Frequently Asked Questions about the
 Regent Partnership Plan for Transformation and Excellence

The 2005 Legislative Program of
the Board of Regents, State of Iowa  

What is the Board of Regents requesting of the Iowa Legislature during the 2005 session?

What does the Regents’ plan mean for tuition rates?

How does the Regents’ plan benefit students and parents? other Iowans?

Why are the Regents proposing such a plan?

What is the total state funding requested for the Regent universities for fiscal year 2006?

How will this money be used?

What will happen to tuition if the state doesn’t reinvest this amount in the Regent universities?

What about funding for other components of the Regent system, such as the two special schools, economic development programs, and facilities?

What else are the Regents supporting for the 2005 legislative session?  

What is the Board of Regents requesting of the Iowa Legislature during the 2005 session?

      The Board has proposed a strategic partnership with students, parents, elected officials, and other Iowa taxpayers to make sure Iowans have access to affordable, high-quality higher education and services. The Board’s request combines moderate and focused investments in Iowa ’s outstanding state universities with an effective resource plan to ensure quality, affordability, and efficiency.

      Every fall, as required by law, state agencies including the Board of Regents request state funding from the Governor and the Iowa General Assembly to fund its institutions’ operations for the next fiscal year.  During the 2005 legislative session, the Iowa General Assembly and Governor will set state appropriations for fiscal year 2006, which begins July 1, 2005 . In its request for fiscal year 2006 state funding, the Board is proposing $40 million in state funding above current fiscal-year levels for the three Regent universities, for each of the next four fiscal years, to enhance educational excellence in areas that meet Iowa’s goals and needs.

      That additional $40 million annual investment will support and serve Iowa ’s best interests – high-quality, affordable education; important research; and valuable services to Iowans.

      In return for this investment, the Board would stabilize tuition costs at the universities for Iowa undergraduate students, by limiting annual increases to an indexed rate of inflation. The three universities also would match every $2 of the additional state funding, up to the requested $40 million, with $1 of institutional funds – at least $20 million per year – redirected to educational excellence.

      State funding for the Regent universities have been cut significantly in recent years, causing substantial increases in tuition and reductions in university programs. The Regents’ plan asks Iowans to reinvest in their state universities matched by a pledge of institutional reallocations. The plan’s total “match” represents an annual reinvestment of $60 million in state funding and university reallocations for higher education in Iowa ($40 million in state funding and $20 million in institutional dollars).  

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What does the Regents’ plan mean for tuition rates?

      The Regents’ partnership plan would mean greater predictability and stability in tuition rates – which means enhanced access and affordability for Iowa students. 

      If the Regent universities are funded at the requested levels, the Board would tie base undergraduate resident tuition rates to inflation, as indicated by the median of the projected Higher Education Price Index range. HEPI tracks the cost of a "market basket" of goods and services purchased by colleges and universities. In recent years, HEPI projections have ranged from 2 to 5 percent annually.

      Base undergraduate Iowa tuition and mandatory fees at the Regent universities for the current 2004-05 academic year are as follows: University of Iowa , $5,396; Iowa State University , $5,426; University of Northern Iowa , $5,387.  

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How does the Regents’ plan benefit students and parents? other Iowans?

      The Regents’ partnership for transformation and excellence will benefit every Iowan in every part of the state:

·     Iowa students and their families will gain greater predictability in tuition costs, particularly at the undergraduate level. Accessible higher education is a priority of the Board of Regents; unfortunately, state funding cuts to the three universities have made that a challenge (see the next question below). More than 50,000 Iowans are among the 70,000 students who attend the three Regent universities every year.

·        All Iowans benefit from having high-quality state universities. They provide educational opportunities on their campuses and in communities statewide via the Internet and Iowa Communications Network. The universities provide a wide variety of services to families, small and large business owners, farmers, entrepreneurs, nonprofit organizations, and communities. Activities in the universities’ research parks, laboratories, and centers of expertise help grow Iowa ’s economy. Iowans make more than 638,000 patient visits annually to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, too, and nearly 3,000 Iowans participate in Iowa State University Extension programs every day.

• Equally important, the three universities produce a highly qualified workforce of graduates who drive the economy as business owners, taxpayers, community leaders and active voters. More than 181,300 Regent university alumni live in Iowa ’s 99 counties. In the “new” economy, a workforce with skills and abilities beyond a high school education is critical to Iowa ’s future and quality of life.

·        What’s more, the Regent universities provide a great return on taxpayers’ investment. For every $1 in state general funds invested in their educational programs in fiscal year 2004, the three Regent universities generated $1.54 from outside sources – external gifts, grants, and nonresident tuition.  

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Why are the Regents proposing such a plan?

      In today’s increasingly globalized economy, a workforce with skills and abilities beyond a high school education is critical to Iowa ’s future and quality of life.  Research and economic trends show that Iowa would become more competitive by significantly increasing its citizens’ postsecondary education levels. States with enhanced education levels and vibrant universities generate greater economic opportunities for their citizens.

      Unfortunately, conditions in recent years have sent Iowa on a different path. State funding for the Regent universities for the current fiscal year, 2005, is $102.3 million less than it was in fiscal year 2001. For an Iowa undergraduate student, state funding has declined from covering nearly 60 percent of a Regent university education in fiscal year 2002 to less than 49 percent this fiscal year; the gap has been made up by higher tuition and significant cost-cutting measures by the universities.

      These conditions have made acquiring an undergraduate education more difficult for many students, and impaired the Regent universities’ ability to attract and retain high-quality faculty – outcomes that hinder Iowa ’s economic advancement, creation of new jobs, and quality of life.

      Citizens in states with higher education that’s both high-quality and affordable will excel in today’s world of technological innovation, e-commerce, and global trade. The Regents’ partnership plan is designed to support that type of higher education for Iowans. If the plan is supported by state elected officials, Iowa will be better positioned to equip its citizens, achieve its economic goals, and maintain its reputation of educational quality.  

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What is the total state funding requested for the Regent universities for fiscal year 2006?

      The Board of Regents is requesting total state funding of $558.6 million for general education at the three state universities. Other components of the Regent system, described in the last question below, include the two Regent K-12 special schools for Iowa’s vision- and hearing-impaired children and programs that provide health care services, foster economic growth efforts, help enhance the environment, and improve community safety statewide.  

How will this money be used?

The moderate increase in state operating funding of $40 million per year, combined with $20 million in institutional funds reallocated to educational excellence, would:

·         increase Iowans’ access to  higher education through more predictable, stable tuition levels;

·         support nationally competitive salaries to recruit and retain faculty who are among the very best in their fields of study, including areas important to the future of Iowa ;

·         establish new faculty positions in areas critically important to the future of Iowa, including additional class offerings, optimal class sizes, and enriched educational opportunities for undergraduates;

·         improve student progress toward graduation;

·         strengthen high-demand academic areas negatively impacted by funding cuts over the past five years;

·         develop new educational and research programs vital to Iowa employers and the state’s economic growth potential; and

·         preserve outreach services of the Regent universities to benefit Iowans statewide.  

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What will happen to tuition at the Regent universities if the proposed state funding is not provided?

      In addition to providing higher education that’s accessible, the Board is deeply committed to ensuring that students attending our state universities receive a high-quality education that allows them to compete effectively in today’s global economy. If state funding levels do not support that quality, the Board of Regents has an obligation to consider carefully tuition increases beyond the proposed inflation rates.

      The Board of Regents’ tuition policy allows the university presidents to annually submit supplemental tuition requests for Board consideration. These supplemental tuition requests may apply to any category of students, such as undergraduate, professional by college, class, program of study, and residency status. However, the Board has pledged that such supplemental tuition requests will not be considered if state funding can be obtained for the partnership plan.  

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What about funding for other components of the Regent system, such as the two special schools, economic development programs, and facilities?

In addition to seeking state funding for education, research, and service programs of the three Regent universities, the Board of Regents has a responsibility to seek state funding for other Regent programs that support the critical state priorities described below.  With the exception of funding for the two special schools and capital funding requested for fire safety and deferred maintenance of facilities, no increase is requested beyond current state funding levels.

·         Education for Iowa ’s vision- and hearing-impaired children provided by the Iowa Braille School and Iowa School for the Deaf – $13.8 million. This represents a 4 percent increase in state funding from the current fiscal year, similar to that allowed for public K-12 schools in the state.

·         Transforming the health of Iowans via the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Psychiatric Hospital, Center for Disabilities and Development, Specialized Child Health Services, Primary Health Care, Cancer Registry, Substance Abuse Consortium, and Birth Defects Registry – $42.4 million. This amount is the same as for fiscal year 2005. UI Hospitals and Clinics serve all Iowans regardless of their ability to pay and also foster preventive care, health education, support for other care providers, and environmental safety.

·         Improving the environment to enhance quality of life in Iowa through Iowa State University ’s Agriculture Experiment Station, Leopold Center , and Livestock Disease Research, and the University of Northern Iowa ’s Recycle and Reuse Center – $31.9 million. This funding, consistent with that of fiscal year 2005, would help support improving air and water quality and promoting the use and development of sustainable resources.

·         Enhancing opportunities to stimulate economic growth in Iowa through the universities’ research parks, business incubators, small business development centers, and related programs – $6.5 million. This funding, the same as that for fiscal year 2005, supports critical factors for transforming Iowa ’s economy: an educated workforce, supportive business climate, and infrastructure for today’s economy.

·         Improving community safety through high-quality laboratory services of the University of Iowa State Hygienic Laboratory – $3.8 million. This amount, the same as for fiscal year 2005, helps support Iowa ’s only state public health and environmental quality laboratory. Its testing, consultation, education, training, and outreach services include the areas of newborn screening; analysis and detection of environmental contaminants, viruses, and bacteria; air and water quality; analysis and control of communicable diseases; and pollution prevention.

·         Responsible stewardship of academic facilities – $15 million per year over the next five years that would be matched by at least $7.5 million of institutional funds, focused on fire and environmental safety and deferred maintenance.  

What else are the Regents supporting for the 2005 legislative session?

·         the recommendation of the Iowa Department of Economic Development to fund recommendations regarding Iowa’s potential in the biosciences, proposed by the Battelle Memorial Institute, and

·         recommendations of the Iowa College Student Aid Commission to fund the state’s College Work Study program and the Iowa Grant program.