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Iowa Ideas: Panel will examine challenges testing Iowa’s small colleges
Other Iowa Ideas topics include meeting student needs and lifelong learning
Oct. 6, 2023 5:30 am
Nearly eight months after four of Iowa’s small private universities presented Gov. Kim Reynolds with a request for $48 million in federal pandemic relief aid to “help prepare rural Iowa for a brighter economic future” by growing their campuses, three of the institutions still have not heard back about their ask.
The one that did — in a denial of the $12 million piece Iowa Wesleyan University sought to help sustain its operations in Mount Pleasant — closed in May, ending its historic 181-year era and epitomizing challenges facing small colleges.
Reynolds denied Wesleyan’s request after an independent assessment she ordered found “risk to the state’s funds that the return on investment may not be realized.” Further, the report found, even with the help, the university faced the ‘threat of closure.“
The Gazette aims to discuss the challenges facing small colleges during one its seven higher education-related sessions planned for its Iowa Ideas virtual conference, a free event scheduled for Oct. 12 and 13.
“This discussion will look at what can or will need to happen to bring additional stability,” according to a summary of the “small college health” session. “As well as the role the state or other funders should play in preserving campuses in Iowa’s smaller communities.”
The three other universities seeking $12 million apiece from Iowa’s COVID-19 aid pot aren’t waiting around for Reynolds to decide. They’re forging ahead on their plans to grow and thrive — given that Reynolds has more than a year to respond.
“The obligation deadline is not until the end of 2024,” spokesman Kollin Crompton said.
Even without the pandemic money, some of Iowa’s small, private, rural campuses are reporting enrollment upticks this fall amid campus changes aimed at addressing budget challenges.
“Graceland University today announced sweeping changes to its tuition and financial aid formula to ensure greater price transparency and access to Graceland by all students,” the Lamoni-based campus announced Sept. 19. “Graceland has always been competitively priced after factoring in financial aid and scholarships, but families have asked for a more simplified cost, and Graceland is providing it.”
Graceland simplified its tuition-financial aid formula by lowering its “sticker price” from $32,500 to $19,950 — while also making scholarship and financial aid opportunities available, albeit “in a scaled process that leaves the bottom line for attending Graceland University the same as last year.”
Mental health needs
That focus on meeting student demands and needs is paramount to private and public college and university efforts to remain relevant — like Graceland’s announcement this fall of new majors in finance, marketing and digital creation.
Iowa’s public universities regularly terminate and innovate new majors and degree programs, based on enrollment and shifting trends in the workforce.
This year’s Iowa Ideas conference will touch on that growing impetus to “meet the needs of students” with a session asking what those needs are — including in the mental health realm. Students across Iowa’s public universities recently sent the Board of Regents a letter regarding a “significant need of increased accessibility and options for mental health and well-being.”
“Increased funding is necessary to better expand counseling services to students, lower wait times to meet with mental health professionals, and broaden options for support to better students’ academic and personal needs,” according to the letter from student leaders at the University of Iowa, the University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University.
Their request compelled the board in September to add to its annual state appropriations ask $1 million — which student leaders would help designate and distribute across the campuses if approved by the Iowa Legislature.
Political and intellectual diversity
Other higher education-related sessions slated for Iowa Ideas this year include one digging into the question on the value of a degree and another asking how to navigate political and intellectual diversity.
“Navigating the seas of political polarization and culture war issues pose unique challenges for universities,” according to a summary of the session, called Balancing intellectual diversity and polarization. “What are the risks culture wars pose to Iowa’s colleges and universities and what impact could that have if students align with like-minded colleges or avoid states where majority party politics differ from their own?”
This issue has become increasingly prescient given discussion in the Legislature last session about the universities’ spending on diversity, equity and inclusion programming and past debates over free speech controversies across the campuses.
Heading into another term in which the Legislature has been asked to increase appropriations to the public universities by more than $38 million, the campuses will be forced to address campus climate questions and concerns that have been and are continuing to be raised by lawmakers.
Higher Education track
Small college health — 10:10 a.m. Oct. 12: Iowa Wesleyan’s closing at the end of May brought the challenges facing Iowa’s smaller colleges into plain sight. Four — including Wesleyan — asked the state to invest $48 million in federal funds to help the schools find financial footing. The stressors facing Iowa’s small colleges caught many by surprise. This discussion will look at what can or will need to happen to bring additional stability as well as the role the state or other funders should play in preserving campuses in Iowa’s smaller communities.
Meeting the needs of students — 11:15 a.m. Oct. 12: Whether it’s COVID-19 learning loss or needing to work while going to school, colleges are facing a challenge balancing affordability with being able to provide effective student supports — both in and out of the classroom. How are faculty at Iowa’s colleges and universities adjusting and how are colleges forecasting to address student needs while still working to manage costs?
Encouraging and availability of learning at any age — 1:20 p.m. Oct. 12: For those remaining in the job market, tech evolutions and global competition is pushing the need for lifelong learning. How well is Iowa supporting lifelong learning and upskilling and what needs to be done about providing opportunities for folks to return to school for certificates or other credentials later in life?
Weighing the investment of a college degree — 2:25 p.m. Oct. 12: While there’s been much energy put around creation of apprenticeships, it has also framed much of the conversation with “or” in front of college. This session will explore the connection between college and career and what may need to be done to balance the need to work while learning.
Balancing intellectual diversity and polarization — 8:30 a.m. Oct. 13: Navigating the seas of political polarization and culture war issues pose challenges for universities. What are the risks culture wars pose to Iowa’s colleges and universities and what impact could that have if students align with like-minded colleges or avoid states where majority party politics differ from their own?
Reimagining the delivery of higher education in Iowa — 9:40 a.m. Oct. 13: Iowa’s colleges and universities have been working feverishly to create reciprocal agreements, accept transfer credits or get their degrees faster. But could Iowa colleges and universities go further — like dual enrollment or taking classes for credit across all schools simultaneously? How can Iowa leverage online, experiential and online learning and what will this mean for how students in Iowa go to college?
Test optional college admissions — 10:45 a.m. Oct. 13: The test-optional admission practice took off, with the majority of colleges admitting students based on class grades instead of things like the ACT. What has that meant for Iowa’s higher education institutions and will the tests remain optional? This topic will look at how college student bodies have changed, and whether the changes — some made out of necessity in COVID-19 — will be permanent.
Higher Education track schedule: iowaideas.com/topics/education_higher_ed
Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.
Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com
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