Relating to general education requirements, core curricula, other functions of regents institutions, and including applicability provisions

Description

Division I names the Act the “Increasing Civic Proficiency in Higher Education Act.” Division II requires the Board of Regents (BOR) to include in each Regents institution’s undergraduate general education and core curriculum one three-credit introductory American history survey course and one three-credit introductory American government survey course. This requirement does not apply to degree programs with a length designated for three years or less. Applicable courses are required to be a comprehensive survey of all American history and American government. Transfer students must receive equivalent credit for similar coursework. Division II also requires the State University of Iowa (SUI) Center for Intellectual Freedom, the Iowa State University (ISU) Center for Cyclone Civics, and the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) Center for Civic Education to annually designate courses that satisfy the requirement. The Bill removes an existing requirement related to the SUI Center for Intellectual Freedom offering at least one three-credit course in American History and Civil Government. Division III requires the BOR to review undergraduate general education requirements and core curricula by December 31, 2026. New course requirements apply to undergraduate students beginning enrollment in academic years beginning on or after July 1, 2028. Division III requires each of the three centers to establish an ongoing lecture and debate series by December 31, 2026, which must promote civil dialogue and debate on issues important to the American republic.

Division IV requires the centers at ISU and UNI to submit by December 31 an annual report to the Governor, General Assembly, and BOR on achievements and identified opportunities, challenges, and obstacles in developing the centers.

Background

Although each institution governs its own curricula, the BOR has overarching authority to establish systemwide policies affecting undergraduate education, including admission and degree requirements to which institutions must adhere. Specific BOR policies outline how curricula are approved and governed, including general education components tied to institutional accreditation and BOR policy, but day-to-day curricular decisions are made at the institution and faculty governance levels. Requirements within different degree tracks may vary, but the general education requirements for each institution are outlined below.

• The State University of Iowa’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS), which houses the majority of its history and social sciences coursework, requires that all degree-seeking students complete the general education CLAS core areas and requirements. Of the 11 general education areas, three semester hours in Historical Perspectives are required under the Culture, Society, and Arts category and three semester hours in Social Sciences are required under the Natural, Quantitative, and Social Sciences category. The general education CLAS core requirements are available at the SUI website.
• Iowa State University’s general education requirements for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) include 12 credit hours in Arts and Humanities and 9 credit hours in Social Sciences. Students must also meet U.S. Cultures and Communities and International Perspectives requirements. Liberal Arts and Sciences requirements are available at the ISU website.
• University of Northern Iowa’s general education framework, known as UNIFI, consists of 37 credit hours designed around a set of foundational categories such as Written and Oral Communication, Quantitative Reasoning, Human Condition, Scientific Reasoning, Human Expression, and Responsibility. Government and history content are included in the Human Condition and Human Expression categories, which require a total of nine credit hours. UNIFI requirements are available at the UNI website.

Assumptions

The fiscal estimate is based on standardized instructional delivery assumptions across the three Regents universities to provide a comparable estimate of potential incremental instructional costs.

• The Bill requires each applicable undergraduate student to complete two three-credit courses (American History and American Government). For purposes of this estimate, total annual seats required are assumed to be 12,000 at SUI, 11,000 at ISU, and 3,260 at UNI.
• Section sizes are assumed to be 125 students per section at SUI (in-person), 275 students per section at ISU (online delivery), and 45 students per section at UNI (in-person). Based on these assumptions, the Bill will require approximately 96 sections at SUI, 40 sections at ISU, and 72 to 73 sections at UNI annually.
• Current faculty capacity is assumed to be eight sections per academic year at SUI and ISU and six sections per academic year at UNI. After accounting for two reassigned faculty at SUI, the estimate assumes that approximately 10.0 new full-time equivalent (FTE) positions for faculty at SUI, 5.0 FTE positions at ISU, and approximately 12.0 FTE positions at UNI will be required.
• Estimated annual salaries and benefits are assumed as follows:
• State University of Iowa instructional salaries and benefits are estimated at $87,000 annually per FTE position.
• Iowa State University instructional salaries and benefits are estimated at $100,000 annually per FTE position.
• University of Northern Iowa instructional salaries and benefits reflect a blended staffing mix of tenure-track and adjunct instructors estimated at $53,000 annually per FTE position.
• Salaries are assumed to remain unchanged in future years.
• Ongoing administrative costs of $20,000 per institution are included.
• The estimate does not evaluate the extent to which existing courses or transfer credit may satisfy the requirement. To the extent current coursework fulfills the requirement, incremental costs will be reduced.

Fiscal Impact

House File 2361 is expected to increase instructional costs at the Regents universities beginning July 1, 2028 (FY 2029), to accommodate the additional course sections and required faculty to meet the new American History and American Government survey course mandates. Annual costs to each university are outlined in Figure 1 below. There may be additional costs associated with the establishment of an ongoing lecture and debate series; however, those costs are unknown.

Figure 1 — FY 2029 Costs Per University for Senate File 2232 Institution Instructional Cost Administrative Cost Total Annual Cost SUI $870,000 $20,000 $890,000 ISU 500,000 20,000 520,000 UNI 640,000 20,000 660,000 Total $2,010,000 $60,000 $2,070,000

Sources

• Board of Regents
• State University of Iowa
• Iowa State University
• University of Northern Iowa
• LSA calculations