Iowa
USDA has loaned seven Iowa universities millions over decade
MOUNT PLEASANT — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development office over the years has lent billions to colleges and universities — including at least seven in Iowa since 2013 — often because it wants the smaller communities in which they reside to thrive.
Just because the money USDA lent Iowa Wesleyan University — $26-plus million — wasn’t enough to save the 181-year institution doesn’t mean the government plans to swoop in and bulldoze the 60-acre Mount Pleasant campus, which is peppered with historic sites like the 169-year-old “Old Main” building.
For now, the Wesleyan Board of Trustees will maintain ownership of the property — even after the university officially closes May 31 — and the USDA will continue in its role as “lender” and partner in supporting Mount Pleasant, which had a 2022 population of 9,132, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
“In regards to Iowa Wesleyan University, I have directed our team to think as creatively as we can about how we can keep the campus intact so we can maintain as much of that added value as possible,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack said. “This may mean selling to a larger university that would like a rural campus, or a foundation.”
Neither Vilsack nor community leaders have named potential buyers or collaborators — given the campus isn’t even officially closed and the process of gathering community feedback is just starting.
“It’s too early to say at this stage,” said Vilsack, a former resident of Mount Pleasant who served as the town’s mayor for five years. “But we know people are hurting, and it’s important that the community knows we aim to continue to be a partner to them.”
Although Iowa State University has an evolved network of 100 extension offices and deep USDA ties — receiving $48.4 million for research-related activities from the federal department in the last budget year — ISU officials said they haven’t heard discussion about the university “looking into the land of the former Iowa Wesleyan.”
Website encourages public to share ideas for the campus’ future
The Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce and Area Development Commission have formed a seven-member “Iowa Wesleyan Task Force” to work with the USDA on next steps for the shuttered campus — including Mount Pleasant Mayor Steve Brimhall, City Administrator Brent Schleisman, Henry County Supervisor Chad White, and Iowa Wesleyan Trustees Chair Bob Miller.
“We don’t know what Mount Pleasant looks like without Iowa Wesleyan University,” said Mount Pleasant Area Chamber Alliance Executive Vice President Rachel Lindeen, who also serves on the task force. “So navigating what does that look like has been an important conversation for all of us.”
Although the task force doesn’t have decision-making power, it is facilitating discussion and brainstorming by meeting with USDA officials, convening community members, and launching a website to collect ideas and feedback from the public.
ImagineMP.com invites community members to “imagine what Mount Pleasant will be” without Wesleyan — which for nearly two centuries has been a cornerstone of the southeast Iowa town.
“This page is designed to be a communication avenue as the campus of Iowa Wesleyan University finds its next purpose,” according to the website, which asks for names, contact information, and “your idea for Iowa Wesleyan.”
“There’s been some sadness,” Lindeen said about the community response to news in late March that Iowa Wesleyan will close in just weeks. “There’s been some anxiousness, anxiety. What do we look like post-Iowa Wesleyan?”
All the feedback the Iowa Wesleyan Task Force receives is being read and passed to the USDA, according to Lindeen, who said she’s also answering every question she can.
USDA officials — who told The Gazette that Wesleyan warned them of the looming vote to close — have visited the community since the decision became official.
“They came with open minds and they toured the campus,” Lindeen said. “They met with the school district, they met with the community college, they met with myself. They met with a lot of what I would phrase as community leadership to get a flavor of who we are.”
Although Vilsack said it’s too soon to determine what will come of the Wesleyan campus, valued at about $19 million, he cited the economic benefits the university afforded Iowa — generating about $18 million in total revenue in the 2022 budget year — in arguing for a cohesive path forward.
“People need to think creatively at this point to try to figure out how to keep it as a whole, if possible, and how can we continue to make it the economic driver that it has been,” Vilsack said. “One of the reasons we have invested in other colleges across the country is that they’re an economic driver. They’re a job creator.”
If keeping the campus together in next chapter doesn’t make sense — after investigating the options — Vilsack said they could parcel off the assets. But his preference is to keep it whole.
“Perhaps it’s a college or university; perhaps it’s a new venture that didn’t exist before; perhaps it’s a foundation that’s looking for a location; perhaps it’s a training center,” he said. “The point of this is that people need to be creative about it.”
USDA has loaned more than $100 million to Iowa institutions
The USDA “Community Facilities Programs” over the years have distributed billions in direct and guaranteed loans to help public entities, nonprofit organizations, and Native American Tribes construct, expand, or improve facilities that provide health care, education, public safety, and other services.
In the 2022 budget year alone, USDA distributed $1.7 billion through those programs — including $1 billion for 74 health care facilities; $343 million to 153 schools and educational facilities; and $148 million for 464 fire, rescue, and public safety stations.
The current community facilities portfolio, including all grants and loans, is $11.8 billion, according to Cathy Cochran, communications director for the USDA. Of that total, she said, “communities and universities” make up about 1.2 percent.
The USDA’s total direct and guaranteed loan obligations to higher ed institutions in the 2022 budget year was $1.5 billion. As of February, the USDA had 100 outstanding loans to universities — with an outstanding principal amount of $594.4 million.
Among those 100 university loans are several to Iowa institutions — including all three of the other campuses that joined with Iowa Wesleyan in February to request a total of $48 million in COVID relief funds.
Although Gov. Kim Reynolds denied Iowa Wesleyan’s more urgent request for $12 million, she hasn’t yet responded to the asks from Graceland, Upper Iowa, and William Penn universities.
Each of those also have outstanding debt with the USDA — Upper Iowa reporting the most after entering into a loan agreement with the department in August 2018 for $75 million.
Iowa Wesleyan’s 2016 USDA loans totaled more than $26 million, and Graceland in 2017 obtained a USDA loan for nearly $5 million “to buy out a lease for an on-campus apartment complex for our junior and senior students,” according to Chief Marketing Officer Shane Adams.
William Penn back in 2009 received $23 million in direct and guaranteed loans from the USDA to finance its activity and technology centers.
All are still paying off that debt, according to their most recent financial reports from fiscal 2022.
Upper Iowa, which recently announced layoffs and site closures, in 2022 was out of compliance with the loan’s required debt service coverage ratio — mandating administrators provide the USDA state office with quarterly financial reports, enrollment numbers, and other documents showing “the university’s plan to achieve the debt service coverage ratio requirement in the future.”
The colleges and universities sector of the USDA’s loan program has $1.9 million in “delinquent principal” — a small fraction of the total portfolio.
For the entire direct loan program, the USDA reports a delinquency rate of 1.6 percent — with 11 of its college and university loans qualifying as delinquent.
Vanessa Miller covers higher education for The Gazette.
Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com
Iowa
Who the ranked Iowa high school football teams face in Week 7
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Here’s who all 71 Iowa high school football teams ranked in this week’s Gazette poll face in Week 7 games Friday night.
Class 3A gets the spotlight this week as its top two teams face top-seven opponents. No. 1 Algona visits No. 7 Humboldt, while second-ranked Williamsburg hosts a Solon team eager to bounce back from last week’s loss to Benton Community that dropped it from the top spot.
There is intrigue in the 8-Player top five as well, where three of the top five teams face fellow unbeaten foes. That includes No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s taking on No. 10 Woodbine and No. 2 Algona Garrigan hosting Ruthven GTRA.
Class 5A
No. 1 West Des Moines Valley (5-1) vs. Waterloo West (5-1)
No. 2 West Des Moines Dowling (5-1) at Urbandale (3-3)
No. 3 Bettendorf (6-0) at Davenport Central (2-4)
No. 4 Pleasant Valley (5-1) vs. Muscatine (2-4)
No. 5 Ankeny Centennial (4-2) vs. Des Moines Roosevelt (1-5)
No. 6 Linn-Mar (5-1) vs. Davenport West (0-6)
No. 7 Johnston (4-2) vs. Council Bluffs Lincoln (4-2)
No. 8 Iowa City Liberty (5-1) vs. Ankeny (3-3)
No. 9 Waukee (4-2) at Southeast Polk (3-3)
No. 10 Sioux City East (4-2) vs. Des Moines Lincoln (1-5)
Class 4A
No. 1 Lewis Central (6-0) at Winterset (4-2)
No. 2 Pella (6-0) at Des Moines Hoover (0-6), Thursday
No. 3 North Polk (6-0) at No. 10 Indianola (4-2)
No. 4 Gilbert (6-0) vs. Bondurant-Farrar (1-5)
No. 5 Decorah (6-0) at Marion (2-4)
No. 6 Adel ADM (5-1) at Ballard (3-3)
No. 7 Cedar Rapids Xavier (4-2) at Oskaloosa (1-5)
No. 8 North Scott (4-2) at Clear Creek Amana (4-2)
No. 9 Newton (4-2) vs. Carlisle (0-6)
No. 10 Indianola (4-2) vs. No. 3 North Polk (6-0)
No. 10 Western Dubuque (4-2) at Waterloo East (2-4)
Class 3A
No. 1 Algona (6-0) at No. 7 Humboldt (5-1)
No. 2 Williamsburg (5-1) vs. No. 5 Solon (5-1)
No. 3 Dubuque Wahlert (6-0) at West Delaware (4-2)
No. 4 Sergeant Bluff-Luton (6-0) vs. Carroll (4-2)
No. 5 Mount Vernon (5-1) vs. Fort Madison (0-6)
No. 5 Solon (5-1) at No. 2 Williamsburg (5-1)
No. 7 Humboldt (5-1) vs. No. 1 Algona (6-0)
No. 8 Sioux City Heelan (4-2) at Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley (1-5)
No. 9 Independence (4-2) at Maquoketa (1-5)
No. 10 Nevada (5-1) at Harlan (3-3)
Class 2A
No. 1 West Lyon (6-0) at Sheldon (2-4)
No. 2 Monroe PCM (6-0) at West Marshall (5-1)
No. 3 Spirit Lake (5-1) at Garner GHV (1-5)
No. 4 Van Meter (5-1) vs. Centerville (4-2)
No. 5 Carroll Kuemper (5-1) vs. Saydel (1-5)
No. 6 North Fayette Valley (5-1) vs. Oelwein (0-6) — canceled, Oelwein to forfeit
No. 7 Northeast (6-0) at Tipton (2-4)
No. 8 Central Lyon/George-Little Rock (4-2) vs. No. 10 Western Christian (4-2)
No. 9 Roland-Story (4-2) vs. Des Moines Christian (4-2)
No. 10 Western Christian (4-2) at No. 8 Central Lyon/George-Little Rock (4-2)
Class 1A
No. 1 Grundy Center (6-0) at Alburnett (4-2)
No. 2 Wilton (6-0) at West Branch (2-4)
No. 3 Dike-New Hartford (5-1) vs. Aplington-Parkersburg (2-4)
No. 4 Emmetsburg (6-0) vs. Eagle Grove (0-6)
No. 5 Iowa City Regina (6-0) at Dyersville Beckman (4-2)
No. 6 Ida Grove OABCIG (5-1) vs. No. 10 Hinton (5-1)
No. 7 South Hardin (5-1) at Hudson (5-1)
No. 8 Treynor (5-1) vs. Shenandoah (3-3)
No. 9 Sigourney-Keota (5-1) at Colfax-Mingo (1-5)
No. 10 Hinton (5-1) at No. 6 Ida Grove OABCIG (5-1)
Class A
No. 1 West Hancock (6-0) at Lake Mills (4-2)
No. 2 Guthrie Center ACGC (6-0) vs. Mount Ayr (5-1)
No. 3 Saint Ansgar (5-1) at West Fork (1-5)
No. 4 Lisbon (6-0) vs. Danville (4-2)
No. 5 Earlham (5-1) at Oakland Riverside (4-2)
No. 6 Tri-Center (5-1) vs. No. 8 Woodbury Central (5-1)
No. 7 Le Mars Gehlen (5-1) at South O’Brien (0-6)
No. 8 Woodbury Central (5-1) at No. 6 Tri-Center (5-1)
No. 9 North Linn (6-0) vs. Maquoketa Valley (5-1)
No. 10 Madrid (4-2) at North Mahaska (3-3)
8-Player
No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s (6-0) vs. No. 10 Woodbine (6-0)
No. 2 Algona Garrigan (6-0) vs. Ruthven GTRA (6-0)
No. 3 Don Bosco (6-0) vs. Turkey Valley (3-3)
No. 4 Audubon (6-0) vs. Collins-Maxwell (4-2)
No. 5 Lenox (6-0) vs. Southeast Warren (6-0)
No. 6 Iowa Valley (6-0) vs. HLV (1-6)
No. 7 Gladbrook-Reinbeck (5-1) at Clarksville (5-2)
No. 8 Anita CAM (5-1) at Fremont-Mills (5-1)
No. 9 Bedford (5-1) vs. Lamoni (4-2)
No. 10 Woodbine (6-0) at No. 1 Remsen St. Mary’s (6-0)
Comments: nathan.ford@thegazette.com
Iowa
Iowa State women’s basketball star Emily Ryan discusses eating disorder in video
Iowa State women’s basketball star Emily Ryan released a video Thursday in which she discusses her battle with an eating disorder.
Ryan, a senior from Claflin, Kansas, has been one of the Big 12 Conference’s best point guards for the past few seasons. She was a first-team all-conference pick in 2022, and a second-team selection in 2023.
“By sharing my story, I hope to build awareness and provide hope to everyone else fighting an invisible battle,” Ryan said in the video.
Ryan said her sense of self-worth was dependent on Iowa State’s success and her individual performance. That led to increased time spent in the weight room in an effort to get stronger and faster. When Ryan didn’t see the results that she desired, she began to focus on her diet.
Ryan said the Iowa State medical staff expressed their concern about Ryan’s eating habits and what it was doing to her body. Ryan said she was in “complete denial” about having an eating disorder, but her health continued to worsen.
Ryan missed the first nine games of the 2023-24 season due to the eating disorder. When she returned, she said, “off the court I was really struggling. By the end of the season, I was physically and mentally hanging on by a thread.”
During the offseason, Ryan spent 88 days at a treatment center in Denver.
“It took a long time but I finally came to the understanding that being sick wasn’t my fault, and eating disorders are real, complex illnesses,” she said.
How to get help
For resources on disordered eating, call the National Eating Disorders Helpline at 800-931-2237 or text NEDA to 741741.
Iowa
Latest Iowa high school volleyball rankings reveal regional pairings
It was an important date around the state for volleyball teams in Iowa, as the latest rankings were released and regional pairings in all five classes were revealed.
The two come into play once regionals reach the championship round, as the higher-ranked team will serve as the host for those games.
All five No. 1 squads remained the same, as Ankeny Centennial (Class 5A), Cedar Rapids Xavier (4A), Mount Vernon (3A), Denver (2A) and Ankeny Christian (1A) held serve.
New teams to the Top-15 include Iowa City West in 5A, Ballard in 4A, Wapsie Valley in 2A and Stanton in 1A. The entire 3A poll remained the same while Sidney made one of the biggest climbs, moving to ninth from 12th in 1A.
Regional play for 1A and 2A begins Oct. 21 with 3A, 4A and 5A starting Oct. 22. The state tournament is scheduled for Nov. 4-7 in Coralville from the Xtream Arena. Complete regional pairings can be found on Bound.
Class 5A
1. Ankeny Centennial; 2. Pleasant Valley; 3. Ankeny; 4. West Des Moines Dowling; 5. Indianola; 6. Waukee Northwest; 7. Cedar Falls; 8. Cedar Rapids Prairie; 9. Waukee; 10. Iowa City Liberty; 11. West Des Moines Valley; 12. Sioux City East; 13. Iowa City West; 14. Iowa City High; 15. Linn-Mar.
Class 4A
1. Cedar Rapids Xavier; 2. Sioux City Bishop Heelan; 3. North Scott; 4. Clear Creek-Amana; 5. Lewis Central; 6. Pella; 7. Glenwood; 8. Carlisle; 9. Marion; 10. Adel-ADM; 11. Norwalk; 12. Sergeant Bluff-Luton; 13. MOC-Floyd Valley; 14. Ballard; 15. Grinnell.
Class 3A
1. Mount Vernon; 2. Western Christian; 3. West Delaware; 4. Dubuque Wahlert; 5. Davenport Assumption; 6. Sioux Center; 7. Carroll Kuemper; 8. Mid-Prairie; 9. Cherokee; 10. Wilton; 11. Solon; 12. Anamosa; 13. Roland-Story; 14. Clarinda; 15. Nevada.
Class 2A
1. Denver; 2. Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont; 3. Dyersville Beckman; 4. Dike-New Hartford; 5. Aplington-Parkersburg; 6. South Hardin; 7. Boyden-Hull; 8. Pella Christian; 9. Iowa City Regina; 10. Hinton; 11. Grundy Center; 12. Sumner-Fredericksburg; 13. Wapsie Valley; 14. West Burlington; 15. Shenandoah.
Class 1A
1. Ankeny Christian; 2. Holy Trinity; 3. Saint Ansgar; 4. Riverside; 5. BCLUW; 6. Janesville; 7. North Tama; 8. Don Bosco; 9. Sidney; 10. River Valley; 11. Akron-Westfield; 12. Stanton; 13. Fremont-Mills; 14. Southwest Valley; 15. Gladbrook-Reinbeck.
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