After career in education, Rubel tries his hand at politics

Indian Hills Executive Dean Tom Rubel has filed candidacy papers for the Iowa Senate in District 41, which includes Fairfield and much of Jefferson County.

Rubel, a Democrat, previously served as Superintendent of the Ottumwa Community School District, as well as superintendent, principal, teacher, and coach in other school districts in Iowa. He serves on the board of directors for the Ottumwa Area Economic Development Corporation, Ottumwa Legacy Foundation Leadership Advisory, and previously served on the board of directors for United Way of Wapello County.

He describes himself as an Iowa farm boy, which means he keeps a close eye on agricultural issues. Rubel has spent nearly his entire adult life, since 1971, working in schools, so educational policy is naturally one of his passions.

?I spent 10 years in the classroom prior to going into administration,? he said. ?I think I taught every grade level except kindergarten.?

Rubel taught elementary physical education, middle school history and high school courses. He said he liked working with middle school students, particularly eighth graders, because they?re at a point in their maturity when a teacher can influence their behavior and thinking.

The aspiring state senator said he thinks a lot about his time as a teacher when he is contemplating his views on education.

?When teachers are voicing concerns, I have a pretty high degree of confidence I know where they?re coming from,? he said. ?They want to take care of the academics, the curricula and student assessments. When you become a superintendent, you get more into the finances, school calendars and collective bargaining. I?ve had the good fortune of having that range that few legislators have.?

Rubel said tourism is another important issue he hopes to tackle as a state senator. He mentioned that Van Buren County has done a great job of promoting local tourism.

?A lot of tourism is marketing,? he said. ?RAGBRAI has been a pretty darn good thing for Iowa. We?re getting thousands of people here every summer, and we get to showcase our state.?

Rubel said one of his goals is to retain more young people in Iowa.

?This may sound corny, but I think we need to have a higher opinion of ourselves, and not be afraid to say this is a great place to raise kids and families,? he said. ?We need to reinforce with our young people that our schools are good. Maybe we could give tax breaks on property for a period of time.?

Rubel said some towns entice retirees to move there. He wondered why Iowa couldn?t entice young people to move here or stay here.

?Our schools are losing kids and we?re an aging population,? he said. ?The high school I attended is closed, and it?s not going to come back. It didn?t have young families to support the schools.?

He said the problem of young people leaving the state is intimately tied to the availability of high-paying jobs.

?You can?t say this is a great place to stay if there?s no work here, with no opportunity to enhance your standard of living,? Rubel said.

Rubel said he would like to simplify Iowa?s tax structure because it has become too complicated.

?Most people, including me some days, don?t understand it and are suspicious of it,? he said. ?We have such a wide range of formulas for paying taxes. If you simplify it, you create more equity in the process.?

In addition to Fairfield, District 41 includes all of Davis and Van Buren counties; part of Wapello County, including Ottumwa, Agency and Eldon; and part of Jefferson County, including the towns of Batavia, Libertyville, Maharishi Vedic City, Packwood and Pleasant Plain.