Deb Davis for Academic Excellence in Iowa Schools

08/30/2026

TONIGHT!!! Find a school near you and join in prayer over students, teachers, families and schools as we start this new school year! See link in comments below to find your school.

06/26/2026

What is the Success Sequence? It’s simple:

1. Graduate from high school
2. Get a job
3. And get married before having children

These steps build a foundation for strong family life. It is an achievement young students can grasp early, which continues to pay off for generations to follow. Statistically, children who grow up in married homes are less likely to have behavioral issues, use drugs, or participate in violent and criminal behavior. Unfortunately, boys raised without married fathers are more likely to end up in prison than graduate from college. Additionally, girls from single-parent homes are more than twice as likely to have a child outside of wedlock.

Implementing the Success Sequence curriculum aims to reverse familial trends by equipping students with practical, proven steps towards economic success.

See link to full article in the comments below.

05/17/2026

This is a great idea for a public school to run with - creating a classical school track within their public school. Give parents choice within the public school system. If any public school is brave enough to take on the challenge, I believe they would reap the benefits and have a waiting line of families trying to open-enroll to their district!

05/14/2026

05/13/2026

WE NEED A CONVERSATION REVIVAL.

A lot of SEL is deeply self-focused. How do I feel? What is my identity? What trauma have I experienced? How was I harmed? Where do I fit socially? How am I perceived? Even when the goals are positive, the attention is constantly directed inward.

But Holleman’s framework feels different, it is more outward facing. She writes, “great conversations involve these essential elements: interest, liking, caring, and sharing.

- Be curious about other people.
- Believe the best about them.
- Express concern and care.
- Share honestly and listen well.

Link to full article in comments below.

05/06/2026

How can libraries remain trusted civic institutions in a polarized world? That organization is the Association of Library Professionals (ALP)…. For generations, libraries have functioned as a bedrock of civic life: spaces where anyone, regardless of their background or belief, could access information freely, without being steered toward a particular conclusion or political or social agenda. Yet this principled commitment to open inquiry is increasingly under pressure…. ALP offers a clear and consistent vision: libraries exist to serve the reader, not to shape what the reader thinks or believes…. By focusing on how we think rather than what we think, ALP is helping to preserve libraries as sanctuaries for free thought.

Link to full article in comments below.

04/09/2026

Unbelievable!!! Movie theaters are “BANNING” movies!!! 😉

04/07/2026

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals today vacated the preliminary injunction entered against Senate File 496. The court’s decisions reinstate Iowa’s ability to enforce the law.

The 2023 law prohibits sexually explicit books and materials in school libraries. It also requires schools to prioritize age-appropriate instruction and prohibits instruction relating to gender identity or sexual orientation in kindergarten through 6th grade. Finally, the law ensures that parents are informed and involved in significant decisions regarding their child’s wellbeing at school.

The law has been blocked since March of 2025 due to litigation.

Full article in comments below.

03/03/2026

I spent several days in Virginia training on conservative leadership and the public policy process. Thank you Leadership Institute for this amazing opportunity!

02/23/2026

P.B.S. Pinchback

Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback, the son of a white Mississippi planter and a former slave, was the first African American to serve as governor of a state when after the governor of Louisiana was impeached, he as Lt. Governor, completed the 34 days left in his term (December 9, 1872 to January 12, 1873). Despite that short tenure, Pinchback nonetheless was the highest ranking black officeholder at the state level until 1989 when L. Douglas Wilder won the governorship of Virginia. As such Pinchback was a highly sought after speaker who rallied African American voters for the Republican Party.

Excerpt from Blackpast.org. Full article in comments below.