116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401

Vanessa Miller
I’ve covered lots of beats over my decades as a reporter, and one reason I really enjoy higher education is because it touches on them all. One day I’m writing about science and interviewing University of Iowa NASA researchers, the next I’m writing about health care, or agriculture, or a new Iowa State-supported business, or athletic budgets, or criminal justice, or the Legislature and potential bills affecting Iowa’s university and college campuses. I also love that I get to investigate and dig deep on some stories, report hard news, and then also share incredible and sometimes harrowing tales of survival or discovery. When I’m not working, I’m playing with my kids or following them around to wrestling tournaments. Get the news delivered right to your inbox.
Latest Articles by Vanessa Miller
Higher Ed Sep. 29, 2022 3:53 pm1098d ago
With signs and sunglasses and heavy hearts still fully committed to the mission that drew them to health care, University of Iowa nurses on Thursday convened outside their hospital to air grievances and warnings about
Higher Ed Sep. 28, 2022 3:16 pm1099d ago
University of Iowa Health Care leaders recently notified employees that nurses in the coming weeks will face “some of the most challenging” staffing to date – warning, specifically, that nurses in some units at times will have to take on five patients.
Higher Ed Sep. 26, 2022 10:04 am1101d ago
A study published Aug. 18 in the prestigious Nature Genetics journal identified 60 genes that contribute to autism largely via inherited genes from parents who don’t have autism or cognitive differences – including five never before implicated in the condition.
Higher Ed Sep. 23, 2022 6:00 am1105d ago
Gursharan Virk was somewhat surprised to recently learn he was the first Sikh Air Force cadet in U.S. history to be allowed to wear his traditional turban, beard and bracelet while in uniform.
Higher Ed Sep. 20, 2022 6:00 am1108d ago
Following years of atypical student experiences characterized by separate and dispersed learning environments connected via screens, Kirkwood Community College last week celebrated the completion of its new on-campus $34 million student center aimed at connection and collaboration.
Higher Ed Sep. 20, 2022 11:10 am1107d ago
The ISU vision for the $200 million CyTown project involves a 135,000-square-foot development including a medical facility, retail space, offices, and luxury suites. The endeavor would include an outdoor public plaza and amphitheater, restaurants and pubs, a hotel and convention center.
Higher Ed Sep. 19, 2022 5:00 am1109d ago
In its 55th year, the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program this fall – following a two-year hiatus from its traditional format – welcomed back to campus 33 established and accomplished authors from the likes of Bangladesh, Sweden, Mexico, Palestine, Ethiopia, Poland, and Barbados.
Higher Ed Sep. 15, 2022 3:16 pm1112d ago
Following a breakfast meeting with student leaders on Thursday, Iowa regents decided to increase their state funding request by $1 million. The additional money — if approved by the legislature — would expand mental health services.
Iowa Football Sep. 15, 2022 9:02 am1112d ago
But former players suing them for discrimination, retaliation, and systemic racial hostility are firing back – accusing the coaches of dodging, delaying, and hiding behind attorneys to avoid producing court-compelled records and participating in the legal process.
Higher Ed Sep. 12, 2022 4:35 pm1115d ago
An assessment of new U.S. News & World Report rankings out Monday – along with several metrics used to decide them – indicates the University of Iowa and Iowa State University fall below their Board of Regents-assigned peers in many categories, except one key measure: acceptance rate.
Higher Ed Sep. 12, 2022 11:56 am1115d ago
Although University of Iowa held steady at its overall national rank of No. 83 in U.S. News & World Report’s new “2022-2023 Best Colleges” assessment out Monday, the campus surged past a string of Ivy League schools on its list of best writing programs to claim the No. 2 spot in the country.
Higher Ed Sep. 10, 2022 9:33 am1117d ago
When officials with UIHC’s Eating Disorder Program on Sept. 1 called a meeting to announce plans to phase out the inpatient portion, one patient said, “I have never seen that many staff members cry.”
Higher Ed Sep. 9, 2022 2:57 pm1118d ago
Over the next five budget years, the University of Iowa and its health care enterprise plan to spend more than $1.4 billion on new construction and renovations – including $620.9 million on a new inpatient hospital tower and $212 million on a new “modern health care research facility.”
Higher Ed Sep. 8, 2022 2:33 pm1119d ago
A decade after the University of Iowa could last call itself the largest higher education institution in the state, UI this fall has reclaimed that distinction – reporting higher total enrollment than Iowa State University for the first time since 2012.
K-12 Education Sep. 12, 2022 4:49 pm1115d ago
Attorneys in federal court on Tuesday debated the issues of bullying, harassment, parental rights, school obligations, and free speech in arguing for and against Linn-Mar's new policy aimed at protecting transgender and nonbinary students.