DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Family Circle, the monthly home magazine for women that launched in 1932, will close after its December issue publishes. Des Moines-based parent company Meredith acquired Family Circle in 2005. The magazine has 13 million readers and more than 1 million followers on social media. About 25 staffers were laid off.

WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – The Waukee Community School District has reached a settlement in two pending lawsuits. KCCI-TV reports a former administrative assistant claimed she was wrongfully fired for reporting the actions of the district’s former chief operating officer. She will receive $1 million. The former chief operating officer pleaded guilty to using a district owned snowblower for personal use and soliciting money for his son’s hockey team from companies doing business with the district. She also sued the district for violating open meetings laws.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The number of known cases of sexual harassment committed by employees in Iowa’s executive branch has spiked. The cases resulted in terminations of employees at multiple agencies, including the Department of Transportation, the Department of Human Services and the Department of Revenue.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is forming a working group chaired by the lieutenant governor to make recommendations for removing racial bias from the criminal justice system and to help offenders re-enter communities in a way that reduces repeat offenses. Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg is a former state public defender.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham is headlining the Iowa Republican Party’s annual Lincoln-Reagan dinner on Friday, Nov. 8. Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, has supported President Donald Trump after his election in 2016. However, the Senator recently condemned Trump for withdrawing troops from Syria. Graham says, “I will not sit along the sidelines and watch a good ally, the Kurds, be slaughtered by Turkey.”