Iowa community college officials said they didn’t need to make changes to their practices or policies to reflect DEI recommendations, as they already were doing that work. (Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Several Iowa community colleges, after reviewing their diversity, equity and inclusion activities to come in line with recommendations from Community Colleges for Iowa, have concluded that they were already on the right track in their mission of supporting all students.
The presidents of Des Moines Area Community College, Indian Hills Community College and Iowa Central Community College gave that assessment as state lawmakers — who have already restricted DEI activities at state universities — are preparing to take a closer look at Iowa’s higher education system.
Community Colleges for Iowa released recommendations relating to diversity, equity and inclusion on community college campuses in May at the prompting of legislators.
The organization worked with college leaders to craft the recommendations, which included reviewing positions, groups and policies connected to DEI and adjusting them if found not necessary for accreditation or compliance with the law, and ensuring transparency for campus and larger communities.
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Community Colleges for Iowa Executive Director Emily Shields said the colleges took these recommendations as a chance to look at their practices and how they aligned with their mission, as well as laws and accreditation standards. Colleges also looked at what sort of language they’re using to convey their work to the public so there aren’t misunderstandings.
“I think it made a lot of sense and really reflected how I think most, if not all, (colleges) had already been approaching these issues,” Shields said. “I think it’s helpful to just have kind of a statement out there representing the approach that we’re all taking.”
Now, more than six months after the list came out, each president said the recommendations emphasized the practices and policies they already had in place and they are ready and willing to keep the conversation going with legislators if necessary.
Colleges see past, present work reflected in recommendations
Jesse Ulrich, president of Iowa Central Community College, said he appreciated how the recommendations solidified for the entire community college system that their efforts are focused on students and furthering their success, not politicizing issues.
“As far as the recommendations go, we felt like we did a really good job of making sure that the important work in this area wasn’t politicized at our local level,” Ulrich said “We wanted to make sure that the pendulum wasn’t swinging too far one way or another.”
Iowa Central has a lot of areas of diversity on campus, Ulrich said, with 80% of students having financial need and 30% identifying as first-generation college students. The college works to ensure their success, he said, no matter what groups they belong to.
Indian Hills Community College President Matt Thompson agreed, saying it was nice to bring all of the colleges together to craft “ground rules” of a sort for DEI. This feeling is shared by the bulk of the community college system, he said, along with the fact that they didn’t have much to do to follow the recommendations.
“We’re here to serve all citizens of Iowa, and that’s been a part of our charter since we started as community colleges,” Thompson said.
The college didn’t change anything as a result of the recommendations, as Thompson said it doesn’t have positions for DEI and no significant budget dollars going to initiatives connected to it. Ulrich said Iowa Central Community College had no changes to make as well, as the college had no DEI departments or roles.
Iowa Central Community College does have a diversity committee, which Ulrich said is required by an accreditor, and the college has made efforts over the past 20 years to recruit and retain people of color, women and other groups to try and have its workforce reflect the students it serves.
DMACC President Rob Denson said the college made no specific changes after the recommendations came out. He said policies were already in place that had the college focus more on helping students with individual issues and providing support where needed to make sure everyone succeeds.
Each of the college presidents said they felt the recommendations were necessary in order to put all of the institutions on the same page, and Denson said they also served to show the Legislature, business and industry leaders and the public the work they’re putting in on this subject.
“We just want students to succeed,” Denson said. “If we’ve got a particular group that is not graduating or completing at the same rate, we’re going to look and say, ‘Okay, do we have services currently that could help them and how could they be more successful?’ And legislators have been very supportive of this, because in the end, they want companies in their areas to be able to get employees.”
Higher education committee expected to focus on use of state dollars
A new higher education committee has been formed in the Iowa House of Representatives, with Rep. Taylor Collins, R-Mediapolis, as its chair. The committee will look at all areas of higher education in the state, Collins previously said, from public to private to community colleges, to assess how they’re using state dollars and their “return on investment” for the state.
Collins said he doesn’t feel a need to make more legislative changes to DEI on college campuses, but the committee will discuss how necessary certain degree programs, like social justice degrees, are to preparing Iowa’s workforce.
Shields said she anticipates follow-up questions from lawmakers about the recommendations, but Community Colleges for Iowa will have to wait and see if the governing body decides to pursue any further actions.
“We have had good conversations and a good partnership with them on all of this, so I don’t anticipate that changing,” Shields said.
Ulrich said he welcomes further conversations with legislators about the work community colleges do. He’s particularly interested in discussing community colleges’ return on investment for the state, for which they are a “champion model,” he said.
“I think that in a lot of ways, it could be a really good opportunity for people to look at the work of the community colleges, what we’ve done in the past, and what we’re going to be doing for the future of Iowa,” Thompson said.
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