Iowans weigh in on state’s higher education future • Iowa Capital Dispatch

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Like many schools, Bondurant-Farrar High School has a bulletin board set up every spring for seniors to announce their plans for after graduation. While some students were headed to out-of-state colleges or directly into the workforce through a trade, half of the board was dominated by cards signaling one of Iowa’s public universities as students’ next step.

Maggie Bruce’s card shared the same future as around a quarter of the board — DMACC. The recent graduate said the decision to attend the community college this fall came down to cost effectiveness, support from faculty and staff and the idea of dipping her toes into college life, rather than diving in head-first.

“I’m just hoping to get some insight on what college is really like, and I’m hoping to transfer,” Bruce said. “Just so I can get a better idea and kind of ease into the college experience.”

As Bruce and a growing number of young people grapple with the costs of higher education and their idea of the value of a degree, universities are having to rethink their strategies while keeping their core missions in mind. They face shrinking admission pools, rising costs and shifting public perception about the education they provide and the politics that might be found on campus.

According to Iowa Postsecondary Readiness Reports, the number of Bondurant-Farrar students graduating with the intent to attend a college or university dropped 9 percentage points between 2012 and 2023, from 88% to 79%. Taking the average of 2020, 2021 and 2022 graduates, 65% of students from the district enrolled in a college or university within one year of graduation.

The percentage of students pursuing a higher education is lower when looking at the state as a whole. According to the summer 2024 postsecondary report, just under 58% of students in the class of 2022 enrolled in postsecondary education the fall after their high school graduation.

Jo Riley, a DMACC college and career transition counselor for Bondurant-Farrar and North Polk school districts, said concerns about cost are becoming increasingly common among the students she works with.

“I think it was just a given that you would go to college, and that you’d get a good job, and then you pay for your loans,” Riley said. “And now, I think kids are realizing that that’s not the case.”

With increased costs, predicted enrollment drops and workforce development seeing more of a push, Iowa colleges and universities are working to ensure a brighter future for higher education in the state. Their strategies include more collaboration, diversifying their offerings for students and letting everyone know the value of a college education.

What is the current state of higher education in Iowa?

When the 2008 recession hit the U.S., causing birth rates to drop, it created what colleges and universities call an “enrollment cliff” that is now looming. DMACC Executive Director of the Office of Planning, Assessment and Data Deborah Kepple-Mamros said the U.S. is missing 2.3 million young people from its population. When paired with enrollment declines from the COVID-19 pandemic, it will put even more pressure on a system already dealing with rising costs and less trust from the public, she said.

More than half of DMACC’s operating budget comes from tuition, DMACC President Rob Denson said, so enrollment is always the first topic on his and the rest of the staff’s minds.

“We live or die by our enrollment,” Denson said.

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According to a 2024 Gallup poll, the total number of undergraduate students in the U.S. is “at least” 1 million fewer than in 2018, though increases in enrollment were seen in both two-year and four-year universities in fall 2023 for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The community college is addressing this challenge by developing high-demand programs, keeping tuition low, redesigning course offerings and focusing on retention and student success, Kepple-Mamros said.

At state universities, enrollment numbers have become even more important as decreasing state allocations have made the University of Iowa, University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University rely more and more on tuition to keep their budgets balanced.

Over the past quarter-century, state university general education budgets have flipped from being two-thirds funded by state allocations to being two-thirds funded by tuition dollars, which colleges have accounted for by raising tuition and fees at varying rates.

Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteen, University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson and University of Northern Iowa President Mark Nook. from left, speak to the Iowa Board of Regents April 25, 2024. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

University of Northern Iowa President Mark Nook said the university has had to rely more on tuition over the years. While the growth of the gap between state funding and tuition funding has slowed in recent years, Nook said he sees the trend continuing.

“That’s become a big challenge in the last few years in particular, how do you maintain high quality and keep the cost to the student at a reasonable rate, and we’ve worked on that very hard at UNI,” Nook said.

UNI has been able to recoup some costs in increasing efficiency across campus, bringing energy costs down, and working with the flexibility of some positions. While Nook said he’s particularly concerned about future enrollment declines across the U.S., the university saw a small bump in enrollment last fall and is expecting another larger class this upcoming year.

Some private colleges have different challenges

Certain private colleges share some of the challenges public universities face, but not all — at least right now.

Des Moines University President Angela Franklin said the concerns most colleges are fielding surrounding enrollment right now won’t become a problem for the graduate medical school for a few years yet, though the university is working to anticipate future problems and is continuously focused on expanding opportunities for students.

Des Moines University President Angela Franklin speaks Dec. 12, 2023 about the university’s plan to open a new regional health care training center. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Rising costs, however, is a challenge Franklin said DMU shares with the rest of higher education, as well as competition with other health care programs. More schools are developing programs in physical therapy, physician assistants, osteopathic medicine and more, so DMU must put more focus on attracting a talented student pool.

Health care education takes technology and equipment that are becoming more expensive as they continue to evolve. Franklin said they try to keep those costs from being passed onto students through raising tuition or fees, but they also work with them to find scholarships and other financial aid to offset costs.

“All the things that we do for our students in our labs, and with the emerging new technologies in health professions education, those costs are astronomical,” Franklin said.

Beyond smaller populations in general, Drake University Provost Sue Mattison said public perception is keeping some people from enrolling in a higher education. A college degree is becoming more costly each year with inflation and less state support, and more students are aware of how accruing debt for their education can impact their lives later on.

The Gallup report showed that Americans are split into rough thirds on whether they have a great deal of confidence, some confidence or little to no confidence in higher education. The most prevalent reasons given by those with little confidence included believing colleges have some kind of political agenda or indoctrination practices, the education curriculum has the wrong focus or isn’t teaching the right skills, and that going to college costs too much.

With students knowing that there are other options, such as going right into employment or earning certification for a job rather than a four-year degree, fewer are choosing what they see as a more expensive, less direct-to-employment path.

“The perception of the value of a college education has had an impact on enrollment, and certainly the amount of student debt makes some people believe that they shouldn’t go to college, but there are so many programs in place that support students,” Mattison said.

How are colleges adapting to challenges?

Partnerships are becoming more popular between community, public and private colleges as they work to retain and graduate students into high-demand career fields.

Articulation agreements between institutions are giving students the chance to transfer seamlessly from undergraduate to graduate programs, or from general education classes to four-year degrees. Some schools are even allowing students to take classes from both partners at the same time, opening up new educational opportunities.

Having these partnerships with other public universities and community colleges both in and out of state is important, Nook said, because students are more likely these days to hop between programs and schools, either transferring while studying or after receiving certification or an associate’s degree.

More students are also deciding to return to higher education after being in the professional field, wanting to learn new skills or complete training to move ahead in their career.

“I think it’s very important in the higher education landscape now for us to recognize that students are going to be moving around … they’ve got a lot of choices,” Nook said.

Franklin said she’s seen more supportive engagement between universities here than she’s seen when she’s worked in other states, and this has created a unique higher education community.

“Of course, we compete with each other for some of our programs, but there’s a spirit of collaboration that’s in the state that I think may rival other states,” Franklin said.

Addressing workforce shortages in the health care industry is a goal of Des Moines University, Franklin said, especially after the impacts the height of the COVID-19 pandemic had on health professionals.

The private college puts on programming for elementary students, collaborates with other colleges to pave the way for students interested in health care and works to partner with more hospital systems and clinics to expand clinical placements.

“The workforce and the pipeline for those interested in health professions is really important to us as an academic institution, so we spend a lot of time still building those relationships,” Franklin said.

As employers and state aid programs push initiatives aimed at getting bodies in high-demand job fields, colleges and universities are also turning efforts to bolstering the workforce.

Nook said more and more jobs these days are requiring some form of education beyond high school, whether that’s a certificate from a specific training program to a graduate degree. More adults are also seeking postsecondary education in order to move up in their job or change careers.

Denson said there are a “tremendous number” of companies looking for skilled employees, and the community college works with the business sector for both the good of the students and Iowa communities.

DMACC President Rob Denson speaks at the groundbreaking for the new Transportation Institute facilities. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Both community colleges and four-year universities have turned to microcredentials to have students quickly gain skills for different certifications, with DMACC even breaking up two-year programs in order to award students microcredentials as they work toward a larger degree.

Some companies provide tuition reimbursement for students to attend classes while working, and the state is encouraging students with financial need to go into programs like manufacturing, information technology, education and health care with Future Ready Iowa Last-Dollar Scholarships and other programs.

From her conversations with her peers, Bruce said she believes around 20% of her class will pursue a trade. The students she knows who have entered trades, one building houses in Hawaii and another working as a plumber in a different state, they all make good money, one of the reasons they chose that path.

Riley believes more students will be drawn to trades or other programs that provide direct paths to enrollment. She said it feels like a broad education with the goal of furthering knowledge isn’t as important anymore as figuring out how to get a job, a change she called “bittersweet.”

Joe Murphy, president of the Iowa Business Council, concurred that students never have more options for how to pursue an education or career, but said Iowa’s higher education institutions have done a good job of marketing themselves and the value of a degree.

The Iowa Business Council works with universities to try and keep students in Iowa after graduating, Murphy said, to both grow the population and bolster the state’s talent pool to push Iowa toward a favorable future.

While entering the workforce quickly or studying a trade is important, Murphy said businesses as well as colleges should be championing earning a degree, lest the balance swing too far to one side and there aren’t enough people with a degree to populate certain career fields. According to the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, college graduates on average make $1.2 million more over the course of their lifetime than high school graduates, and they are half as likely to be unemployed.

“We still need people that are highly educated, highly skilled in very complex degree paths to make Iowa competitive on a national and international scale,” Murphy said.

Who makes sure higher education thrives?

When Iowa Wesleyan University announced its closure in March 2023, the reasons college officials gave were increased operating costs, slow enrollment growth, owing $26 million in mortgage and loan guarantees and a rejection from Gov. Kim Reynolds for $12 million in financial assistance.

Robert Miller, chairman of the university’s board of trustees, said at the time that the university was “disappointed in the lack of state support” in trying to keep the doors open. Sen. Jeff Taylor, R-Sioux Center, said large, ongoing problems like these couldn’t have been fixed with state dollars at that point.

“I think the state can help, especially in emergency situations, and certainly in helping to fund (higher education), whether it’s direct aid to the public (universities) or funding scholarships for students who want to go to the privates, we can certainly help financially,” Taylor said. “But in the end, I think it’s the institutions themselves that have to take primary responsibility for making sure that they’re sustainable fiscally in the long run.”

Funding for state universities has fluctuated over the years, with the most recent 2.5% increase to state universities coming after years of flat funding and decreases due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Taylor said Democrats will often complain that his party isn’t pro-education, but he disagrees, especially when it comes to higher education. He said the party works to support students wishing to attend private or community colleges through programs like the Iowa Tuition Grant or Last-Dollar Scholarship, and he never wants to make cuts to public education.

State university presidents speak with the Iowa House Education Appropriations Subcommittee on Feb. 12, 2024. (Screenshot from Iowa Legislature livestream)

Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, calls it the “tuition tax” — the idea that universities can rely on other sources of income, like tuition, to fill gaps when state allocations go down.

“The universities have been seen basically, especially in economic downturns, as being sort of cash cows,” Quirmbach said, “in the sense that you could directly cut the budgets, but also in the sense that universities have alternative sources of revenue.”

When universities have to shift their budgets to make them work with less state funding, Quirmbach said they often turn to letting go adjunct faculty and raising tuition. Students bear this burden, leading them to graduate with more debt and leave the state to find higher paying jobs, which in turn hurts the state’s workforce and economy.

At its core, Murphy said Iowa’s higher education system is the best driver of economic development and growth the state has, and the legislature should keep funding these institutions to see a return on those dollars.

“When you look at the research coming out of our universities, when you look at the workforce training opportunities coming out of our community colleges, it’s an incredible value,” Murphy said. “And those are the sorts of innovations, those are the sorts of training opportunities that are going … to propel our state into the future in a competitive way that makes living in Iowa more accessible and creates jobs and increases jobs and opportunities for future Iowans as well.”

Certain legislation coming out of the statehouse could have harmful impacts, rather than helpful ones, some higher education officials believe.

After Reynolds directed the Iowa Board of Regents to make recommendations on diversity, equity and inclusion offices and activities at public universities, leading those universities to restructure or do away with their DEI offices completely, legislation passed this year bars state universities from funding, creating or maintaining DEI offices unless required by law or for accreditation.

The state’s community colleges are also going over their DEI initiatives after concerns from state legislators prompted Community Colleges for Iowa to release recommendations on how to handle DEI positions, groups and hiring and promotion procedures.

While Taylor said there isn’t anything wrong with diversity, equity and inclusion, Republicans in the statehouse are concerned about universities putting too much emphasis on DEI and “wokeness.”

It all comes down to balance, he said — making sure universities are valuing diversity without becoming divisive, valuing inclusion but not to the point of excluding certain people, and ensuring diversity of thought and ideology among students and staff as well as other areas.

“Republicans are concerned about those, we see that in the different bills that are introduced,” Taylor said. “I share those concerns, but I also want to make sure that whatever we do is done with nuance, and is done with thoughtfulness so it’s not overreach, we’re not having unintended consequences that are going to hurt these institutions that, on balance, I think are doing a fine job.”

Mattison said there has been a disengagement in higher education from the state, which could have an “overwhelmingly negative impact” on the state’s future, from health care to community to quality of life.

Research has shown that diverse organizations are more innovative, creative and reach larger audiences than their peers, Mattison said, and legislators passing laws that go against the initiatives that create a more diverse talent pool and the research that shows they work isn’t just hurting the colleges themselves or those with diverse backgrounds, they hurt everyone.

“I honestly can’t predict the future for higher education. There are some things that will change, and certainly institutions will still focus on teaching and research and high quality, that’s just a given in Iowa,” Mattison said. “But, it depends on whether the state will continue to legislate things like DEI or disinvest in higher education that interferes with what has been successful and transformative for so many people.”

What is the future of higher education in Iowa?

When Riley works with students in her role as a college and career transition counselor, helping them figure out what their life will look like after high school, she said they’re pushed to have things figured out much earlier than in the past. They feel like they need to have a career path picked by freshman year of high school, which causes a lot of anxiety, and having a change of heart later can be hard, depending on where they’re at in their journey.

“A lot of kids … they don’t even know who they are yet, and they’re supposed to figure out what they want to do for the rest of their life,” Riley said. “That’s a big decision, and a lot of money goes into it.”

As students grapple with their future, the world of higher education is doing the same.

Future DMACC students attend an orientation in April 2024. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

DMACC looks at the future of higher education in terms of numbers and impacts — the enrollment cliff, students choosing to not pursue a higher education, the growing population of adults in Iowa looking to change or further their career with a degree.

With more people aware of the costs of higher education and increased attention being paid to smaller credentials than four-year degrees, Denson said he thinks community college programs will continue to grow in preference for young people. Colleges and universities will also hone in even more on retention and completion rates, he said.

Nationally, more and more Americans believe that higher education is taking the wrong path forward. According to the 2024 Gallup poll, 68% of respondents said higher education is headed in the wrong direction, including almost-one third of those who reported having a lot of confidence in the industry.

Taylor, speaking as both a politician and a professor, said the future of higher education in Iowa looks bright.

“There’s a certain culture to people in Iowa that I honestly don’t think is as prevalent in a lot of states, where we do value an educated citizenry,” Taylor said. “And as somebody who is not just a politician, but a political science professor, that’s very important to me.”

Nook believes in a bright future for higher education simply because he has to — with more and more jobs requiring some form of higher education, it’s imperative that Iowa has a strong community of colleges and universities to graduate adults who can meet economic needs and elevate the state.

“I’m an eternal optimist, and you’ve got to believe that the future of higher education is good, because the future of the state of Iowa depends on the future of higher education,” Nook said.

Having an educated citizenry is necessary not only for the state, but for the entire nation. Quirmbach said large swaths of society are being overwhelmed with disinformation that people aren’t able to recognize, due to them not understanding or not having access to other sources of information that could pick out the facts from the fiction.

Democracy is not a spectator sport, he said, and in order to participate in self-government effectively, citizens must have an understanding of society, human rights, human relations and other topics that are often a cornerstone of higher education.

“We have a critical election coming up this fall, which will largely be determined on whether an informed electorate can overcome a torrent of misinformation that has perverted some people’s views,” Quirmbach said. “I have to believe that education is fundamental.”

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