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Lawmakers expect House debate on bill addressing university sports lawsuits
A bill specifying that state university athletic departments have to pay for their own lawsuit settlements is expected to see debate on the Iowa House floor. The legislation was introduced after a settlement of nearly $4.2 million against the University of Iowa athletics department in a lawsuit filed by 12 former football players. House File […]
Regents prepare for governor’s reorganization goals
The Iowa Board of Regents is preparing for some changes if Gov. Kim Reynolds’s proposed state government reorganization bill is passed. Regents President Mike Richards discussed the two shifts the regents will see if Senate Study Bill 1123 moves forward. The Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Iowa School of […]
Iowa’s state universities not shying away from AI technology in classrooms
While educators around the country are wrestling with ethical concerns posed by new artificial intelligence chatbots, Iowa’s public universities are looking to use the advancements in the classroom. ChatGPT is a natural language processing artificial intelligence (AI) technology tool, developed by OpenAI, that generates human-like conversations. The program other bots are currently expanding, although their […]
Regents look to expand distance education
Iowa’s public universities should expand distance education offerings, including allowing students at one state university to take courses from another, Board of Regents staff members recommended Wednesday. Regents Chief Academic Officer Rachel Boon presented the annual distance education report and representatives for the University of Iowa, the University of Northern Iowa, and Iowa State University […]
UI graduate student union, Regents open bargaining with wide gulf on wages
The University of Iowa’s graduate student union and state Board of Regents’ representatives began their collective bargaining process on Thursday with drastically different proposals. Campaign to Organize Graduate Students (COGS), the campus’s graduate student union, proposed a 10% wage increase for the 2023-25 contracts. Union representatives also asked for contracts to include minimum remote working […]
Iowa’s public universities prepare program expansions in 2023, 2024
Iowa’s three public universities are planning to expand several programs over the next two academic years. Starting in 2023, Iowa State University is helping students retain the flexibility of the online options originally offered during the COVID-19 pandemic while the University of Northern Iowa works to finalize its new nursing program by 2024. The University […]
Regents investigate enrollment drops, project future increases
Iowa’s public universities are projected to see enrollment growth after a six-year decline, members of the Iowa Board of Regents heard this week. Jason Pontius, associate chief academic officer for the board, reported projected enrollment rates for the next decade Thursday at the regents’ meeting in Council Bluffs. He said estimating enrollment numbers isn’t easy […]
University of Iowa pursues initiatives to poach top faculty from across country
The University of Iowa is working to poach top faculty members from other universities while retaining current personnel through two initiatives presented to the state Board of Regents. UI President Barbara Wilson discussed some of the programs being used as “talent magnets” by the university. The regents met Thursday in Council Bluffs. “It is not […]
Voters approve constitutional amendment on gun rights
The constitutional amendment restricting infringement on gun ownership and use on Iowa voters’ ballots passed on Tuesday. The ballot question received 65.1% “yes” votes and 34.9% “no,” with 98% precincts reporting, according to unofficial results. The Associated Press projected just before 11 p.m. Tuesday that the amendment had been approved. Constitutional amendments need a simple […]
Feenstra wins reelection in Iowa’s 4th District
Rep. Randy Feenstra has won a second term in the U.S. House of Representatives with 67.4% of the vote over Democratic challenger Ryan Melton, based on unofficial results. With 99% of precincts reporting Wednesday, Melton had 30.4% of the vote and Liberty Caucus candidate Bryan Jack Holder had 2.2%. The Associated Press called the race […]
Iowa’s congressional candidates view health care as top policy issue
Health care remains a top issue for Iowa’s U.S. House and Senate candidates as the Nov. 8 election comes up, with most of them ranking the topic in their top five priorities. Here are the Republican and Democratic candidates’ positions on several health care issues. Expanding rural health care Mike Franken, Iowa’s Democratic candidate for […]
Enrollment drops but student diversity increases at Iowa’s public universities
The Iowa Board of Regents reported a drop in undergraduate enrollment at the three state universities during the 2022 fall semester. The 1.3% decline is nearly half of last year’s enrollment drop. The universities saw a 2.5% decrease, which represented more than 1,800 students, last fall. State university enrollments have been shrinking since fall 2017. Fall […]