University of Iowa alters P3 grant distribution process

IOWA CITY — Nearly four years into a $1.165 billion public-private partnership for the operation of its utilities system for five decades, the University of Iowa is continuing to massage its process for distributing proceeds from the massive deal across campus.

Until recently, a UI “strategy team” would vet applications for grants — pulled from annual proceeds of an endowment created with the deal’s upfront income — and then announce grant recipients at the start of a new budget year.

But for the new budget year that began Saturday, UI leaders decided to hold back about half the $15 million in endowment proceeds they intend to distribute over the course of fiscal 2024 for “implementation of additional strategic plan initiatives throughout the year.”

Under this new funding model, a newly-named “Strategic Plan Action and Resource Committee” can consider requests “on a rolling basis” until all the fiscal 2024 funds are committed.

“Adopting this new funding approach allows the university to prioritize crucial improvements to educational spaces and respond more quickly to funding needs that arise throughout the year,” according to UI Strategic Communications. “The new funding model maintains the opportunity for all members of the campus community to submit proposals.”

Of the initial allocation this fiscal year, most will go toward facilities upgrades — with $5 million earmarked for “the enhancement of education infrastructure on campus.” Additionally, four grant proposals have been granted a combined $2.6 million.

Since UI in 2020 closed its deal with a group of businesses — collectively called the UI Energy Collaborative — to operate its utility system for 50 years in exchange for a $1.165 billion lump-sum payment, the campus has followed a set of guiding principles for distributing endowment proceeds.

Among those principles, proposals should support initiatives in line with the UI strategic plan; boast broad impact across more than one priority and have a high return on investment; be “outside of scope, or unable to be supported, through the current budget model”; have the potential to leverage additional funds; involve cross-campus collaboration; and sustain strategic activities beyond the grant.

Four grant recipients

With a new 2022-2027 strategic plan in place focused on student, faculty and staff success; research and discovery; diversity, equity and inclusion; holistic well-being; and public engagement, campus leaders recognized “the potential for a more effective use of the P3 funds.”

“The four projects selected this year are innovative proposals that will have a positive impact on our students, faculty, and staff,” UI Executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Kregel said in a statement. “Additionally, the investment in educational infrastructure allows us to provide more modern and accessible learning spaces to better meet the needs and expectations of our students and instructors.”

The UI committee for the new budget year so far has chosen these projects from among 33 applications:

“Leveraging substantial institutional data and quasi-experimental methods, researchers on the project team will determine when and for whom financial assistance is most effective,” according to UI officials.

As part of the $5 million allocated for campus infrastructure improvements is $3 million dedicated to facility upgrades enabling the UI Department of Dance to relocate across the Iowa River to the former art museum. The remaining $2 million will go toward upgrading classrooms.

Dance move

In response to the announcement the dance department is in the beginning stages of vacating the aging Halsey Hall, officials on the department’s Facebook page wrote, “We are THRILLED with this news.”

“The renovation, and our move, will take place over time,” according to the post. “At the end of the process, we will have dance studios in sufficient sizes and numbers as well as locker rooms, a classroom, a conference room, student gathering space, a computer lab, warm-up areas, and more — and we will be located in a beautiful space overlooking the river, right next door to our friends in University of Iowa Department of Theatre Arts.”

Halsey Hall was built as a woman’s gymnasium, carries $7 million in deferred maintenance and comes with a string of other deficiencies, including inefficient spaces for dance classes and electrical and mechanical systems that are at capacity. By moving the dance department, the university can renovate its nearby Iowa Memorial Union and adjacent parking ramp.

“Once the Department of Dance and other occupants move out of Halsey Hall, the building will be razed,” according to UI officials. “At that time, the adjacent IMU parking ramp also will be removed, making way for a new, modern parking ramp that will serve the needs of campus visitors, prospective students and families, and those using the IMU across the street.”

As of March, the university had distributed $41 million out of its endowment — which has grown in value from $985.9 million to $1.06 billion, a total that includes previous cross-campus grant distributions.

Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com