Community impact

exterior of UI Health Care's North Liberty facilities

UI Health Care's North Liberty campus: Building for Iowa

UI Health Care's North Liberty campus, which opened at the end of April, features a medical center and services that meet the needs and expectations of Iowans.
A speaker giving a presentation

UI experts use data in fight against cancer

A public health team from the University of Iowa is collaborating with partners across the state to share county-specific cancer data with residents in each of Iowa’s 99 counties.
Emergency medicine physician assistant residents with simulated patient and Christian Junker, PA-C

Training emergency care providers for all of Iowa

For more than two decades, the UI Emergency Medicine Physician Assistant Residency Program has addressed the specialty training gap for PAs working in rural emergency departments.
An arena with two different robots inside

UI hosts 2025 state robotics competition

More than 70 high school robotics teams from across Iowa convened in Coralville, Iowa, to showcase their skills and creations at the FIRST Tech Challenge Iowa Championship.
playwright Cianon Jones holds a microphone during a public staged reading of her play

Playwright brings Iowa historical figure to life

University of Iowa’s Arts Share, the Muscatine Art Center, and the Stanley Center commissioned Iowa Playwrights Workshop student Cianon Jones to write a play about Alexander Clark, a longtime Muscatine resident and early leader in the fight for equal rights in the state.
a doctor examining a pregnant patient

Carr provides care for community where she was born

University of Iowa medicine alum Wanakee Carr finds meaning in the care she provides as a doctor practicing obstetrics and gynecology in the Des Moines area. She describes helping bring a new child into the world as “such a beautiful experience.”
A woman standing on the ladder to a tractor

Uniting passions for agriculture and mental health

University of Iowa doctoral student Aubrey McEnroe aims to bring mental health services to the rural Iowa community where she also intends to continue the legacy of her family farm.
A man smiling with a lake in the background

Helping small towns meet wastewater needs, affordably

Craig Just at the University of Iowa has sought an affordable wastewater solution for small towns. Now, through Just’s research, partnerships, and persistence, a pilot system in Dow City appears poised to meet federal wastewater treatment regulations. The technology would then be available for hundreds of small towns in Iowa.
A woman sitting in a chair and smiling

Empowering mothers to overcome addiction

University of Iowa efforts to support pregnant women with substance use disorders are helping to deliver vital health care, provide treatment resources, and keep families together.
A woman smiling outside with trees in the background

Building a rural health care pipeline

The Carver Rural Iowa Scholars Program is preparing doctors to serve the smaller-size communities where they are needed most, closing health care gaps in Iowa.
Two men directing an actress in a living room set

Iowa grads share new film at their Quad Cities theater

Directing and screenwriting partners Scott Beck and Bryan Woods say a class they took at the University of Iowa about nonverbal communication continues to inspire their screenwriting — even in a film with as much talking as “Heretic.”
A distant shot of a car driving on a road

Working to safely bring automated driving to rural roads

Researchers at the Driving Safety Research Institute at the University of Iowa have completed more than three years of testing to learn the challenges automated vehicles encounter when operating on rural roads.
A person standing with a camera up to their face

Newspaper acquisition benefits Iowa journalism students

In addition to helping two community newspapers stay afloat, the purchase of the “Solon Economist” and the “Mount Vernon–Lisbon Sun” by “The Daily Iowan” is giving University of Iowa students more on-the-job training — and a taste of journalism practices in a small town.
A woman performing CPR on a dummy

Prepping schools for cardiac emergencies

The Project ADAM: Iowa Heartland program based at University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital has designated 16 schools in eastern Iowa as Heart Safe schools and has provided training to UI athletic programs.
A doctor standing outside a hospital while smiling

UI alum innovating health care delivery in southeast Iowa

Maria Story, MD, has launched two significant programs while working with Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center: one bringing a home hemodialysis option to southeast Iowa for the first time, and one to help primary care physicians follow patients with chronic illness more effectively and efficiently from home.
three cyclists wearing iowa tiger hawk jerseys ride along with hundreds of other RAGBRAI riders on a rural road

Hawkeyes make a difference all along RAGBRAI route

From the west to the east, the University of Iowa and its alumni provide expertise in areas as varied as health care, education, and law.
Three people stand together on a gravel road while smiling

Students seek to bridge rural-urban health divide

A group of graduating students from the University of Iowa College of Public Health have laid a solid foundation for a student organization that focuses on reducing health disparities in rural communities — like the ones they call home.
map of iowa with pins in certain towns

UI helping Iowa’s community hospitals improve cancer care

By establishing the Iowa Cancer Affiliate Network, the University of Iowa aims to support community hospitals across the state in the delivery of comprehensive cancer care to rural Iowans.
A man standing in front of an emergency room

Hawkeyes leading the way in health care administration

The University of Iowa College of Public Health trains its students to meet the challenges and opportunities associated with working in the health care field. Meet two Hawkeyes who are putting what they learned into practice in rural Iowa health care facilities.
A family of five sitting outside on a blanket

A third generation provides dental care in Fort Dodge

In deciding to be a dentist, Amy Seehusen became yet another generation of her family to attend the University of Iowa College of Dentistry and practice in Fort Dodge, Iowa.
A group of people practicing on a dummy

Building healthier communities throughout Iowa

The Business Leadership Network in the UI College of Public Health has backed health and wellness initiatives in small to mid-sized towns across Iowa, providing grants and expertise that allow these community efforts to flourish.
a woman in a wrestling singlet holding a Hawaiian flag

Hawaiian-born wrestler mobilizes Hawkeye community

Nanea Estrella is grateful for Iowa fans’ support for her neighbors in Lahaina, Hawaii, whose community was devastated by wildfires. That outpouring reinforces the Tippie College of Business student’s decision to be a Hawkeye.
A physician talking to her patient

Medicine alum answers call to serve western Iowans

Ericka Muhlbauer sees her family medicine practice in Carroll as a way to repay her community for helping her achieve her dream of being a physician.
A man leaning on a counter and smiling

Bringing advanced pharmacy care to rural southeast Iowa

Mylo Wells always knew he wanted to return to his Iowa hometown as a pharmacist. The University of Iowa gave him the skills he needed to serve his community and open his own pharmacies.
A woman leaning on a sign and smiling

The MBA program that knows no boundaries

With online and in-person options, the Iowa MBA is the top-ranked offering in Iowa, training business leaders in counties across the Hawkeye State (and beyond).
four members of a family posing together outside

Family of doctors provide family care in rural Iowa towns

Four members of the Ahrendsen family graduated from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and now practice in Clarion and Storm Lake, Iowa.
four members of a family posing together outside

Small town a perfect fit for family of doctors

When residents of Clarion, Iowa, go to the doctor, it’s possible they will be seen by one of three members of the same family—Jon Ahrendsen or his daughter and son-in-law, Andrea and Michael McLoughlin.
Liz Dupic holding a baby

Finding fulfillment in family medicine

Elizabeth Dupic’s goal was always to practice family medicine in a small town — like her father and sister before her. After she graduated from the University of Iowa, she found a perfect fit in Storm Lake, Iowa.
an illustration that shows heads in profile and in silhouette

A new mindset on mental health

With demand for mental health services surging in Iowa and across the nation, especially among young adults, the University of Iowa is working to create a culture of well-being.
a new house with balloons attached to the front gate

Iowa students help create Maquoketa neighborhood

The original designs for a 10-home “pocket neighborhood” that opened in fall of 2022 were created by University of Iowa engineering students, as part of a project associated with the Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities.
Karah Kluck portrait

Leaving a legacy of helping children

As a first-year student, Karah Kluck helped establish a free assistive technology consultation program at the University of Iowa for families of children with reading disabilities. The program continues to provide guidance to families from Iowa and beyond.
two women in a dance studio

Dance studio dream takes shape in Iowa grads’ home state

Amanda Gustafson and Aunica Harvey are teaching hundreds of Iowa children to dance in their own studio, which they opened soon after graduation with help from the University of Iowa’s John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center.
two women having a conversation

Tackling food insecurity among pregnant women

One in five pregnant women face food insecurity. Upstream Initiative, a student-run program in a high-risk pregnancy clinic at University of Iowa Health Care, aims to improve health outcomes by addressing the issue head-on.