(Urbandale, Iowa) – Students will no longer be able to list their sex as anything other than “male” or “female” on state university admission forms in Iowa, according to documents submitted to the Iowa Board of Regents. According to  report by the Iowa Capital Dispatch, in response to federal and state actions, Iowa’s public universities are eliminating questions about gender identity on their admissions forms and removing references to diversity, equity and inclusion from their strategic plans.

Ahead of the Iowa Board of Regents Feb. 27 meeting, the board released documents detailing revisions to the University of Iowa, University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University strategic plans, striking out language referring to diversity, equity and inclusion. The board will discuss the amended plans, as well as a change to admission application questions asking students to identify their gender.

According to board documents, Sen. Lynn Evans and Rep. Taylor Collins sent a letter to the board Feb. 10 citing recent executive actions taken by President Donald Trump and saying public university practices are going against Trump’s assertion that there are only two genders. The only example provided in the letter was of the UI’s admissions application listing seven genders for prospective students to choose from.

The lawmakers in the letter requested the board adopt a policy aligning with Trump’s “Restoring Sanity Agenda,” which they said put into policy that the only genders are male and female, and ensure the universities under its purview list only these genders on applications for admission.

“If we have recognized anything since the last election, Americans and Iowans are ready for a return to sanity, and that begins with recognizing this basic biological reality,” the letter stated.

State universities had begun discussions on this subject before the board received the letter, according to the document, and by Feb. 13, all three had changed their sex identifier question to include only “female,” “male” and “prefer not to answer,” and removed any questions relating to gender.

Like the board of regents did in January, state universities will present updated strategic plans at the meeting next week, having struck language pertaining to diversity, equity and inclusion.  (Read more HERE)