, Fieldhouse Iowa City reopened its bar on Nov. 6. The bar was packed with Iowa City residents and University of Iowa students for its grand opening.
SPORTS
Inside Laura VandeBerg’s rise to Hawkeye fame
VandeBerg’s energetic presence on the sidelines nears its 10th year.
Almost any Hawkeye fan who has attended an Iowa football or basketball game has seen Laura VandeBerg, her sideline presence plastered on the big screen and providing both entertainment and insight amid breaks in competition.
As the in-game host of the Iowa Hawkeyes, VandeBerg bridges the gap between fans and current and former Iowa athletes. Whether it’s interviewing a Hawkeye football legend returning to Kinnick Stadium or leading fan engagement activities at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, VandeBerg captures the fans’ attention on the video boards.
VandeBerg was meant to be a Hawkeye. Growing up just 25 minutes north of Iowa City in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, she has been an Iowa fan her entire life.
After graduating from Cedar Rapids Prairie High School in 2012, the University of Iowa seemed like the obvious college choice for VandeBerg, but she decided to try another route.
“I thought I wanted to go to UNI [University of Northern Iowa],” VandeBerg said. “I wanted a smaller campus, a smaller school to kind of get my feet wet with the whole college experience.”
VandeBerg only attended UNI for one year, as she felt like it wasn t the right fit for her The university only
cheering at all the games,” VandeBerg said. “So I was done with cheerleading after that year.”
VandeBerg decided to get involved with The Daily Iowan as a T sports reporter, covering multiple athletic events at the UI, including football, basketball, and wrestling. ande erg said her experience with T was a huge jumping point for her career, not just because of connections or networking but mainly the hands-on experience she gained.
o ered ournalism as a minor, which was the tipping point for her decision to leave.
VandeBerg transferred to Iowa for her second year and joined the cheerleading team. Once the year wrapped up, VandeBerg realized she needed to begin taking school more seriously if she wanted to get into the sports journalism business. She loved her experience as a cheerleader but knew the competitions she performed at were the proving ground for her journalism career.
“It’s kind of hard to do sports journalism if you’re
VandeBerg’s student life also included an internship with , an television a liate in owa er internship included covering high school sports in the Iowa City and Cedar Rapids areas. VandeBerg even took sports writing jobs for free to gain more experience in the sports media field fter graduating from owa, ande erg s first o was at a start-up company as a marketing director. After three months in the position, she worked as a kickboxing instructor in Cedar Rapids, and worked there for a year and a half before becoming the full-time Iowa sports host.
Around halfway through the 2015 Iowa football season, Laura met her now-husband, Matt VandeBerg, a wide receiver for the Hawkeyes from 2013 to 2017.
On Sept. 10, 2016, Iowa hosted rival Iowa State at
New year, fresh title defense
Fourth-years Kennedy Blades and Kylie Welker look to repeat as national champions.
Iowa women’s wrestling is entering its third season as a program, but the Hawkeyes are already returning two powerhouses to the roster. After undefeated records last season, including a combined 13-0 against ranked opponents, fourth-years Kennedy Blades and Kylie Welker look to defend their respective titles and enhance a young program.
“I think I’m going to try to continue to keep the ball rolling,” Welker said. “I set the bar for myself, and a big thing we talk [about] at Iowa is being above the standard.”
While Welker, 180 pounds, and Blades, 160 pounds, don’t compete in the same weight class, the pair often
Kinnick Stadium, and Matt had the game of his life, catching seven passes for 129 yards and a touchdown in a blowout 42-3 win over the Cyclones.
Matt capped o his ig day with an exciting gift for his then-girlfriend, Laura.
fter Matt and his fellow receivers finished taking a group picture, he immediately found her in the stands and braced himself for the important question.
“I take the picture, then I’m like, ‘Oh, this is going to be the toughest thing I’ve ever had to do,’” Matt said. “I got over there and said, ‘I’m just going to cut to the chase,’ and then I didn’t even say a single word. I just opened up the ring box and didn’t say anything. I was too frozen.”
Laura immediately said “yes,” and the video of the proposal went viral across nearly every social media platform.
There s a video of the proposal posted on nstagram, and it kind of took o , ande erg said t was on and the ig Ten etwork t was ust all over the place.”
Following the proposal, VandeBerg was asked to be on the Hawkeye Radio Network. VandeBerg’s now-boss, Kelsey Laverdiere, happened to see her on stage during the interview with the Hawkeye Radio Network and was looking for someone to take on a brand new role of sports host.
“Now, the catch was they wanted somebody that had a name that people might recognize,” VandeBerg said.
Trading the pitch for the mat
Iowa men’s wrestler Massoma Endene joins the Hawkeyes with three individual titles despite a lack of experience in the sport.
Inside the cement walls of the Goschke amily Training enter during owa men s wrestling’s media day, chatter between athletes and reporters filled the windowless Media scrums featuring outstretched microphones and flashing cameras surrounded wrestlers preparing for a practice. Returnees don’t mind the attention, as they are used to the spotlight wrestling receives in Iowa City. Newcomers, especially from smaller schools, might be caught o guard y the experience, ut Massoma ndene felt right at home.
As Iowa’s new 197-pounder, Endene stood on the mat with a smile as reporters swarmed around his 5-foot-10 frame learly excited for his first season in ivision wrestling, Endene also shoulders a challenging legacy to uphold. He follows in the footsteps of Stephen Buchanan’s national title run a season ago, Iowa’s only champion that year. While aware of outside expectations, Endene trusts his individual progress. ivision is going to e a whole di erent level for me, Endene said. “I know that the work I put in, whether it be Division I, Division II, or Division III, is how I am going to achieve the goals I set for myself.”
battle in practice, which for Welker only raises her personal standards.
“We push each other in ways that I haven’t really gotten pushed by a female partner in the past,” Welker said. “Just to have that competitiveness in this room has really been able to help both of us. It’s been great.”
For her part, Blades praised Welker as an amazing teammate, also noting how the two strengthen each other through practice.
“Kylie is an amazing partner,” Blades said. “She’s an awesome wrestler, and it’s great to have her as a teammate The fact that she s a little igger than me, it’s perfect for her to work on her speed, technique, strength, and it’s great for me to work on my strengths.”
For Endene, his journey on the mat started later than most. While attending James Bowie High School in rlington, Texas, ndene considered himself a soccer player, but after he tried out wrestling in his sophomore season, he quickly committed to the sport.
“Once I got into wrestling, I just dove fully into it,” he said.
Endene started his collegiate journey at Iowa Lakes Community College, a small junior college tucked away in Iowa’s northwest corner. After two years at Lakes, which featured a pair of NJCAA All-American nods and a runner up finish in , he transferred to art urg ollege in Waverly, Iowa. The elevation in competition hardly hindered ndene, who only improved with the nights is first season saw him win co-MVP of the conference, followed in later years with appearances in the Under 23 Pan-American
Bringing championship legacy to Iowa
Heartlander goalie William Rousseau’s grandfather won four Stanley Cups during his 15-year NHL career.
William Rousseau was born and raised in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, a town of about 150,000 people located a few hours away from Montreal.
If that is not enough to get someone into the game of hockey, William’s grandfather, Bobby Rousseau, won four Stanley Cup champion ships during a 15-year career in the NHL.
“I’m able to set my standards higher because I know he’s done it and is in the family,” Rous seau said. “He talked all about his Stanley Cups and the crazy stories he had, so it’s been good motivation for me.”
Rousseau brought his rich background of hockey to the Iowa Heartlanders, where he has already earned an ECHL mid-season All-Star award, goalie of the month, and an AHL con tract with the Iowa Wild.
From the age of 6, Rousseau was introduced to the sport of hockey and began his playing career as a forward for Trois-Rivieres. A few years later at 8, Rousseau made the decision to become a goaltender.
“I mean, I couldn’t skate that well and wasn’t the fastest guy on the ice, so I just stuck to the paint in the crease,” Rousseau said.
Rousseau got his start in the QMJHL for the Quebec Remparts, where he was coached by Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy, who also won four Stanley Cup championships in his illustrious career, including two with Montreal.
“I was lucky enough to get the chance to play for him, and he gave me a lot of good advice to work on my game,” Rousseau said.
Since signing with Iowa two years ago, Rousseau has been spending time with both the Heartlanders and the Iowa Wild in Des Moines. The 22-year-old made three appearances for the Wild last season and
earned a 0.921 save percentage.
“The shots are harder, and the guys are faster, so you have to be on your game all the time,” Rousseau said. “Even with the Landers, you have to play like you’re in Des Moines because the ECHL is a great league, too.”
This is Rousseau’s third season on the team, ut it is the first for head coach huck e er Rousseau said Weber saw the work ethic in this team and has done a good job bringing in more skill.
“It’s just a matter of time where everybody buys into the same competition level that we got to bring every night,” Rousseau said. “We have to bring our A game every night, finish our hits,
UI women’s wrestler explains pull to Iowa
have really good burgers, and I like the atmosphere, the vibes. They’re really supportive of the Hawkeyes, too.
What’s your favorite holiday?
The Daily Iowan: What is your favorite wrestling move?
Reese Larramendy: My favorite move is a low single That was one of the first shots that I learned when I was younger, and the one that I absolutely fell in love with. I’ve been evolving that move since I was 7 or 8 years old, and I still hit it to this day.
Ifyou could have any superpower, what would it be and why?
I think speed because if I can get things done faster, that gives me more time, and time is something you can’t buy.
What is your favorite restaurant in Iowa City?
30hop. I really like that restaurant. They
What’s
and the goals are going to come.”
The Heartlanders opened the season with a pedestrian 3-4-1 start and rank in the middle of the Western Division standings behind the first place ort ayne omets a omets squad that came into Xtream Arena and swept the Landers two weeks ago.
While the losses left a sour taste in Iowa’s mouth, Rousseau said the Heartlanders need to learn from it and move on.
“We looked at the videos of the games, and now we need to move forward,” Rousseau said. “We got two big games against Cincinnati, and then we got Toledo, who are always good. Hopefully we get back to 0.500 here and go from there.”
My favorite holiday is Christmas because it’s a really big holiday for Christians and celebrates the birth of Jesus. I also just love wintertime in general, so Christmas is my favorite.
What is the greatest accomplishment of your life?
Getting baptized.
What is your dream concert?
BTS for sure.
What made you choose Iowa?
There are two things. One was the fact that this is a wrestling state, and Hawkeye fans are incredible, and they love the sport. I love the sport, and they share the same energy, so that
was my biggest reason. Also, the coaching sta eing a le to e coached y someone like Clarissa Chun, a two-time Olympic bronze medalist. She’s been to where I want to go, and I knew I could trust her, and I love all the coaches and the dynamics.
Who is someone you look up to the most and why?
I’d say Helen Maroulis, because she’s been my mentor for a long time. I was able to meet her when I was 7 or 8 years old, and she mentored me a lot and her eing the first ever Olympic champion for USA wrestling, and just her mindset, her belief in God, everything.
What is the dumbest way you’ve injured yourself?
She’s gonna kill me for this, but I was at yoming eminary with ennedy lades , fell on the floor, and ennedy didn t see me. She went to shut a door and slammed my head in between the door and the wall, and I got concussed.
Sports reporter Jonah Frey argues October is the best month, while fellow sports reporter Jack Birmingham makes a case for March.
October is the melting pot of sports seasons. It has just about everything for everyone.
In terms of championship season, you’ve got the MLB playoffs and the WNBA Finals.
The MLB has one of the best playoffs in all of sports. The iconic moments are off the charts, and tensions are high from the top of the first to the bottom of the ninth.
The WNBA has seen a huge surge in popularity, with elite players like A’Ja Wilson and Napheesa Collier headlining championship contenders. Need I mention Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers as well?
On top of that, fans are treated to football, whether NCAA or NFL, on just about every day of the week with the nitty-gritty stretch of the season in full swing. The excitement of the NBA and NHL starting takes over around mid-to-late October.
Even Premier League soccer and the Champions League are underway for European soccer fans.
There’s no better time to sit and watch sports than a crisp fall day. October is arguably the best fall month, with temperatures right in that sweet spot between September heat and November chill.
Yes, the March argument comes loaded with the oh-so-loved March Madness tournament as well as lateseason NBA and NHL. But October has just about everything, and there’s something to watch every night of the week.
March is by far the best month for sports, and the ensuing frenzy known as March Madness is just one example.
While the NBA and NHL do start in October, the games don’t carry nearly as much meaning. Sure, it’s nice to root for your favorite team and catch the action however you can, but a hot start for a team doesn’t mean that much in an 82-game season. By the time March arrives, the pack leaders have been established and the games are much more exciting, with fans looking to see where their squad will end up in preparation for the NBA’s Play-in Tournaments and oth league s su se uent playo s The games have a lot more weight, and the
teams have a lot more at stake in the near future.
MLB Opening Day will take place on March 25, 2026, with the New York Yankees taking on the San Francisco Giants in a standalone spectacle. The rest of the league will commence play the next day. You can’t forget March Madness, arguably one of the greatest sporting events of all time. While it’s more fun to enjoy events like the World Series with knowledge about the sport and the two competing squads, anyone can partake in the randomness of March Madness ust fill out a racket, and given the probability of upsets, you have as good of a chance of perfection as the “experts.” The men’s and women’s Final Four draws millions of eyes. Even without Caitlin Clark, the 2025 Women’s Final Four still featured the third-highest average viewership in its history. The numbers, the traditions, the tournaments, and the sweet, sweet upsets all confirm what’s already known that March is the est month for sports.
“But it was going to be a very entry-level position because they didn’t know what they wanted to do with it. So I was just kind of the perfect fit for that
hen ande erg first started her new job in 2016, she was doing very simple social media work, interviews, and a lot of Facebook Live broadcasts to gauge whether or not the Iowa fans enjoyed the content.
uring the first few years of ande erg working as host, there was a lot of hands-on work with the Hawkeye teams, including weekly updates about the programs.
Since then, VandeBerg has moved into the role of an in-game host and doesn’t need to work every day.
“Over time, we’ve adjusted and changed the position to where I’m just an in-game host now,” VandeBerg said. “So I report now for wrestling, women’s and men’s basketball, a little bit of gymnastics and volleyball, and then football.”
The evolution of her role has helped herspend more time raising her three children. VandeBerg has a 4-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a 7-month-old.
In this current crossover season between Hawkeye football and basketball, the change from reporting in Kinnick Stadium and Carver-Hawkeye Arena presents challenges for VandeBerg.
With Kinnick Stadium holding around 54,000 more fans than Carver-Hawkeye Arena, most would think the Kinnick environment would be harder to work in as a host, but it’s quite the opposite for VandeBerg.
“The switch from football to basketball is always kind of a shock for me,” VandeBerg said. “I can see everybody’s faces at basketball, but when I’m at football, it’s basically me and a camera, and I can’t see everybody’s reactions.”
VandeBerg expressed her gratitude for her job with Hawkeye Athletics, noting that Laverdiere, her oss, has played a significant role in her professional development.
“She’s the brain behind the position,” VandeBerg said about Laverdiere. “She and I have worked very closely since day one on the job.”
Blades and Welker share a Midwest background. The elder Blades hails from Chicago while Welker’s roots lie up north in Franksville, Wisconsin. Last month, Welker returned from Serbia after winning her second consecutive U23 World Championship. Iowa head coach Clarissa Chun offered similar praise of Welker, who has eyes on the future.
During her press conference at the team’s media day, Chun said Welker prides herself on dissatisfaction. A collegiate national title or gold medals at the World Championship are in the past. What remains is more hardware, such as a medal in the 2028 Olympics hosted in Los Angeles.
Chun, who was announced as the program’s first head coach on Nov. 18, 2021, took the opportunity during her press conference at women’s wrestling media day to shout out Welker’s growth and determination.
“She’s just one that loves wrestling so much that she wants to get better, so she’s going to continue to grow and develop,” Chun said.
Chun cited Blades as one of the team’s superpowers but said the synergy between the two champions creates an effective, beneficial dynamic
In 2020, VandeBerg’s job was obsolete due to the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic restricting fan attendance at games. She and her husband decided to start a podcast to stay engaged with Hawkeye fans who were stuck at home.
VandeBerg took the idea to the Iowa Athletic Department, but it didn’t come to fruition. She really liked the idea, however, because she could pair Matt’s analytical approach with her entertainment perspective to discuss Iowa sports.
Laura and Matt bought some podcast
for the program. She joked fans would pay the price of admission to watch the duo spar in practice.
“Having those two in the room together only helps themselves, each other, elevate in a room and an environment when they’re continuously trying to get better,” Chun said.
The relationship between two of the program’s returning veterans seems to have served largely as a positive for a still-growing program and sport. The pair are set to defend their titles on their home turf at Xtream Arena in Coralville in March 2026. The event marks the first women’s wrestling national championship sanctioned by the NCAA.
Blades’ wrestling journey took her across the country to Pennsylvania, where she competed at Wyoming Seminary Prep. After graduation in 2022, she enrolled at Arizona State, but the school didn’t offer women’s wrestling, so she trained with an outside club. At home, Blades is now not only closer to home but also the centerpiece for her sports’ future.
“I really didn’t expect it to be so soon in the sense of me being able to actually compete in it,” Blades said. “That’s just super exciting. I’ve always watched the NCAA growing up, especially wrestling. Getting an NCAA title is going to be super exciting. The best part is that it’s in Iowa, so it’s just all falling into place.”
equipment for around $400 and started their podcast in a closet at their home. Matt handled all the editing and publishing, and they eventually secured a couple of sponsors for the show.
“We did that for a year,” Matt said.
“Then we looked at each other and said,
‘We’re never doing that again.’ It was so much work to have to do that.”
The VandeBergs took a year off from their podcast before being approached with a new opportunity to restart the show.
“Estela’s [Fresh Mex] really liked the podcast we had done and reached out and were like, ‘Hey, what if we hook them up with Storyline
Multimedia?’” Matt said.
Storyline Multimedia then partnered with the VandeBergs to produce their podcast for them so they don’t have to worry about editing. Instead, the responsibility was to show up to the studio and record.
The podcast, “Talkin’ Hawks with the VandeBergs,” has been running for three years now and features an Iowa athlete or coach every week.
“It’s been really cool to have a lot of athletes come on and share how their faith impacted the way they approach their sport and life,” VandeBerg said. “I think that’s something that Matt and I try to focus on if it’s there.”
Championships, where he won twice competing at 97 kilograms. Back in the transfer portal, the next level awaited, and Endene’s eyes were set on the pinnacle — Iowa, a storied program with 24 Division I titles.
Iowa head coach Tom Brands called Endene over the summer, and the conversation revealed a drive and determination that Brands wanted on the Hawkeyes.
“He’s tremendously athletic. He’s tremendously gifted in a lot of things that he does very, very well on the mat,” Brands said. “We’re going to need him. And he has the ability. We love that addition.”
edshirt first year ngelo errari has experienced Endene’s ability on the mat firsthand, grappling with his new team mate as Iowa’s 184-pounder.
“He’s really explosive, and he’s really fast,” Ferrari said. “It’s really great to have a guy like that in the room. That’s the best thing about being here, you have so many different styles in the same room.”
Endene’s swift movements in a heavier weight division will likely serve him well this season in a weight class boasting stout competition. Anticipated matchups for Endene include Penn State’s Josh Barr, Iowa State’s Rocky Ellam, and Nebraska’s Camden McDaniel, all of whom rank in Wrestlestat’s top 10 at 197 pounds. With the transfer portal’s immediate eligibility encouraging more athletes to leave their former homes, Endene and others like him will have a chance to prove they belong at the Division I level. However, coming into a fresh environment with previously unknown teammates, coaches, and competition is a daunting task for even the best transfers.
Despite all the noise and the new demanding pressure with his new team, Endene’s goals on the mat have never once wavered.
“My goal is to be a national champion again,” he said. “Same goal, different place.”
DOWN TO THE WIRE
The No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes fell to the No. 6 Oregon Ducks 18-16 at Kinnick Stadium on a rainy Saturday night, Nov. 8. Oregon forced two turnovers, as well as a safety, to help secure the win.
Iowa City's gra iti is a colorful symbol of community
Public
Walking through the tunnels and hidden alleys of Iowa City, once barren walls shimmer with vi rant gra ti
The walls speak in drunken messages left y people coming home from the ars They bleed in corners with loud statements from the heart They glow with lively poems, tags, and icons
mong the most gra ti covered areas in Iowa City’s west side is in a tunnel directly under the est urlington treet ridge faded poem and a humorous pop culture reference decorate one corner of the tunnel
The poem was left without an author's credit and descri es a scornful relationship
However, they state in the end, surviving the ex kept them from dying ris illiams, a second year niversity of Iowa student, has an interest in art therapy and projected what she learned onto the poem
“With examples like [the poem,] I feel
someone is expressing a painful period of time t might ust e a good outlet to deal with what they’re going through,” she said ra ti like that can e helpful to communities just to show them there are other people who might need help, too
The second piece of gra ti eside the poem is a hastily sprayed green message stating “always watching” with an Illuminati figure at the ottom ithout any context, the message is ominous than yatt, a third year student, pointed out a stencil of ohn ennedy above the Illuminati figure and said he elieved the images uilt o each other, with each drawn y a di erent artist
This communicative quality between disparate anonymous artists in the community is a signature feature of gra ti
Functioning like a public diartym over time, the meaning of these wall markings can change depending on what is added around them
oseph ullenkamp, a second year student, said he believes there are limits to where gra ti can go
Through the alley beside Hazzard County Iowa City, little messages can be found scrawled on every inch Many scri lings reflect a simple idea everyone
“I think an explicit message like that near a kids' playground… I have certain feelings a out that ut if you cover it, it s ust an alleyway d e with that, ullenkamp said
The alleyway is just around the corner from the edestrain Mall playground outside the owa ity u lic i rary hildren being exposed to less savory statements is not the only criticism Fullenkamp expressed, though
“To an extent, there is a level of vandalism, he said o, graffiti can definitely take away the purity of a uilding,
wherever it may e Williams disagreed with the criticism, explaining how painting over gra ti hurts the community
Though seemingly small to others, gra ti reveals layers once o served as a piece of art
“There might be a sense of oppression,” illiams said ensoring people can do damage f your gra ti is getting painted over again and again, it can e painful ut also, can see it depends on the gra ti
Indoor spaces are no exception to owa ity s graffiti scene ooming in on downtown’s interiors, it comes as no surprise bars are the most frequent recipients of graffiti, especially their athrooms
There are several explanations for this phenomenon t could e chalked up to the rush of re ellion, the self expression of the act, or simply the consequence of inebriated
young adults with impaired decision making skills, scri ling Men ain t s on the wall with a Sharpie because the guy they were talking to made them mad
In any case, the unique setting of a restroom allows for a private, less confrontational environment, easing the minds of anyone itching to express themselves raffiti often serves as an outlet for emotions, a cathartic means of
Emma Stone steals the show in bleak sci-fi film ‘Bugonia’
The new film from Yorgos Lanthimos is a slightly underwhleming dark comedy that feels relevant.
orgos anthimos third film in three years, “Bugonia,” is about what you would expect from the director at this point or fans of the filmmaker s signature darkly comic, leak sensi ility, it s sure to deliver was left wanting more “Bugonia” is a remake of the 2003 South orean film ave the reen lanet ut updates the satirical material to send up contemporary corporate culture and envi ronmental dread esse lemons stars as Teddy, a middle aged guy working a gru eling warehouse job who has been beaten down by the world to the point he feels he has nothing left In response to his grief and unfair treat ment from the people in power at his job, he kidnaps Michelle uller, a famous of a ma or corporation mma tone plays Michelle, marking her fourth colla oration with Lanthimos, and is the absolute stand out as she rings the perfect tone deaf elitist attitude to her capitalist character Teddy and his cousin spring a trap outside Michelle s modernist nightmare house, full of floor to ceiling windows and annoying rich person furniture, and shave her hair They do this ecause they fear Michelle uses her hair to contact her Andromedan mothership and hail the destruction of the arth
It’s a wild setup, and Stone actually
shaved her head for the role, but I thought the opening was the peak of the film The first act dedicates a lot of time to develop ing Teddy s psyche e s a grieving man in search of something to believe in, so rat tled by his mother’s cancer diagnosis, he searches for someone to lame
At one point, when Teddy is talking with Michelle, he explains he s een a mem er of online leftist, communist, alt right, and independent groups but still hasn’t found a cause he can elieve in ut once he discov ers the Andromedan conspiracy, claiming humanoid aliens have een infiltrating the planet for centuries, he finally elieves in something
The last act of “Bugonia,” however, reveals Teddy s eliefs may e for naught won t spoil the final few scenes of the film, as they were among the few moments of the film that actually made me light up, ut the unlikely place this story ends up reframes everything efore it
It’s just a shame everything before it feels completely unengaging There is a solid minute span within “Bugonia,” between the inciting kidnapping and resolution, where felt completely detached from the drama
Lanthimos is known for his distant, nihilistic filmmaking in which characters are tormented and put through agonizing situations for the twisted pleasure of the audience This is a style that works won derfully for me in The illing of a acred eer and inds of indness, two of an thimos most dramatically leak films
These films find empathy for its charac ters in the apathy of the filmmaking, with dry performances and wide shots, as if Lan thimos is physically keeping the audience from getting attached to his su ects t s the more overtly empathetic stories that I feel do not match the director s style er haps it’s a preference, but when “Bugonia” spent a majority of its runtime painting Teddy and his manipulated cousin Don in a sympathetic light, lost interest The film ends up landing in the middle of Lanthimos’ nihilistic sensibility and the humanistic hope he frequently injects in his films or a concept as tense as this,
found myself constantly wanting to either push in on the conflict for a more tradi tional propulsive thriller or completely detach, as is common in the filmmaker s other work
Despite my preference for Lanthimos’ nastier movies, I did still have a fun time with ugonia The film looks gorgeous, and the music makes for an entertaining viewing, even if the material felt lackluster As awards season nears, I'm curious to see how ugonia does The performances and production are stellar in an otherwise disappointing outing from one of the most interesting filmmakers working today
Add these stops for a fun, productive study crawl
Study crawls are an e ective method of preparing for exams with a morale boosting change of scenery.
Midterm season has o cially wrapped up, and for some of us, this time is a period of mourning for our fallen grades las, life goes on and so does the work load es, midterms may e over, ut that just means we turn the corner to face the iggest east of all final exams s daunt ing as it may seem, finals can actually e used as a method to save a class grade after the eating it took from the midterm or preserve it: for those of you who came out on top
However, for this to ring true, some of you seriously need to lock in and change those study ha its ut don t you fret, there can e more to studying than just locking yourself in a room for hours and grinding ui let Exchange those bar crawls for a more pro ductive, similarly fashioned way of academic cramming study crawls study crawl consists of swapping your work location, whether it be a café, library, or other spot, throughout the course of your studying, with the hope that it’ll bore you far less than sit ting in one spot for hours and spacing o
A good start to your study crawl could be indred o ee, a spacious, am ient co ee
shop with a variety of ca einated drinks and delicious pastries tarting your crawl with some fuel, whether with a co ee, tea, croissant, or anything else they have to o er, could be the key to getting a good jump on this studious activity e a undseth, a arista at indred of fee, urges you to order the espresso tonic with candied orange, a personal favorite and fun way to get your energy up
After the scenery becomes stale, you finish your drink, and you ve completed a su cient chunk of studying or schoolwork, it s time to move on ucky for you, Mid night o ee is practically right across the street and is another favorite among ni versity of owa students
Every location holds a robust menu of varied snack options i es alone may e enough to keep you studying e ciently, ut fueling up is important to keep the crawl going long term Midnight o ee o ers a particularly popular menu
With another large menu featuring a vari ety of drinks and pastries, Midnight o ee also o ers delicious sandwiches and agels, a substantial source of brain food, and a suf ficient way to keep the gears turning ydney ayl, a arista at Midnight o ee, recommends the elderberry hibiscus iced tea or seasonal “chaider” with their popular
reakfast sandwich or pasteries pon wrapping up usiness at Midnight, it’s time to lace up your walking shoes and crawl over to the Tippie ollege of usiness ow, there are definitely pros and cons to this spot Tippie has a spacious study hu , is accessible to all students, hosts many quiet spots and personal places to work, and even has a tar ucks located inside n the flip side, almost everyone knows about this place and takes full advantage of what it has to o er This commonly makes it hard to find an open space
However, if Tippie doesn’t work out, don’t worry; there’s another place with plenty of quiet study places, accessibility to all stu dents, and another campus tar ucks the Main i rary n addition to the first floor work stations and ta les, the li rary o ers a special option people tend to e less aware of f you ask for a private room key at the front desk, you’ll unlock access to a small, private room on the fourth floor, a perfect way to grind out the last it of your work everal more incredi le co ee shops and study spaces are availa le in owa ity The campus is your oyster study crawl can consist of any location you want it to a stress reducing uild your own adventure for your studying
processing emotions and thoughts
creatively, no matter how coherent or emotionally stable they are at the time of the vandalistic act.
ReUnion Brewery is a staple of Iowa City nightlife and a popular bar among college students t s also home to gra ti covered bathrooms and inked walls. Interestingly, there was little to no gra ti in the men s restrooms, just the women’s n the first and second floor women s bathrooms, words written in permanent marker are scrawled on the wall, consisting mainly of sweet messages and names. Although the main method of this art form is ink, a message on the first floor women s bathroom reads “you’re worth more,” carved into the wall, making it impossible to cover in paint or wash o
farious gra ti
Owner Pete McCarthy has welcomed local gra ti artists to cover a e s walls with artwork, resulting in several colorful murals, incredible spray paint designs, and a barrage of words and pictures.
On every wall, up the stairs, on pipes, electric boxes, tables, and pillars, the painted and inked gra ti is intentional and encouraged. All bathrooms are coated in base spray-painted words and messages inked out in marker by customers.
“I’m just trying to give people a place to show their artwork,” McCarthy said.
A while back, Michael Stenerson, a DJ and friend of McCarthy’s, asked if he could spray paint a wall t ecame the first of many designs Stenerson painted. Other larger portions of gra ti were done y various art students, tattoo artists, and those with a special interest or talent in public art.
Jerzie Ash, a ReUnion employee for approximately a year and a half, said the ar typically paints over the gra ti once a month lthough select ars may wash o or conceal the art with paint, the workers at these establishments are unbothered by the messages.
“They’re kind of just naming they were here, just making their mark,” Ash said.
Whereas ReUnion generally represents what most Iowa City bar owners think a out gra ti, a sharp turn is taken once you step into Gabe’s.
Gabe’s, named one of USA Today’s “Bars of the Year” for 2025, is known for its rich musical history, and is blanketed in multi-
Mc arthy said it s relatively easy to di e rentiate between the customers’ work and the more professional-level work by taking a closer look at the media. Spray paint is usually done by those with more experience and time, whereas when a customer does it, it’s easy to tell. Often done with Sharpie, they draw a variety of scribbles and words. Whether a customer or someone with higher experience, McCarthy and his employees welcome any gra ti
“It’s almost a staple in dive bars to see gra ti f it s not there, then m kind of just not interested in the bar,” Chris Winegarden, a Gabe’s bartender, said.
The second floor features a di erent form of gra ti sticker om ing t s incredi ly di cult to find a wall, ar, pillars, or door not layered in stickers, placed there by the performing bands and piling up since the‚ 1970s.
Winegarden said although all of the gra ti is meaningful, the sticker om
bing stands out to him, especially when the bands come through and try to slap their sticker as high as they can to leave their mark.
From spontaneous Sharpie scribbles to
Debating the best way to see movies
With arts reporter Madisyn Hunt in favor of streaming and arts reporter Allyson McGowan in favor of cinema, the writers go head-to-head on which movie viewing experience is be er.
Theaters have always held a soft spot in my heart. But let’s face it, they aren’t the same anymore.
The expenses for me back home are almost too much to want to go at all — it costs $15 for a ticket and even more for snacks and drinks. If you’re going on a theater date, you’ll want to get snacks and two tickets instead of one, easily coming up to around $50. What young adult has that kind of money to spend every time there’s a new blockbuster?
I have also personally noticed throughout the years that theater speakers have gotten louder.
If I want to become a more wellrounded cinephile while being squeamish about horror, the last thing I want is to try out a new, well-reviewed
horror movie and have my eardrums bleed in the process.
Meanwhile, for streaming, I can just turn down the volume to slowly build up to being comfortable with the level of terror the movie has to offer. The theater only offers one volume — loud.
I still remember the panic of springing to cover my ears from an explosion featured in 2022’s “The Batman.”
That’s not even mentioning the absurdity some theatergoers will bring to the screening room. I’m not the only one who remembers the screaming of “chicken jockey!” while trying to see if “A Minecraft Movie” was mid or not.
The chaos didn’t stop there. The internet showed me the worst of it, with blood-curdling screams, a live chicken in one theater, and floods of popcorn being thrown in joy at hearing Jack Black state the obvious.
I, for one, witnessed a 9-year-old boy topple his popcorn lazily as his father groaned and ignored the mess entirely during my screening.
Until theaters become civilized once again, you’ll find me watching all the new releases from home.
treaming services such as etflix and Disney+ soared in popularity during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when everyone was confined to their homes ure, they were convenient for the time, but we need to bring back going to the theaters.
Movies are meant to be enjoyed with others, and the experience is often lost when watching movies through a streaming service. Take comedy movies, for example. They’re much more enjoyable and funny to watch with a group of laughing people than alone.
Sure, really popular films such as “A Minecraft Movie” have fans going a bit over the top in the theaters. Still, I think this adds to making a memorable theater experience.
One of my favorite movie-viewing experiences was back in 2021 at New York
Comic Con, when I had an opportunity to see “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” a month before its o cial release atching the movie in a packed auditorium filled with die hard fans of the “Ghostbusters” franchise, along with the cast and crew of the film, made the movie a million times etter than if had first seen it streaming at home.
The shared emotions — cheering, crying, laughing — are my favorite part of watching movies in a theater with a packed audience. Plus, theaters give audiences the best viewing experience in terms of visual and sound quality. They play the movie as it was made to be played: with enhanced, vibrant visuals that regular televisions might not be able to naturally produce, and surround sound that can be both heard and felt.
Further, going to the theater right when a new blockbuster has been released would prevent overhearing some unfortunate spoilers.
Nobody remind me of the “Avengers: Endgame” incident. I’m still not over being spoiled for that.
f you ever fi nd yourself with some spare time, consider going to the theaters for a change instead of staying home.
ela orate murals, the gra ti found within Iowa City’s bars tells a story of expression — one that, much like the city itself, thrives on creativity, rebellion, and the need leave a trace of their voice.
