State Representative Ruth Ann Gaines became the second Black person to accept the Herbert Hoover Uncommon Public Service Award at the beginning of this year. The “Uncommon Public Service Award” is presented annually to one State Senator and one State Representative. The honor was created by the Herbert Hoover Presidential Foundation in West Branch, Iowa. According to their website, the award is given to Iowa legislators who have “demonstrated uncommon service to the people of Iowa above and beyond their legislative responsibilities.” Representative Gaines accepted the award on 13 January 2021, in a ceremony held during the first week of session. State Representative Bobby Kaufman, who has presented many former recipients with the award, opened the ceremony by highlighting Gaines’ accomplishments. “Giving this award is particularly special for me, because we’ve be friends for over half a decade,” said Representative Kaufman, “and I can think of no one in this chamber more deserving of this award.” Continuing through his introduction, Kaufman also shared some highlights from Rep. Gaines’ career. “She has been recognized as teacher of the year many times by many organizations, she was the first recipient of the Heritage legacy award, and most recently named as the BHM Honorees by Banker’s Trust,” said Representative Kaufman, speaking to the Iowa House of Representative’s chamber. The Herbert Hoover Presidential Foundation usually does not inform recipients of the Uncommon Public Service Award before the presentation ceremony. However, due the COVID19 pandemic, the award presentation for 2020 was rescheduled, and Gaines was informed of her win in June 2020. “Unlike other recipients of this very prestigious award, I’ve known about it... since the middle of June, in fact, and I’ve waited for this date for about 6 months,” said Representative Ruth Ann Gaines. “I want to thank Rep. Kaufman and President Jerry Fleagle of the Hoover Foundation for making arrangements for me to receive this award today.” A lifelong educator, Gaines acknowledged some of the milestones that lead her to this award. “On January 5th, [that] was my 50th anniversary of classroom teaching,” Gaines said, “and as I thought about it, I realized that my teaching experience laid the foundation for being a legislator.” “Working all those years with so many different kinds of people and families, gave me a keen insight to the human condition, and allowed me to develop the qualities of compassion, empathy, and respect for others.” Gaines is a veteran and highly decorated educator. Starting work as a teacher in 1971 at both East High School and Des Moines area community college, Gaines taught at East High School for 40 years before retiring to serve as a legislator and continues to teach at DMACC today. During her tenure, she received numerous awards for her teaching. She was the 1997 Rotary High School Teacher of the Year, the 1998 Iowa Teacher of the Year, and a 1999 Finalist for National Teacher of the Year. Gaines is also a highly respected leader in the Des Moines community. She founded the Sisters for Success organization at East High School, a group dedicated to helping students of color in Des Moines. She has served as the Des Moines Human Rights Commissioner, is credited with reinstating the Friends of Des Moines Human Rights Committee. She has also served on numerous boards under Governor’s Vilsak and Culver. More recently, she co-founded and is the current Vice President of the Iowa Legislative Black Caucus. On her achievements and merits for the Uncommon Public Service Award, Kaufman said “the list of her public achievements is very long… and [we] agree that her heart is focused on Iowans.”
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