Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“We stand ready to help, we want to, but most importantly we want to make sure that our students don’t end up with a longer time to degree or more cost in their education.” — University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson on the Iowa Board of Regents’ creation of a three-member oversight committee for the Center for Intellectual Freedom at the UI.
St. Ambrose University President Amy Novak (left) and Mount Mercy University President Todd Olson speak during an event. As Mount Mercy and St. Ambrose universities come close to a full combination, changes in curriculum and business are expanding opportunities. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Close to two years after announcing plans for their strategic combination, two Iowa Catholic universities say they’re still waiting for final approvals from the U.S. Department of Education and its accrediting body, delaying a full merger and affecting the institutions’ financial picture.
St. Ambrose University in Davenport and Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids have nearly completed the process that will turn Mount Mercy from its own institution into a college of St. Ambrose, but maintaining its own campus and extracurricular activities. It has been just over one year since St. Ambrose was named as Mount Mercy’s corporate owner.
Regent Christine Hensley will chair a new Iowa Board of Regents committee overseeing the Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa. (Screenshot from February 2026 livestream of Iowa Board of Regents meeting)
The Iowa Board of Regents has formed a new committee to oversee the Center for Intellectual Freedom at the University of Iowa as it prepares for a fall without classes.
Board members approved the committee’s formation at its Wednesday meeting and approved its membership of Regent Christine Hensley, serving as chair, Board President Robert Cramer in the role of vice chair and Regent Steve Lacy. The center’s director, at this time Interim Director Luciano de Castro, will staff the committee.
Van Buren County officials criminally charged a puppy mill operator Wednesday, alleging she committed 34 acts of animal neglect.
Members of the Iowa Board of Regents have been invited to CyTown’s groundbreaking at Iowa State University this fall, though the timeline for the development’s completion has been pushed back into 2028.
The Iowa Board of Regents Wednesday approved university budgets for the next fiscal year, with board members praising university leaders for their work in cutting costs and reallocating funds.
A city administrator who resigned after the mayor filed a police complaint against him is not entitled to unemployment benefits, an Iowa judge has ruled.
As part of his bid to be Iowa’s next secretary of agriculture, Democratic candidate Chris Jones unveiled policy framework with a 10-year goal of requiring schools to source half of their food from local farms.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources announced Wednesday it had treated an area of West Okoboji Lake for Eurasian watermilfoil, an invasive aquatic plant, and that it will host a public meeting to discuss forthcoming shoreline restoration efforts.
Iowa Libertarian gubernatorial candidate Nicholas Gluba said Wednesday his campaign plans to appeal a district court decision keeping him and his running mate off the ballot.
Josh Turek picked up an endorsement for his U.S. Senate bid Wednesday from former President Barack Obama, announced in a video showing the two Democrats playing basketball together.
A vote on acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination to permanently fill the nation’s top law enforcement role was postponed Wednesday after two Republican senators — John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina — remained dissatisfied with Blanche’s handling of the administration’s “anti-weaponization” fund and a tax immunity deal.
U.S. Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland tried unsuccessfully Wednesday to advance in the Senate a bill that would create a legal pathway for immigrants with Temporary Protected Status.
The Trump administration has for more than a year used personal information airline passengers provide to the Transportation Security Administration for immigration enforcement, according to documents obtained by a government watchdog group.
Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia, the main long-distance gateway to the nation’s capital, is set to receive a multi-billion-dollar makeover, a White House spokesperson confirmed Wednesday.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the nation’s most visible public health officials during the coronavirus pandemic, declined to answer questions from a U.S. Senate committee in a tense and confrontational hearing Wednesday, citing his Fifth Amendment rights.
The unauthorized U.S. immigrant population grew to its highest level ever by mid-2024, increasing to 15.8 million after hovering at about 11 million since 2010, according to data released Wednesday by a nonpartisan think tank that tracks migration.
The number of preteens — ages 8 to 12 — who die by suicide in the United States each year is relatively small. But the total in 2025 was 194 — the most since at least 2001, according to preliminary data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Stateline reports.
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