The Iowa City Community School District has been recognized as a Purple Star school district by the Iowa Department of Education, marking a statewide acknowledgement of the district’s efforts to support military-connected students and their families.
Military-connected students have at least one caregiver actively serving or having previously served in the military. The Purple Star designation is awarded to schools and districts that demonstrate a strong commitment to meeting the unique needs of students with military ties.
Along with the Iowa City Community School District, six other school districts in the state received the Purple Star recognition, including:
- Albia Community School District
- Forest City Community School District
- Newtown Community School District
- Pleasantville Community School District
- Sigourney Community School District
- Woodward-Granger Community School District
According to the Iowa Department of Education, qualifying schools must designate a staff member to serve as a military liaison, provide professional development for staff on the needs of military students and families, and implement practices that ease the transition for students who frequently move schools.
At Iowa City City High School, administrators say the recognition reflects years of work building systems to better support students whose families are involved in the armed forces.
“Relationships are kind of one of our non-negotiables,” City High School Assistant Principal Philip Hansen said. “They are one of our big things. If you’re building good, strong relationships with students, you’re going to learn what students need and what challenges they are facing outside of school.”
The recognition stems from state legislation passed in May 2025 directing the Iowa Department of Education to establish a Purple Star School program.
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A Department of Education press release said the law aims to ensure military-connected students and families, who often face challenges such as interrupted classes, social transitions, and emotional strain from family deployments, receive consistent academic support from schools across the state.
As part of the program requirements, schools must maintain a dedicated point of contact for military families. At Iowa City High, career development facilitator Russ Johnson filled that role, becoming a military liaison for the school.
Johnson said the role of a liaison is to create accessible resources for students to help them navigate classes, enrollment, and extracurricular involvement.
“If students are new to City, we will make them aware of the academic and emotional support available,” Johnson said. “As we get better at identifying military-connected students, we can get better at offering individualized support.”
Johnson said part of his role as a career development facilitator includes helping high school students explore nontraditional tracks post-high school, including the armed forces.
“For students interested in the military, I can help students learn about the differences between the reserve opportunities, fully enlisted opportunities, and ROTC programs,” he said. “Helping them understand the differences makes it easier to connect them with the appropriate recruiter.”
Hansen said collaboration across staff is important in meeting the program’s standards. Teachers, counselors, and administrators all work together to identify and support military-connected students and ensure they have access to academic and emotional support.
“We are here for the families. We are here to serve them and all of their needs,” Hansen said. “It is all about supporting students as a whole.”