UI reports exceptional outreach and engagement efforts to regents
The UI reported the success of its outreach and engagement to the state Board of Regents on Feb. 28.
Icicles form on the Old Capitol on Monday, Jan. 28, 2019.
March 3, 2019
The UI presented on its outreach and engagement efforts in communities across the state of Iowa in the past year to the state Board of Regents on Feb. 28.
The UI’s model for outreach and engagement efforts focuses on the ideas and needs of the small towns and rural communities before matching students and courses to them, Associate Provost for outreach and engagement Linda Snetselaar said at the meeting.
The UI has previously been asked to present its model at the University of Texas-Austin, the University of Maryland, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Indiana-Bloomington, Snetselaar said.
The UI reported that 48.2 percent of undergraduates and 52.8 percent of graduate students are employed in the state of Iowa. When looking at just Iowa residents, 66 percent of undergraduates are in employed in the state, she said.
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“One of the things that we pride ourselves on is doing as much as we can to bring Iowa students back to their Iowa communities,” Snetselaar said.
The UI is working on a pilot project in Newton, Iowa, that focuses on improving health in rural communities. Although it’s a pilot project, officials hope to bring the program to other communities in the state, she said.
A project called Public Art has been a successful outreach effort by the UI. The program’s focus is on taking artistic work to walls in small communities, often the art is in areas where there has been a decrease in number of businesses, Snetselaar said. The hope is the art will bring people back to those communities, she said.
The focus in the communities is on career advancement opportunities for students. The UI has more than 4,000 students participating in outreach and engagement programs, she said.
“As they’re talking to employers, the major focus that an employer wants to know about is what [a student’s done] that’s real world,” Snetselaar said.
