On Wednesday, state Board of Regents’ President David Miles asked UI President Sally Mason, along with the other regent schools’ leaders, to examine their operations to find more efficiencies and cost-saving measures.

Miles recommended each school immediately undertake efforts to identify “functions, processes, and operations” that can be further consolidated to save money.

The regents’ leader requested that each institutional review include the recommendations contained in the Iowa Efficiency Report, those adopted by the State Government Reorganization Interim Commission, and the provisions of Gov. Chet Culver’s Executive Order 20, which aims to save the state $700 million over five years. Miles also requested that each institution’s review incorporate ideas of potential institutional cooperation to cut costs.

The regents’ office will prepare a report identifying efficiency measures that have been successfully implemented at institutional and state levels for the regents’ Feb. 4, 2010, meeting. Miles will then forward the findings from the report to the Iowa Department of Management for inclusion in state status reports.

— by Kathryn Stinson