(Radio Iowa) – The board that oversees the three state universities approved a committee Wednesday to oversee the Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa. Board of Regents executive director Mark Braun says the Center’s director will report to the three-person committee.
He says it is required to meet quarterly and the staff will be provided by the Center’s interim director. Regent Christine Hensley chaired the advisory council for the Center and will now chair the new committee. There was low attendance for the Center classes in the first year and they have been put on hold so the committee can focus on hiring a permanent director. They also need to get ready for the 2028 requirement that U-I students take two three-hour civics courses.
Hensley says she is happy with moving ahead in this manner and wants to hold the new committee’s first meeting next week. “This first meeting will be, I would suggest, without the interim director so that we can all get on the same page. And then we’ll have a follow-up meeting shortly thereafter with him,” Hensley says. University of Iowa president Barbara Wilson says she also supports the course they are taking.
“I just want to underscore that the University of Iowa is very interested in working with our students on civic education. We believe in the mission of this effort and we want to work with the board. Wilson says she wants to be sure they can make the requirement for civics courses work for students.
“Most importantly, we want to make sure that our students don’t end up with a longer time to degree or more cost in their education. So we’re delighted that you’re going to take a stronger role and we want to be helpful,” Wilson says. Hensley says she also wants to be sure the civics requirement doesn’t add to the cost or time it takes for students to get their degree. The legislature passed the law in 2025 creating the Center for Intellectual Freedom and appropriated one million dollars for it’s operation in the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 academic years
