BRAIN DRAIN
Why are grads leaving Iowa?
Iowa City, Iowa
PHOTO BY MEGAN SWARTZENDRUBER
In Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Musical, Jillian Leman ‘26 played Christine Hosey, whom Greg described as “a total loser” alongside her BFF Leona James (Razan Hassan).
LETTER FROM THE EDITORS
Hello readers!
We are your Feature Editors, Yomi Hemley and Tai Caputo, and we have been diligently working to get you a lighthearted magazine as the weather becomes colder. So get ready to snuggle up near a fire as you read this magazine. As winter break approaches and people get ready for the holidays, we wanted to deliver a fun and loving magazine to keep you entertained this break. With a Q&A, holiday recipes, and winter games, we promise that there will be a variety of relaxing content. We hope you enjoy this magazine and wish you the best break! Thanks for reading! Stay warm, Little Hawks!
Cheers,
BRAIN DRAIN
Why are grads leaving the state?
Story and graphics by Lily Rantanen
Contributing
Reporter: Ethan Lalumiere
Amile and a half away from City High is the University of Iowa campus, a Tier-1 public research university and one of three major universities in Iowa. Despite this, Kenji Radley ‘25 has still had trouble with college applications.
“I can’t stay in Iowa City because there’s no meteorology program here,” Radley said. However, he hasn’t let state boundaries stop him from reaching his dreams of becoming a meteorologist. Instead, Radley is applying to universities in Canada, the West Coast, and the Midwest (outside of Iowa).
The phenomenon of students leaving after graduating high school or college is known as brain drain. This pattern of educated citizens leaving a state can be detrimental to the state’s economy, growth, and standard of living. And for years, Iowa has been a leader in brain drain.
“[If there were a meteorology program in Iowa], I would probably stay. It would be a more sustainable option,” Radley said.
Most research on brain drain is focused on college graduation statistics, but for high schoolers, the effect is paralleled. According to a 2009 study on Michigan high schoolers from the University of Michigan, 58% of high schoolers saw brain drain as a big deal affecting their communities.
And most City High students don’t see a future for themselves in Iowa. According to a schoolwide survey with 128 respondents, a majority of students do not plan on staying in Iowa after graduating from City High.
44% indicated that they were not interested in staying in Iowa at all, 17.2% expressed interest in going to college in Iowa and then leaving the state, and 8.6% wanted to go to college out of state and then move back to Iowa. Only 26.6% of respondents wanted to stay in Iowa indefinitely.
“[Having lived] in Iowa my whole life, I want to move to another state and find new experiences,” Drew Brown ‘25 said.
Brown is not alone in wanting to develop new experiences. Nine respondents mentioned wanting to discover new places or experiences. Among the students who wanted to leave Iowa, there was an overarching theme of wanting to pave their own path and feeling stifled by the perceived mundanity of Iowa.
“I want to pursue an education outside of Iowa, because although [the University of Iowa] and Iowa State are good schools, I hope to go to a place with better topography, scenery and cleaner water. [I mostly want] a change of scenery,” said one student.
Iowa is broadly associated with the idea of “the middle of nowhere.” A majority of the state is rural farmland, and the few cities that pepper the landscape are small compared to cities in neighboring states, like Chicago in Illinois and Minneapolis in Minnesota. Iowa lacks a true metropolitan heartland that would draw in people from surrounding areas after graduation.
The Des Moines metropolitan area, home of Iowa’s largest city, has a population of 700,000. The St. Louis metropolitan area, in contrast, has about 2.79 million residents, and the Minneapolis area has around three
WHERE WILL YOU GO?
million residents. To an Iowan wanting to live in a large city, the choice is clear–you can’t stay in Iowa.
College graduates in Iowa also leave at a higher rate than they stay. According to a recent analysis conducted by the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, Iowa ranks 9th among 50 states in net losses of college graduates. A study by The Washington Post says that college graduates tend to be drawn to states with large, vibrant cities like California, New York, and Illinois. However, Iowa’s cities lack the diversity and regional significance that more populous states have.
It’s not just that people want to get out of Iowa. 22% of total respondents (42% of students who indicated where they would want to move after college or high school) want to move to the East or West coast and 14% (27% of students who indicated) want to leave the country. This staggering statistic–69% of students uninterested in staying in the midwest compared to 30% who are–suggests that people want to leave not because they are not optimistic about job opportunities in Iowa, like many national studies and the Cedar Rapids Gazette suggest, but because they are unhappy with the local environment. Many students feel discouraged by the current political climate and state government. Some feel unsafe, and others feel out of place in the conservative state.
Axios Des Moines, a news source that covers both local and national news, attributed the loss of college graduates in Iowa to a lack of good jobs. Axios also reports that college graduates are moving to neighboring states like Minnesota and Illinois, but City High students are over twice as likely to want to
WHAT ARE CITY HIGH STUDENTS SAYING?
move outside the midwest than to stay in the midwest but leave Iowa.
“Iowa is horrible for LGBTQ and any minorities, and I just wanna get outta here,” Ellie Medea-Kapp ‘26 said.
Iowa is currently controlled by an increasingly conservative legislature, governor, and legal system. In recent years, drastic changes to state law that directly affect students like banning books with “sexual acts,” requiring the Pledge of Allegience to be spoken every day, and outlawing gender neutral bathrooms have affected students and adults across the state. However, Iowa City presents a stark blue contrast to the overwhelmingly red majority of the state, so some left-wing students feel out of place and want to move somewhere where they will be more ideologically represented.
“There has been a strong change in the political climate of Iowa in the last couple of years towards really divisive policy that makes people less free,” State Representative Adam Zabner ‘17 said. “I hear from folks all the time who are not willing to live in a state where abortion is not legal or are thinking about having kids and they don’t want to go through that in a state where some of the restrictions on education have been passed.”
Coraline Etler ‘26 is one student who is considering leaving not just Iowa, but the country, due to her political beliefs.
“The majority of Iowa does not share my val ues,” she said. “[But] I love Iowa City. Since the [2024 General] Election, I’m wondering if I even want to stay in the U.S.”
Jillian Conlon ‘26 agrees.
“I just want to live somewhere where Kim Reynolds isn’t the governor and preferably somewhere that votes blue,” she said. “I would also love to see the world and live near water.”
Both Conlon and Etler’s responses demonstrate the overwhelming trend from the City High survey of wanting to explore new places and leaving the conservative state of Iowa behind. However, some students do find concerns when faced with future job prospects.
“Only one university in Iowa offers the program I’m interested in,” said Jethro Michaelson ‘27, who wants to go to California Polytechnic State University to study urban planning.
The only university in Iowa that offers an urban planning program is Iowa State, in Ames. The University of Iowa has a similar program called environmental planning, which focuses more on environmental issues, but Michaelson is more interested in people-related issues in urban planning like transportation equality. However, neither the Iowa or Iowa State program is very prestigious, which turns Michaelson away and
course.
Not everyone wants to leave Iowa. For some, they can see themselves being happy and content in Iowa, provided that they have opportunities to grow and succeed.
“I think I’ll probably stay in Iowa,” Max Brown ‘26 said. “I like it here, my family’s here, and it’s nice.”
Adam Zabner ‘17, a City High graduate who is now a state representative in the Iowa Legislature, is committed to making sure young Iowans know they belong in Iowa. After graduating from the University of Chicago in 2021, he moved back to Iowa.
“I think I got a world-class education at City High. I grew up around a lot of really incredible people, and a lot of them have left,” he said. “I heard people telling me they don’t see a future for themselves in this state.”
That’s why, in 2022, he decided to run for the Iowa House of Representatives.
“Look, it’s our future,” he said. “It impacts everyone in our state. If you’re an elderly person in Denison and you can’t find a home health aide, that’s a really big challenge. If you live in rural Southeast Iowa and you have to drive an hour and a half to give birth because there’s no OBGYN in your area, that’s also a big challenge.”
Effects of brain drain can also be seen in larger examples. Earlier this year, Hills Elementary School in Hills, Iowa, was closed because the Iowa City Community School District could not afford the cost per student. When people leave the state, schools close. Businesses close.
“[There’s a] workforce crisis. Talk to almost any small business and pretty much any field in the state. and they’ll tell you they struggle to hire and find talent,” Zabner said. “It’s the fabric of our communities. Who’s here is really what this state is.”
Iowa is drowning in brain drain. But instead of fighting the problem and making people feel more welcome, the conservative government is polarizing Iowans, according to Zabner.
“We have to be a state that welcomes talent, [but] we’re pushing people away with some of these policies,” Zabner said. “Other states are actually competing to try and bring in talented people, so that puts us behind from the start.”
Zabner is a major proponent of targeted loan forgiveness and other ways of helping to keep college graduates in the state. Loan forgiveness programs would make college in Iowa much more accessible and the cost of living in Iowa would be lower, incentivizing young Iowans to live in Iowa. For Iowans who aren’t college educated, however, he also has ideas.
“We have to look at fighting to invest and create jobs in some of the fastest growing industries in the country,” Zabner said. “You see other states that have successfully built electrical vehicle plants, battery plants, and we could do a lot more on the economic development side to try and bring these types of jobs that are often high-paying and don’t require a college degree to Iowa.”
Iowa’s ability to recruit and retain citizens has an impact on everyone. Zabner believes that there are opportunities to become a major player in industries like renewable energy, but Iowa lacks the workforce and talent to make that happen.
At City High, students have the option to take iJAG, a two-year program where students learn about the workforce and different pathways they could follow after graduating
WILL YOU STAY IN IOWA AFTER GRADUATION?
from high school.
“I think a lot of young people don’t see a future where they have opportunities to grow in Iowa,” Lauren Whitehead, who teaches the iJAG program, said. “It seems like a dead end to some kids.”
Iowa Jobs for America’s Graduates, or iJAG, is a statewide nonprofit that operates programs out of schools across the state. It focuses on preparing students for life after high school, whether or not students attend college. As part of the program, Whitehead brings in employers like the military and ALPLA (a manufacturer in Iowa City) in addition to a variety of two-year and four-year colleges.
“Our goal is to give students leadership opportunities, community service opportunities, meaningful engagement with their own future planning no matter what direction they plan to go,” Whitehead said.
Everything that iJAG does helps students prepare for life after graduation. Across the state, over 8,000 students in 174 programs take part in iJAG annually. Whitehead hopes that the program will help students see that they belong in Iowa and that they find their
place here.
“When students really participate in [iJAG], they have opportunities to connect to amazing corporations in Iowa and be part of an alumni network. They build a lot of professional connections and connections are how you get jobs, right?” Whitehead said. “My hope is that iJAG creates that kind of supportive network so that when [students] go out into the world, they have some people there to catch them on the other side of graduation.”
More and more people are leaving Iowa. But with the right steps forward and the right preparation for students, Zabner believes that it will improve.
“There’s a fundamental promise that you want to live in a place where kids are going to be better off than their parents,” Zabner said. “But when I talk to younger folks in the state, I’m concerned that they’re not seeing that. It’s really sad to hear from folks whose aspiration is to find a way out of Iowa, when I think we could be doing a lot more to make those opportunities available right here in the state.”
Reyna Roach
Reyna Roach ‘24 discusses going from City High to Dartmouth College in New Hampshire
PHOTO COURTESY OF REYNA ROACH
By Tai Caputo
wWhat is it like going from City High to an Ivy League college?
I think it’s very strange. I think the problem is, with a school like Dartmouth, [that] you get every single end of the spectrum in terms of where people are coming from. I’m really involved in the Native community on campus and we definitely have a different pool than, I think, the rest of the college, but there are people who [went] to [high] schools like Exeter and [paid] three times what I’m paying to go to Dartmouth for their high school. So I think it’s [been] a little bit of a culture shock. I think there is a lot of diversity at City, but it’s all very contained within the dynamics of the University of Iowa, if that makes sense: we have doctors’ kids, but we don’t have, like, oil typhoon’s kids. And so I think it’s very different, but I think that I’ve learned a lot in high school socially that has helped me navigate things. And then, people don’t know what Iowa is. [A lot of] Americans don’t know what Iowa is. I feel like international students know what Iowa is better than someone who lived in Delaware. . . They’re more likely to ask you where it is instead of assuming that it’s Idaho, if that makes sense. Because I think the Midwest is the region with the lowest enrollment at Dartmouth. [There are] not a lot of us. There is one other kid from Iowa, and he went to Robins, and I’ve never spoken to him.
Do you feel that your education at City prepared you to go to Dartmouth?
I think, [yes], more so than other people. I think it’s a spectrum. I think the opportunities City had did prepare me [for Dartmouth]. I was able to start taking classes at the University of Iowa when I was a sophomore, and so I feel like the fact that the ICCSD is really open to letting you take charge of your education and try to make the most of it, I think it leads to a lot of stratification in our academics, but it [also] allows you, if you have the time and resources and understanding of the system, to push yourself as far as you can. I think that prepared me for Dartmouth.
Some people, you’ll talk to them, and they’ll have been taking art history and Latin classes
and all that stuff [in high school], so I think [City] prepared me very well in comparison to where I could have been, but I also think we also have a lack of resources as public school in the state of Iowa, especially with our current political climate, and that’s really tragic. I think if we were better funded and our teachers had more money and time, it would’ve prepared me better, but I think that given the circumstances, I was very well prepared.
What is it like academically? Are your classes hard?
Yes, but not that hard. I’m doing all right. I think part of that, again, was taking University of Iowa classes. At Dartmouth I’m [also] taking history classes and Native American and indigenous studies classes, and [so] I already knew how to do that. So I think they’re much harder than high school classes, obviously, but they’re manageable and fun and really interesting, so. Worth it.
ican and Indigenous studies. [I] don’t know if I’ll modify or double major, but it’s [going to] be a combination of those two.
Do you know your professors?
“IT’S BEEN A LITTLE BIT OF A CULTURE SHOCK.”
- Reyna Roach ‘24
Are most of the people at Dartmouth from high schools similar to City High?
I wouldn’t say most of the people at Dartmouth are from similar high schools. I think 55% come from public schools, but they don’t come from public schools like [ours]. There are a lot of people from big cities, much [bigger] than Iowa City, and to me Iowa City is a relatively big-ish city for Iowa--I don’t think we’re from a small, quaint town. But the thing is, these people come from schools where in middle and elementary school, they were taking standardized tests to place into higher-level public schools, so most people don’t come from schools like City, and most people know each other [already] because they’re part of this web of private and elite public schools in New York. So the vibes are very different from [those of] Iowa City.
Have you chosen your major yet?
Yes. I want to do History and Native Amer-
[I know them] very well. [Right now] I’m [only] taking three classes because we’re on the quarter system–[at City] we call it the trimester system, because we take three terms a year, but it’s really the quarter system. So I only have three professors, and I go to their office hours, and I’ve had meals with two of the three. Maybe three out of three if you stretch, the meaning to, like, donuts in class. I think that specifically at Dartmouth, because we don’t have so many grad[uate] students, the professors are really interested in getting to know you, and if you put yourself out there, they really respond well to that. One of my professors is an anthropologist, a Maori–it’s an indigenous group in outside New Zealand--and she’s teaching this wonderful cross-listed class that she’s only going to teach once, because she’s going back to the University of Auckland. And because of how Dartmouth has a program where you can take your professor out to lunch, they give you a 60-dollar voucher to the fancy restaurant in Hanover, I got to have a really wonderful conversation [with her]. Then later in the semester I cooked her dinner because we have [weekly] Native American House dinners, and she was invited to one, and it happened to be mine, and it was really wonderful, and she gave me a book in return. I could go to her office hours and she talked to me about her life and my life, and there were so many opportunities where I got to connect with all of my professors, but I think it’s almost on a different level, if it’s another Native person and they’re your professor and they’re really trying to do a good job representing their community and teaching their community, and you’re trying to do the same with yours, so I think the type of conversations I’m able to have with professors, and the closeness that Dartmouth gives you with your faculty, is really unique. Like, where else do you cook your professor dinner? She got seconds, so I didn’t mess up.
What is it like to be in a small town on the border of Vermont and New Hampshire? Is it very isolated?
I feel [that] some people are like, “I could never live in [a place so isolated].” [But] I don’t have time to go and do things a lot. So it’s fun. I understand how some people would feel like it’s isolating, but because of the way the meal plan works, and the way that everything is kind of contained within the campus, I don’t feel like it’s isolating. I think it’s fun. During the term, there are a lot of opportunities to go out into the middle of the woods, and I did that during the orientation week, but I haven’t done it more than once during the term again because I’m so busy. [But] I really like it. And [the surroundings are] so beautiful. There are actual trees. And the Appalachian mountains are beautiful. It’s very different [than Iowa] in terms of the landscape, but it’s so amazing to be driving somewhere for hours and there is stuff besides corn outside. Most of the driving I’ve ever done in my life [has been] in the Midwest, but this is so different, where it’s actually beautiful when you look at the environment outside.
Dartmouth is the only Ivy League school with a legacy of enrolling indigenous students. What is that like for you?
It’s really, really amazing. Obviously, Iowa City is not a very Native town, proportionally. And obviously, I could go back to my community in Oklahoma and stuff like that, but it’s really wonderful to be able to make all these connections with different indigenous people and learn from them. I’m in a class with that professor who is Maori, and I think 30 out of the 34 students are Native. And so it’s just a completely different environment where you can really open up and share ideas and learn from other people and share your own experiences. And I don’t know how people go to Dartmouth and aren’t Native, because it’s so much better if you have that community. I live in the Native House and
study in Native American program spaces or the NAISB--the Native American and Indigenous Studies Building--so I feel very welcomed and at home, and it’s a uniquely Dartmouth thing, because I think other schools have [the same] number of Native students, but we’re just proportionally a lot more. We have, like, 300 Native students and about 100 students that are really active in the community. And at most at [the University of] Iowa, they might have 60 Native students, but five are active. And also the population of the school is a lot bigger. At Dartmouth, we make up over five percent of the school population or something like that, and it’s kind of not like that anywhere that’s a comparable institution to Dartmouth, if that makes sense.
You were accepted by more than one college. What led you to choose Dartmouth?
It was a mix of things. I applied [in the] regular decision [round], which is kind of unique. I think at least 50% of our student body is accepted through early decision. [This was] partly because I didn’t know what my financial aid would look like, so I had to go through the tortuous process that I’m sure lots of seniors are [in] now, where you’re submitting your application in early January, and you’re waiting months and months and months, and the end of March rolls around and you’re on the edge of your seat. I had phenomenal results for everything, so I could’ve gone [somewhere else]–I chose Dartmouth because of the Native community, because of the financial aid, and because I felt like there was a good mix of administrative support and academics, if that makes sense. . . In the past we had a lot of issues with kids hurting themselves and taking their own lives before [the current President] came, and so there has been a lot of push to have mental health resources and for the Native community specifically, there is an actual program that is supposed to support students, and the professors [are supportive], so I feel there [is] a good mix of treating you like a person and
also really pushing you academically. But it was difficult, because it’s so far away, and I think an elite institution like Dartmouth inherently has ethical implications that I’m not the biggest fan of, but I decided to go and I think I am happier here than I would be anywhere else. I’m very happy with my decision.
Did your first impressions about Dartmouth while visiting turn out to be true?
I was bad about doing college visits. I went to Dartmouth with the indigenous program in October 2023. That was the only time I went to the campus. I also only toured two schools officially, and Dartmouth wasn’t even one of them because they didn’t take us on a tour during the program. I was also incredibly sleep-deprived because the City marching band had a competition and then I flew out. I think it was much better than my impression that I got when I didn’t sleep. I came during October and it wasn’t rainy, but I didn’t remember the trees. And so when my dad who rented a car and flew with me was driving us from Boston to Hanover I was like, ‘Oh my god there [are] trees here.’ So I think it’s a lot better and when you’re actually trying to get in it can be overwhelming.
Do you miss City High and Iowa City?
I do. I am really happy where I am, and I’m really happy about my decision and all of that, but I made a lot of wonderful friends at City, and there are a few of us in the Boston area, but I’m not really in the Boston area; it’s not super accessible. Then I have friends on the West Coast, and friends still in Iowa. So it’s very strange to have my friends be so scattered about. It’s kind of sad. And I also miss my teachers at City. I think it’s just I got to know these people for four years, and I really grew so much, obviously, in high school and learned so much about myself and [learned so much] academically, and it’s very sad to be so far away from them, and I feel like, again, because Dartmouth is a very different space than City, it’s very strange to not really have
“IT’S REALLY WONDERFUL TO BE ABLE TO MAKE ALL THESE CONNECTIONS WITH DIFFERENT INDIGENOUS PEOPLE AND LEARN FROM THEM.”
- Reyna Roach
people [who] really [understand] that experience.
Finding little pieces of home when you’re far away is really important. I do text people and call people a lot and that helps. I call my parents-not every day--but a couple times a week, and I think that helps. [Algthough] there is a time difference, and it’s only one hour, but that makes things awkward.
Do you feel like you’ve changed or grown as a person?
I hope so. I think so. I’ve only been there for a relatively short amount of time, like twelve to thirteen weeks. But I think I’ve learned so much in that time, and I feel like I’ve made a lot of really close friends that I’ve learned a lot from too. So I hope that I’ve grown. But I think I have a lot more growing to do, if that makes sense. I hope that I have a lot of growing to do because that’ll make the next four years more interesting and fun but I think it’s an opportunity where you can learn a lot about yourself and the world and other people.
Do you eat in the cafeteria? How is the food?
I eat in the cafeteria. I think the food is bad. I’m on a specific meal plan that makes it more convenient to eat in the cafeteria. But I think, generally, our cafeteria is better than [at] a lot of schools. . . We have a buffet-style system, and the food is kind of bad, and there is a lot of cross-contamination, but it could be worse, and there are vegetables if you can find them.
Vegetables. . . if you can find them?
Like, you have to seek them out. Also, dining halls don’t know how to roast vegetables. I think they’re trying to pump out food quickly, but they don’t cook their vegetables quickly enough. You’ll get broccoli and it’s more lightly toasted than
roasted broccoli, so you might as well just eat raw broccoli. Because I live in the Native American House, we [each] get an assigned week to cook house dinners. So I get one home-cooked meal a week. I used to cook a lot for myself at home, so it’s very different to be at the mercy of Dartmouth dining services.
Do you have any advice for current seniors who are going through the college admissions process?
It’s just awful. Juniors--if you have a school you love, [apply in the] early decision [round].
[Seniors,] I would say, at this point, if you’re not working on your supplemental essays, you need to start working on those. I would also say, don’t put too much of yourself into the application. I think, to an extent, [that] you’re going to end up in a place where you can be and you can survive and make the most out of wherever you are. If you believe that you need to go to a specific institution or place or type of institution, I think you’re setting yourself up for tears if that doesn’t happen. I think you need to perceive yourself [as having] a variety of options. I do understand that it’s really terrifying to not know where you’re going to be living in like eight months, twelve months. But it’s also really beautiful, and the main thing is, you have to enjoy your senior year. Your senior year isn’t just the year before college, it’s your last year at City High and in Iowa City, if you’re going out of state, or even if you’re not going to the University of Iowa. And it’s probably your last year being as close with your teachers and your friends and teammates and community members, so I think you really need to make the most of it and take care of yourself, too. Sometimes if you just need to, like, sit in your room and not work on college applications or not think about college, let yourself do that, because it’s really scary to not know where you’re going to be a year from now.
And it’s okay to feel overwhelmed by that, I would say. Reach out to your resources.
Do you have any advice for younger students who are just starting to think about applying to college?
My advice is [to] be a person. I think that in the age of social media, [it can be easy] compare yourself to other people. At times there has been pressure to be a certain type of person and to think about things [uniquely] as resume builders, and I think that’s really harmful for you as an individual, and as an entity in this world, and as a community member. If you want to go to a fancy school, or if you’re interested in a place that happens to be a fancy school, or you feel like you have this pressure, you need to be excited about the things you’re excited about and if you see something that’s interesting to you, go for it. Do it. Put yourself out there, and be a good friend. I think that’s really important. And high school is really tricky [place in which] to do that, I think.
“FINDING LITTLE PIECES OF HOME WHEN YOU’RE FAR AWAY IS REALLY IMPORTANT.”
- Reyna Roach
Is there anything you wish I had asked about?
The only thing people [who aren’t from Iowa] might know about Iowa is the Writers’ Workshop. If I say I’m from Iowa City, and I’ll be like ‘My mom’s a professor,’ they’re like, ‘Oh my goodness, is she with the Writers’ Workshop?’ and I’m like, ‘No.’ If they’re not writers, they won’t know about it immediately. Yeah: we get cool authors here all the time.
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Peanut butter blossoms are a popular holiday dessert. ey are a peanut butter cookie dough with Hershey Kisses stuck in the middle. ey are best enjoyed right away, or after 15-25 seconds in the microwave.
By Martha Willard
History:
ese cookies were invented in 1957 as an entry to a Pilsbury baking competition Freda Smit, who was from Gibsonburg, Ohio. Unfortunately, she didn’t end up winning but she did invent a remark- able cookie. ey were orginally named Black-Eyed Susans but the name was later changed to Peanut Butter Blossoms.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of packed brown sugar
1/2 cup of butter
1/2 cup of peanute butter (or an alternative, even plain butter also works)
1 egg
2 T milk
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 3/4 cups our
1 (10 oz) package of Hershey Kisses
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, prepare a baking sheet, and unwrap kisses.
2. First cream the peanut butter, butter, sugar, and brown sugar.
3. Beat in the eggs, milk, and vanilla.
4. Add our, baking soad, and salt.
5. Roll dough into small balls and roll in granulated suagr, then on baking sheet.
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes. As soon as they come out, stick a Hershey’s kiss in the middle.
WINTER COMICS
By Yomi Hemley
TEACHER CONNECTIONS
By Yomi Hemley
“We bought our first homes right next door to each other in 2007. We ended up fencing in our backyards together, raised our kids together, shared meals together, raised multiple dogs together - basically we have been family since then. We have both moved to new houses, and still get together for dinner/hangouts and of course, work together at City High.”
Mrs. Peterson & Mrs. Alberhasky
WINTER GAMES
VERTICAL:
1. Water does this when it is cold outside
2. He’s a mean one
3. What santa eats with milk
4. The first ghost of Christmas
5. Not snow, not ice, but --
6. Mean main character of Charles Dickens’s novel
7. The current season
By Yomi Hemley
ACROSS:
1. Light one of these to warm up
2. What people get on Christmas & Hanukkah
6. This falls from the sky when it is cold
8. Drink enjoyed with marshmallows