4.1 Mission and Scope

  1. Universities
    1. Universities under the control of the Board of Regents, State of Iowa, shall offer diversified and high quality programs of undergraduate, graduate, professional and post-graduate study at reasonable cost to those seeking post-secondary education in this state. Educational programs shall be designed to allow the student a wide range of subject selection and the greatest latitude in pursuit of knowledge and in preparation for a role in society.
       
    2. The Regent universities are the primary Iowa training grounds for the professions, including medical doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, accountants, lawyers, veterinarians, educators, architects, agriculturalists, engineers, and others who will achieve advanced degrees in various fields of the arts and sciences. The State University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Northern Iowa are committed to research and education that expand knowledge and benefit society. They shall make educational programs and the results of research available through outreach and extension services and shall offer services to the public appropriate to the mission of each University. 
       
    3. Within this framework and the availability of funds, the State University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Northern Iowa shall seek different areas of specialty and emphasis compatible with their distinct missions in the state system of higher education.
       
    4. The Board of Regents, State of Iowa, shall approve the missions of the universities under its control in the framework of higher education in Iowa, which includes private colleges and universities, along with community colleges. Continuing efforts are made to cooperate with these other sectors of higher education to effect useful coordination, to avoid needless duplication, and to foster good will. This effort is illustrated by the list of questions to which the Board requires satisfactory answers before proposed new or expanded programs are adopted. (See Section 3.5)
       
    5. Decisions concerning future academic programs shall be based on the continuing assessment of existing programs and developing needs. Programs shall be curtailed, suspended, or eliminated when the assessment of need and resources indicates that resources should be devoted to other programs. The universities shall continue to approach the addition of new programs with caution. Generally, new programs shall be fashioned out of existing programs in response to developing needs. If the University is to remain vital, it is necessary that it consider at appropriate times the development of new programs that fall within its general mission and that meet the needs of students and society.
       
    6. The universities shall maintain diverse and multicultural campuses to educate students and scholars to participate in the broader world and to strengthen the State of Iowa’s connections with other states and countries.
       
    7. The State University of Iowa Mission
      1. The University is a comprehensive AAU research university with particular distinction in the arts, humanities, and sciences, and a wide array of exceptional professional programs. In carrying out its threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service, the University seeks to advance scholarly and creative endeavor through leading-edge research and artistic production; to use this research and creativity to enhance undergraduate, graduate, and professional education, health care, and other services provided to the people of Iowa, the nation, and the world; and to educate students for success and personal fulfillment in an increasingly diverse and global environment.
         
      2. The State University of Iowa is a comprehensive public university with the mission to provide the highest quality undergraduate, professional, graduate, and continuing education and patient care.  To fulfill this mission, the university engages in teaching; research; professional, public, and clinical services; and appropriate extension.
         
      3. Scope
        1. As an AAU institution, the State University of Iowa is recognized as having a broad scope of programs, including graduate and professional colleges. As essential components of a distinguished state university, such programs shall include the full complement of undergraduate liberal arts and sciences courses, graduate and professional programs in law, medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, public health, engineering, and allied fields related to those professional disciplines, as well as social work, business administration, journalism, education, library science, and urban and regional planning. However, the State University of Iowa shall offer no major programs in agriculture, architecture, forestry, industrial arts, veterinary medicine, agricultural, aeronautical or ceramic engineering.
           
        2. Graduate programs shall be made available in areas for which there is sufficient demand and resources and shall build on the University’s strengths in the arts and humanities, life sciences, law, medicine, and international programs.
           
    8. Iowa State University Mission
      1. The mission of Iowa State University is defined by the institution's status as the State of Iowa's land-grant University, its status as an AAU research university, and by its relationship to other institutions of higher education within Iowa. Iowa State University is a leading higher education institution with institutional emphasis on programs in science and technology.
        1. Iowa State University shall provide a full range of high quality educational opportunities and shall have a statewide system for extension education and information dissemination.
           
        2. Consistent with its historic mission, Iowa State University shall contribute to the economic development of the State of Iowa by attracting public and private organizations seeking proximity to leading authorities in particular fields, by participating in technology transfer, and by assisting efforts to strengthen and diversify the economic base of Iowa.
           
        3. Iowa State University shall assume responsibility for helping to protect, maintain and improve Iowa's natural resources through the discovery and diffusion of knowledge and technology.
           
      2. Scope
        1. Iowa State University of Science and Technology shall have sufficient scope and depth in its instruction, research, and extension and professional service functions to enable it to be a distinguished land-grant research University. In addition to its undergraduate and graduate work in engineering, agriculture, and the physical, biological, mathematical and social sciences, it shall maintain and develop strong undergraduate programs in the arts and humanities, and offer such master's and doctoral programs in this area as are justified to meet the needs of the State of Iowa and to maintain the overall strength and desirable balance of the university as a whole.
           
        2. At Iowa State University, principal emphasis shall be given to the development and maintenance of strong programs in the sciences, agriculture, engineering, veterinary medicine, design, education, business, and human sciences. Interdisciplinary programs shall seek to combine the perspectives and methods of more than one discipline to address the questions and problems confronting Iowa, the nation and the world more effectively.
           
        3. Iowa State University shall offer no major undergraduate or graduate programs in law, library science, human medicine, dentistry, pharmacy, hospital administration, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology.
           
    9. University of Northern Iowa Mission
      1. The University of Northern Iowa is a comprehensive university whose mission is to provide high-quality undergraduate programs founded on a strong liberal arts curriculum and selected graduate programs that meet the educational career needs of the students it serves. In fulfilling its tripartite mission of teaching, research/creative activity, and service, the university provides an educational environment with personalized learning experiences for students and a broad range of services designed to enhance the lives and livelihoods of Iowans.
        1. Consistent with its historic purpose, the University of Northern Iowa shall provide early childhood, elementary and secondary teacher preparation and educational leadership programs that prepare pre-K-12 teachers and educational leaders for service throughout Iowa and around the world.
           
        2. The university shall provide a broad range of undergraduate programs and selected graduate programs consistent with its missions as a comprehensive university.
           
        3. The university shall serve the ongoing needs of communities throughout Iowa by contributing to the provision of an educated citizenry and by providing opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to provide services to Iowa communities as part of their academic, co-curricular, and extra-curricular activities.
           
      2. Scope
        1. Undergraduate degree offerings shall reflect the university's purpose as a distinguished arts and sciences university with outstanding professional programs in education, business, social work, and speech pathology, and athletic/physical training.  University offerings shall extend to baccalaureate education in the applied sciences, except in specific technical fields traditionally associated with other Regent universities.
           
        2. The institution shall offer master's degrees in areas in which undergraduate instruction is offered, where there is sufficient demand and institutional resources. The university may offer a select number of practitioner-oriented doctoral programs in areas of strength where there is demonstrated need. Given its historical role in and commitment to educator preparation, the University shall have a comprehensive graduate program in advanced educator preparation.
           
    10. Iowa School for the Deaf Mission
      1. The educational programs of the Iowa School for the Deaf shall be consistent with the philosophy reflected in federal and state legislation that children with and without disabilities be educated together to the greatest extent possible and that a continuum of services must be available to children with disabilities. Thus, ISD shall provide an education for those deaf or hard of hearing students, including those with additional disabilities, for whom the comprehensive educational programs at the school are most appropriate.
         
      2. The educational programs of the Iowa School for the Deaf shall be based on the premise that the school exists to serve its students by providing a learning environment which, to the greatest extent possible, maximizes each child's potential to become a contributing member of society and by enhancing the development of language and communication, knowledge, self-realization, human relationships, economic independence, and a sense of civic and social responsibility. The child-centered programs shall include learning activities and experiences that appropriately and specifically meet the needs of each child.
         
      3. Scope
        1. The scope of the educational program shall include services from infancy through secondary education for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Program formats shall include full-time day school, regional day school, dormitory, summer, and other short-term programs to meet specific needs, vocational, on and off-campus individual assessment, and evaluation services. For dormitory students, activities and experiences on a twenty-four hour basis are an integral part of the program.
           
        2. The Iowa School for the Deaf shall also serve as a state resource and dissemination center for education of students who are deaf or hard of hearing. The school shall have a central and vital role in the statewide education of students who are deaf or hard of hearing and shall provide a resource center for educators, related field professionals, parents, the deaf community, and all interested citizens. Such a role affords the opportunity for the community-at-large to draw upon the specialized programs and services available at the Iowa School for the Deaf.
           
        3. The Iowa School for the Deaf shall make its special resources available to Regent universities, area education agencies, local education agencies, and other public and private agencies. Resource services provide support in such activities as: (1) assessment and educational planning for students who are deaf or hard of hearing; (2) programs for development of specialized communications skills; (3) parent education; (4) extended educational programming for young adults who are deaf or hard of hearing and are still eligible under state and federal statutes for ISD’s services (up through age 21); (5) research; (6) preservice and continuing education of teachers and related professionals; (7) curriculum development and evaluation; and (8) development and dissemination of instructional materials and technology.
           
        4. Within the scope of the school's mission, future programs shall be determined by the ongoing evaluation of existing programs and an analysis of developing needs. Programs shall be added, curtailed, discontinued, or eliminated based on assessment of need and the most effective use of resources. The school shall remain flexible to respond quickly and effectively to the needs of Iowa students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
           
    11. Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School Mission
      1. The mission of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall be to provide direct and indirect educational services in collaboration with other service providers to the children and youth of the State of Iowa who are blind or visually impaired, including those with additional disabilities. The school shall provide leadership and resources statewide to meet the needs of children who are blind or visually impaired. This mission shall be carried out through cooperative efforts with appropriate state agencies, area education agencies (AEAs), and local education agencies (LEAs).
         
      2. The purpose of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall be to enable Iowa’s students who are blind or visually impaired to function as independently as possible in all aspects of life by providing appropriate education opportunities, resources, and support services.
         
      3. The educational programs of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall be consistent with the philosophy, reflected in federal and state legislation, that children and youth with disabilities will be educated together with non-disabled peers, to the greatest extent possible and that a continuum of services must be available to children with disabilities. All programs and services provided by the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall support the need for instruction for children who are blind or visually impaired in the following expanded core curriculum skill areas: compensatory skills, orientation and mobility, social interaction skills, independent living skills, recreation and leisure skills, career education, use of assistive technology, visual efficiency skills, acquisition of knowledge-building information and self-determination.
         
      4. Scope
        1. The scope of the educational program shall include provisions for serving children from early childhood through age twenty-one. Options available for students to receive services regionally include, but are not limited to, direct services in the local school; regional day school, consultative services in local schools; summer school opportunities, extended school year services, and short-term programs to meet transition needs.  Other resources available to children who are blind or visually impaired shall include, but not be limited to, such services as Low Vision Clinics; instructional materials production and loan; library services; assistive device technology loans; and Braille production.
           
        2. The Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall provide leadership in the field of vision in the State of Iowa through collaborative efforts with the state Department of Education, Bureau of Children, Family, and Community Services, the AEAs, LEAs,  the Iowa Department for the Blind, and other related service providers. Through these collaborative efforts, professional development, curriculum development, parent and family services, and other services to professionals and paraprofessionals shall be provided.
           
        3. Future programs of the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School shall be determined collaboratively and by analysis of the developing needs of students, families, and professionals throughout the state. Programs shall be developed, implemented, evaluated, modified, continued, suspended, or eliminated based on the assessed needs of students and the effective and efficient use of resources. The programs and services of the school shall remain flexible and will respond quickly to meet the needs of the children and youth of the State of Iowa who are blind or visually impaired.