Two reports that examine education and employment outcomes through a partnership between the Iowa Department of Education and Iowa Workforce Development were recently published to highlight the outcomes of credit and noncredit students of Iowa community college students. 

The Credit Programs Outcomes report follows Iowa community college graduates to further postsecondary enrollment or employment for five consecutive years. The report finds that the newest cohort of 2022 credit program graduates saw 49.2 percent of those 15,224 graduates continuing their postsecondary education. Of that group, 77.3 percent continued their education in Iowa and 22.7 percent continued their education out of state.

Of the credit program graduates that did not enroll in further postsecondary education, 87.8 percent were employed during the year following their graduation with median earnings of $51,743. Eighty-two percent of those employed were employed in Iowa. Students who earned an Associate's of Applied Science degree boasted the highest employment rate at 95 percent.

The Noncredit Programs Outcomes report details the students who completed community college noncredit CTE programs and their further postsecondary enrollment and employment. 

The cohort of 2022 includes 7,188 students; 87.3 percent were employed prior to noncredit education, 86.6 percent remained employed during noncredit education, and 92.9 percent were employed the first year after completing their noncredit education.

The Iowa Department of Education recently published its annual Iowa Community College Tuition and Fees Report, providing detailed information on the tuition and fees charged at each of Iowa's 15 community colleges. 

In-state students were charged an average of $205.15 per credit hour, a 3.5 percent increase from the previous year. However, mandatory fees dropped 3.3 percent to an average of $14.63 per credit hour.

The report found that for fiscal year 2025, the average cost of enrollment (tuition and fees) for in-state students attending one of Iowa's community colleges was $219.78 per credit hour, a 3.1 percent increase from the previous year.

Those tuition and fees accounted for approximately 46.5 percent of community colleges' unrestricted operating revenue during fiscal year 2023, the last year for which data is available. This figure is an 11.3 percentage point decrease from when that percentage peaked in FY2012.

The Iowa Department of Education's annual Iowa Community Colleges Fall Enrollment Report is being finalized, and we're excited to publish the full report in the coming weeks.

Initial data from the report shows that total Fall 2024 enrollment increased by 1.4 percent from Fall 2023. Part-time and full-time student enrollment grew by 1.5 and 1.3 percent, respectively. Part-time students account for 66.7 percent of fall enrollment, an all-time high figure. 

New enrollments accounted for 20.6 percent of all enrollees. While this is a 0.6 percentage point decline from Fall 2023, it starkly contrasts the 5.0 percentage point decline seen nationally in new enrollments. 

Governor Kim Reynolds joined Iowa Central Community College and Department of Education staff for a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new learning center in Storm Lake.

The new $10 million facility will help to expand career academy opportunities for area high school students with new programs in high-demand fields, such as advanced manufacturing, computer technology and health sciences.

Featuring 16 classrooms, an academic resource center and a testing center, the facility provides area students with more opportunities to earn college credit, explore potential career pathways and attain industry-recognized credentials.

Development of the new Iowa Central Community College Learning Center was funded in part by a $1 million grant through the Iowa Department of Education's Career Academy Incentive Fund, which helps to increase and support career academy opportunities across the state.

The search is underway for Iowa's top agriculture educator of the year. The nominating period for the 2024-25 Golden Owl Award honoring excellence in agriculture education is now open for submissions. The deadline to nominate an educator is Dec. 1.

Sponsored by the Iowa FFA Foundation, Nationwide Insurance and other partners in agriculture, the annual Golden Owl Award celebrates the outstanding work of agriculture education leaders in Iowa. Students, fellow teachers, faculty and other partners are invited to submit nominations for exceptional ag educators who have made a difference.

Seven finalists for the award will be selected in early 2025. Each finalist will receive a $500 prize, a commemorative engraved plaque and the chance to be named as Iowa’s top agriculture educator. A grand prize of $3,000 and the Golden Owl trophy will be presented to the winner at the Iowa FFA Convention next April.

For more information, contact Bureau of Community Colleges and Postsecondary Readiness Education Program Consultant Alan Spencer at alan.spencer@iowa.gov.

Pathway Pillars in Practice is a series of webinars that create communities of practice around specific topics related to the four pillars of Guided Pathways. Each session is held over the lunch hour so anyone can participate and engage in discussion on a topic that features at least one of the 15 community colleges.

The next Pathway Pillars in Practice is Thursday, Nov. 7, from noon to 1 p.m.

Are you unsure what guided pathways are, or how your role fits within the guided pathways framework? 

This session will reset the guided pathways pillars framework using a student-centered lens featuring both staff and faculty members from DMACC. There will be breakout sessions for administrators, faculty and staff to discuss the information by major role in addition to time for questions. 

Register here for the Pathways Pillars in Practice Webinar. 

For more information, contact Bureau of Community Colleges and Postsecondary Readiness Education Program Consultant Kelly Friesleben at kelly.friesleben@iowa.gov.

The Iowa Department of Education is accepting applications for the Career Academy Incentive Fund for the 2024-25 academic year through Nov. 15, 2024.

The Career Academy Incentive Fund provides targeted grants to support partnerships between school districts and community colleges that expand access to career academy programs, with a focus on programming delivered through regional centers. Annually, the Iowa Department of Education awards up to $5 million in grants for projects that best meet the criteria specified in statute. The number of grants issued is based on the amount of available funds and types of applications received.

Applications must include one school district and one community college. Proposals for new career academies delivered collaboratively between multiple school districts and a community college through a regional center will receive priority consideration.

For more information on the Career Academy Incentive Fund, contact Bureau of Community Colleges and Postsecondary Readiness Administrative Consultant Heather Meissen at heather.meissen@iowa.gov or 515-326-5378.

The State Park and Institutional Roads Program provides funding to construct, reconstruct, improve, and maintain roadways, including bridges, within the boundaries of state-owned lands or community college property. Sixty-five one-hundredths of one percent of the Road Use Tax Fund is allocated to maintain and improve the State Park and Institutional Roads system.

The Park and Institutional Roads System has over 600 miles of roadways. State agencies participating in the program are the Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC), the Iowa Department of Education (DOE) State Fair Board, the Department of Human Services (DHS), the National Guard of Iowa, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Board of Regents and Department of Administrative Services (DAS) Capitol Complex.

If interested in participating in this program, please complete this form to submit a proposal for State Park & Institutional Road funds for the calendar year 2030.

The deadline for Fall 2024 road fund proposals is EOB Friday, Dec. 13, 2024.

These funds are limited due to past obligations, so please limit your requests between $50,000 and $300,000 to accommodate more than one project per calendar year and note that the average project award amount has historically been approximately $200,000. The scoring rubric favors proposals from institutions that have not recently received funds.

Per Iowa Code, each agency is allocated a percentage of the fund based on the following: Iowa DNR (45.5%), Board of Regents (30%), Iowa DHS (6.5%), Iowa Department of Education (6%), Iowa DOC (5.5%), National Guard of Iowa (4%), State Fair Board (2%), and Iowa DAS Capitol Complex (0.5%).

For more information, please contact  Bureau of Community Colleges & Postsecondary Readiness Education Program Consultant Dr. Jeff Fletcher at jeffrey.fletcher@iowa.gov.

Join our team! The Bureau of Community Colleges and Postsecondary Readiness has new career opportunities for candidates passionate about education in Iowa.

We are currently seeking applicants for an Administrative Consultant for Policy and Finance. This position processes all aspects of the development of legislation, administrative rules, legislative proposals, and policy analysis impacting the Bureau of Community Colleges and Postsecondary Readiness. It also coordinates issues related to community college finance and the bureau's budget. The deadline to apply is Nov. 17.

To learn more about these and other Department job postings, visit the Iowa Department of Administrative Services website. For specific questions about open bureau positions, contact Bureau of Community College and Postsecondary Readiness Section Chief Amy Gieseke at amy.gieseke@iowa.gov.