Last week, the Northern Iowan published an article detailing House Study Bill 63 and how it could potentially affect UNIFI, UNI’s new general education program. 

This bill (now House File 401) was passed out of the higher education committee by seven representatives and now awaits an Iowa House vote. This bill aims to replace all regent university general education programs with a prescribed, legislated version of those general education programs. 

The legislated version would require 37 credits, and requires the Board of Regents to “ensure that courses that satisfy the general education requirements established pursuant to section do not distort significant historical events or include any curriculum or other material that teaches identity politics or is based on theories that systemic racism, sexism, oppression, or privilege are inherent in the institutions of the

United States of America or the state of Iowa. The policy shall not limit the academic freedom of any course instructor to direct the instruction within the instructor’s course or limit the free discussion of ideas in a classroom setting.” If passed, the bill is set to take effect in the summer of 2027.

This bill is presented as a way to simplify general education studies across the regent universities and make transferring even easier for students. But, UNI is already a designated transfer-friendly school, as named by the Phi Theta Kappa Transfer Honor Roll, which cites UNI as one of the top 25% of colleges nationwide for transfer students. 

UNIFI took around five years to fully formulate, and included faculty input, involvement and the exploration of peer institution general education. There are currently 172 classes built into the UNIFI curriculum to satisfy UNIFI’s 37 credit requirement, allowing students the option of choice and allowing them to build a general education plan of study that they would find interesting. UNIFI also allows students to package credits into a general education certificate, allowing students to possibly explore more classes outside of their major of study. UNIFI is constantly expanding its range of course offerings for students and encourages faculty to propose new classes through its course proposal program. 

All of this could go away if HSB63, now House File 401, is passed into law. The student choice and faculty involvement that is baked into the UNIFI program could be replaced by a prescribed version of general education. The general education program built by UNI faculty to directly benefit UNI students and prospective transfer students is at risk of being replaced by legislation. These changes could also lead to important historical topics being barred from being taught at all, as mentioned in the bill. 

This is about the matter of choice. It’s about students and faculty having control over their education. The principles of public education lie in the hands of the faculty and students who attend such institutions, not in the hands of legislators. Rep. Taylor Collins, the chair of the higher education committee, says it’s important that this legislation is passed and that regent universities make their way back to “true liberal arts education.” 

There is no definition for what makes a “true liberal arts education.” But, there’s something to be said about the role that academic freedom plays in general education, where universities are able to dictate what is best for their students, as reported and studied by their own faculty. The students at regent universities like UNI are entitled to academic freedom. HB63 would restrict that freedom, that choice, that is so sacred to a secondary education under the guise that components of general education aren’t working. UNIFI, the general education program at UNI, is working for students. It’s working for transfer students. But the academic freedom and choice allowed by this program apparently isn’t working for the Iowa legislature.

As one UNI student, senior psychology major Hayden Burke, told the Northern Iowan, the state legislature is taking away student choice and independence. “I pay thousands of dollars to exercise my independence to choose an educational institution and program that I want to acquire. Having the government strip that right from me by implementing a statewide general education program would make me feel paralyzed as a student,”  Burke said.