As enrollment recovers, Iowa Board of Regents eyes a request for more state aid – Iowa Capital Dispatch

As Iowa’s faculty enrollment numbers enhance following a dip as a result of pandemic, the Iowa Board of Regents is contemplating elevating its funds request to match inflation and elevated prices on the state’s public universities.

The Board of Regents will focus on plans subsequent week to request $630.46 million in 2024 fiscal yr appropriations through the subsequent state legislative session. If granted, it could be a rise of roughly $34.7 million from its earlier spherical of funding.

The Republican-controlled Legislature has not granted the total funds requests for the state universities up to now a number of years. Final yr, lawmakers allotted $5.5 million generally support after the Regents requested $15 million. In fiscal yr 2022, state legislators didn’t approve any further funding, and in FY 2021 took $7 million from the Regents’ funds in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The elevated request accounts for latest inflation, in addition to the return of scholars to Iowa’s public universities for in-person educating following stretches of distant studying due to coronavirus.

The College of Iowa launched its 2026 class enrollment numbers Thursday, revealing a rise in enrollment from latest years at 5,178 new college students, a rise of greater than 600 from the present yr. It’s the third-largest incoming class, in response to a UI information launch, simply behind the courses of 2015 and 2016. The category of 2025 had 4,521 first-year college students, in response to the college.

Iowa State additionally reported a 6.3% improve in first-year college students, although total enrollment fell by 739 over the previous yr. College of Northern Iowa has an incoming class of two,200 of freshman and switch college students.

Whereas pupil enrollment numbers are recovering to match pre-pandemic ranges, the Board of Regents is asking for its highest complete requested improve up to now 9 years. Employees with the Board of Regents mentioned this soar is essentially due to rising inflation, pointing to the Shopper Worth Index rise of 9% from June 2021 to June 2022.

“These charges of inflation are near the very best charges skilled in america through the late Nineteen Seventies and early Eighties,” board employees wrote of their appropriations request, additionally citing “nice concern about worker prices in a market closely influenced by inflation, competitors for high quality expertise, and labor shortages.”

The Board of Regents additionally pointed to inflation and rising worker and materials prices this summer season once they raised tuition at Iowa’s three public universities by 4.25%.

Along with basic training funding, the Regents wish to put aside $7 million to help “first-in-family” college students attending UI and ISU. In accordance with a UI information launch, 1 in 5 of their new class of scholars are first-generation faculty attendees.

The funding request additionally contains plans to broaden the College of Iowa’s nursing program and UNI’s educating program because the state faces employee shortages in these fields.

The Board of Regents is scheduled to debate the funds request Sept. 15 in Cedar Falls.