(C) Iowa Capital Dispatch
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Amended higher education ‘reform’ bill passes through House Education Committee [1]
['Brooklyn Draisey', 'More From Author', '- February']
Date: 2024-02-13
A bill spanning education requirements, tuition and more at Iowa’s colleges and universities will head to the Iowa House floor after passing through committee.
Named as the “Higher Education Reform Act of 2024,” House File 2327 was passed by the House Education Committee Tuesday with amendments involving the state’s community colleges, public and private universities.
Rep. Taylor Collins, R-Mediapolis, said his caucus brought this bill forward because people have lost their trust in higher education due to increased costs and “distractions,” of which one given example was diversity, equity and inclusion.
“This bill not only controls costs and reorients the focus of our higher education system back to academic excellence … and gives this body increased oversight over the regents enterprise,” Collins said.
The bill passed 15-8 with Republican support.
The amended bill would cap in-state tuition and fee increases at 3% and guarantee steady tuition and fee costs for certain students who start at a state university during the 2024-25 school year, depending on their number of credit hours.
Rep. Heather Matson expressed concerns that with these changes to tuition, state universities might not have the funding necessary to keep their budgets whole.
“That’s great, that’s helping the families and we really want to be doing that,” Matson said. “But at the same time, we also want to make sure that the regents are having the funding necessary to go along with that.”
State universities would be required under the bill to conduct a comprehensive study of cost-reducing measures, methods of maintaining tuition and fees near current levels and keeping noninstructional costs below 10% of their budgets. The results of these studies would need to be submitted to the Iowa Board of Regents, General Assembly and governor before the board’s November meeting.
The bill would also require community colleges and state universities to accept the Classic Learning Test, an alternative standardized assessment to the ACT and SAT developed in 2015 by Classic Learning Initiatives, for admission purposes.
Rep. Sharon Steckman, D-Mason City, said she’d found in research on the Classic Learning Test that 25% of the questions on the test were below high school grade levels, and statistics and other concepts weren’t tested at all. Other lawmakers shared their concerns, and said that community colleges don’t require any standardized tests for admission.
She asked Rep. Taylor Collins, R-Mediapolis, why this was included in the bill, to which he responded that he’s seen it accepted in other areas of the country, and Iowa should be adaptable with its accepted tests.
“That’ll be one of the reasons I’m not voting for this bill,” Steckman said. “I don’t think there’s enough information on CLT, just because they’re doing it in Florida doesn’t make it the best.”
College hiring and reviews
The legislation would prohibit the hiring of positions directly reporting to university presidents by state universities without approval from the Iowa Board of Regents unless the position is filled by someone already working at the university. The bill would also add two ex-officio, nonvoting members of the state’s general assembly to the board and shorten voting members’ terms from six years to four.
When state universities have an open president position, the bill would have the Iowa Board of Regents utilize a presidential selection committee in order to recommend candidates to the board. The identities of the candidates would be confidential from the public.
Community and state college presidents would be authorized to conduct “post-tenure” reviews of any employee at any time. The bill also requires that faculty senates and committees have no governance authority at their college or university, and can only serve in an advisory capacity.
University programming
State universities would be directed by the board of regents under the legislation to review and eliminate DEI-related offices and positions that aren’t required under state or federal law or for accreditation. The universities also would have to ensure that support services are openly available to all students and that no one is required to provide DEI statements or their pronouns, among other items.
These directives align with those made by the board of regents in November, of which universities must make progress reports on at the board’s April meeting.
Rep. Sue Cahill, D-Marshalltown, reiterated concerns she gave at Tuesday’s subcommittee hearing on the bill about the possibility that making sure all services are open to everyone could require more funds, space and manpower, rather than less.
“That’s a concern of mine, and that didn’t seem a way to save money very much if we were looking at money costs, but it would give it service to provide those services to all students,” Cahill said.
The legislation would require state universities to create a course on American history and civics that would be required for students to graduate. It would need to focus on the founding of the U.S. and emphasize the federalist papers, U.S. Constitution and branches of government, according to the bill.
The institutions would also develop and submit a plan for an initiative of some kind to expand opportunities for education and research on freedom of speech and civics to the board of regents, general assembly and governor, as well as a proposed baccalaureate degree program that can be completed in 90 semester hours.
Universities and community colleges would also need to create a program for students to seek a degree while working part-time with a qualified employer who would pay their way and their wages. They would also be required to change their strategic plans to include ways to prioritize degree programs that “lead to employment in high-demand fields in the state.”
Rep. Monica Kurth, D-Davenport, said the committee should recognize that not all in-demand jobs are in Iowa, and they need to take neighboring states and their needs into consideration when crafting policies like these.
“I’m concerned that we’re putting into the code these kinds of pieces that will limit the role of the community college,” Kurth said.
The bill would also bar universities from hosting Confucius Institutes or “any other educational institute funded in whole or in part by the People’s Republic of China” on their property.
The bill would also require that community colleges and universities “follow state law, regardless of any rules or directives of any accrediting agency,” and fulfill requests for information from members of the General Assembly or the governor “in a timely manner.”
Cahill voiced worries that if state law goes against accreditors, that could hurt community colleges and the students in accredited programs.
“Several people in my caucus were very concerned that if we don’t follow that federal accreditation, that the colleges could become a non-accredited entity which would affect students’ financial aid, any other grants and monies that flow into the college, and I am concerned about that,” Cahill said.
Private university closure procedures
The bill was also amended to include policies for private universities undergoing closure procedures.
Private colleges would need to notify the Iowa Department of Education immediately after undergoing a vote to close under the bill. Within three days of giving notice, the college would need to provide the department with teachout plans, notices to faculty, staff and students, alternative program and transitional support options, student contact information and more.
They must also have plans to retain transcripts and appoint someone as the contact for concerns and questions about the closure.
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