House Journal: Page 61: Tuesday, January 12, 1999

during times of catharsis - our economic diversification program became a reality 

only once we hit a wall called the farm crisis.
Our challenge today is to make changes in the good times so that Iowa can grow 
into even better times.  We need to open our arms and communities to 21st century 
immigrants who will make our state economically stronger and more culturally 
diverse.  
We must convince our own children and those from other states that they can make 
a great living and live a great life in Iowa.  We will not convince them with memories of 
a pastoral past.  You can't feed your family on memories.  We will convince them only 
by creating a climate of growth and unlimited opportunity for all.  
Therefore, I suggest that Iowans engage in a great conversation; a great 
conversation on growth over the next few years.  In every community, barriers to 
growth, whether they be statutory, regulatory, cultural, or economic, should be 
identified and broken down.  An era of responsible risk taking must be ushered in.  A 
new era of entrepreneurship must be fostered.  Successful risk-takers should be touted, 
not flouted.  We must make it OK to stand out above the crowd in Iowa.
We need to nurture the next generation of Ruans and McLeods, John K. Hansons 
and Dwight Vredenburgs.  And then double and triple their number.
That does not mean we have to depopulate rural Iowa while we build up only our 
cities, as some would say.  Our capacity for growth is not based on location - technology 
shortens all distances.  We don't need to create a greater disparity of wealth to create a 
better climate for wealth-creation.  We can have growth everywhere in this state.  
But it also means we must find ways to further process our own goods here in Iowa.  
We must give our producers and workers greater access to sources of capital and more 
options in the marketplace so they, too, can help Iowa grow.  We must encourage and 
help our cities to grow, too, so that they reach a critical mass of economic and cultural 
opportunities.
We will have to think outside the box to do this.  It won't be easy.  We won't be able 
to do things the way they have always been done.  But like it or not, the only thing 
certain about the future is the certainty of change.  We must either embrace it and 
make this good state a growth state, or face a future that is but a mere reflection of the 
past.  Let the great conversation on growth begin.
Our second challenge for change is in education.  No state has a deeper education 
heritage; no state has shown a more sustained commitment to its young.  But there is 
too much complacency.  We are among the best, but not as good as we could be, and our 
educational establishment is too resistant to change.
The problems our schools face have never been greater.  New stresses on families, 
the drug culture, new immigrants, and rapidly changing technologies and workplace 
skills all weigh heavily on our schools.  But no challenge is greater than the imminent 
loss of a whole generation of our best teachers.
We all know you can have a class size of one, have a bad teacher, and get a horrible 
education.  We all know that one outstanding teacher can make a difference in our life 
for the rest of our lives.  

© 1999 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa

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