Regents' tuition decision is on spring timeline this year

Proposed tuition rates for 2026-27 and a first look at both parking and student housing and dining rates for next year are on the agenda when the Iowa Board of Regents meets Feb. 25-26 in Iowa City. The College Affordability Act (HF 440), signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds last May, requires the regents to approve fall tuition by April 30. 

The agenda is online, and all open portions of the meeting will be livestreamed on the regents website.

First look at tuition increases

With state appropriations for next year unknown until legislation passes this spring and higher education inflation of 3.6% expected, Iowa State is proposing a 3% tuition increase for resident undergraduates and all graduate students, a 4% increase for all students in the professional Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program and a 4.5% increase for nonresident undergraduates.

2026-27: Proposed tuition and fees

*Doesn't reflect any supplementary tuition

In addition, Iowa State will seek a flat $24.50 increase in mandatory fees for all students. Total mandatory fees vary between $1,525 and $1,585. The increase would be shared among the technology fee ($10), Memorial Union fee ($3.10) and recreation fee ($11.40).

The regents will give the tuition proposals a first review this month, with a vote anticipated at the April 23 meeting.

Lake LaVerne improvements

The regents will be asked to approve a nearly $5.1 million project to dredge Lake LaVerne and improve the water quality, aesthetics and usability of the lake. Private gifts to date totaling $3.26 million means additional features can be included in what began as a dredging and shoreline restoration project. These features are an outdoor classroom, outdoor amphitheater and pedestrian bridge across the western part of the lake. Private fundraising continues. The current project budget also includes about $1.83 million in income from the Treasurer's Temporary Investments fund. If approved, work would begin later this spring.

First look at parking permit increases

ISU's parking division is seeking a 3% increase ($2-$33) on employee parking permits for the fiscal year that begins July 1. No changes are proposed for parking meters and metered lots. The parking division has paid off all bonds on the parking system, and new revenue would be used to maintain existing lots and upgrade equipment for efficient service. Commuter parking at the Iowa State Center lots would remain free, as proposed.

The regents will give the parking proposals a first review this month, with a vote anticipated at the April 23 meeting.

Proposed changes to employee parking permits

*Includes residence, Ames Lab staff

Annual and seasonal permits for the Memorial Union ramp also would go up 3% this summer, as proposed. The ramp is operated by the Memorial Union, not the university's parking division. No changes are requested to hourly rates or penalty fees at the ramp.

Proposed changes to Memorial Union parking permits

All figures rounded to whole dollars

University's economic impact on Iowa

In the last scheduled item of the two-day meeting, Hannah Ruffridge, senior director of education professional services with the labor market analytics firm, Lightcast, will present an overview of its new report, the Economic Value of Iowa's Regent Universities, conducted on behalf of the board of regents. Lightcast completed a similar analysis in fiscal year 2022, and another consultant completed an FY18 study. The analysis includes an economic impact and investment analysis for each of the three regent universities and for the three combined.

First look at student housing, dining rate increases

Campus life leaders are asking for a 5% increase to room rates and a 2% increase to meal plans to cover inflationary increases and continued investments in bathrooms, student rooms, common areas, study spaces, and roof and window replacements. That would translate to room increases of $192 to $419 depending on variables such as hall, number of roommates and air conditioning. The standard double room (no AC) with an unlimited dining center meal plan and $250 in portable dining dollars each semester would cost $11,265, an increase of $385 (3.5%) over the current rate.

The residence department's projected capacity for FY 2027 is 11,168 beds, an increase of 85 beds by returning to the intended capacity in two-bedroom apartments. Roughly two-thirds of the beds are in residence halls; the rest in campus apartments. Occupancy rates are estimated at 96%-97% through 2031. 

The regents will give the housing and dining proposals a first review this month, with a vote anticipated at the April 23 meeting.

Other Iowa State requests

In other agenda items, Iowa State will seek board permission to:

• Approve four new degree programs: B. S. in animal enterprise and innovation; online B. A. in psychology; online M.S. in nursing; and in partnership with Mary Greeley Medical Center, an accelerated B.S. in nursing in which students enter with a bachelor's degree and 35 credits in subject-specific prerequisites.
• Terminate one secondary major, the B.S. in international business, due to low enrollment and because it's six credits short of a new (2025) ISU minimum requirement of 24 credits for secondary majors. An existing 15-credit minor gives students an option.
• Sign a 10-year lease with Chick-fil-A for a store in the Memorial Union south of the food court, with an optional five-year renewal. Chik fil-A would construct, maintain and manage the store, and pay ISU commissions on all sales.
• Begin the first phase of the university's ongoing effort to modernize the fire alarm system. With a project budget of $3.9 million, it will cover upgrades in 150 buildings.
• Sell 17 acres of university property on Ontario Street to Ames-based Hunziker Development Group for $550,000. The land is the southern end of a 58-acre parcel, the northern portion of which is home to the Applied Science Complex and Sensitive Instrument Facility. The 17 acres, currently managed by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, are bordered by Union Pacific railroad tracks to the north, Scholl Road to the east, Ontario Street to the south and private homes to the west. In 2019, it was the proposed site for a city Healthy Life Center, but voters rejected a necessary bond referendum.