Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities partnership will support community planning and strategic projects in southeast Iowa.
Story: Cale Stelken
Published: Aug. 18, 2026
The Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC) is partnering with Ottumwa during the 2026–2027 academic year to help advance several of the city’s strategic priorities.
Supported by the University of Iowa Graduate College, IISC provides UI students with immersive, real-world education in community planning and policymaking. Led by faculty from numerous departments, student teams apply their skills to projects identified by community partners and offer strategies for development.
Located along the Des Moines River, Ottumwa is a historic southeast Iowa city and the county seat of Wapello County. Planned projects include an airport-area master plan, a community health fair, and a downtown master plan.
Ottumwa Director of Community Development Amal Eltahir’s connection with IISC is both professional and academic.
“As a graduate of the program, I have seen firsthand the value of connecting academic expertise with the needs of communities,” Eltahir says. “I also had the opportunity to partner with IISC while serving the City of Oskaloosa, where we collaborated on the Downtown Master Plan. That experience demonstrated how impactful these partnerships can be for both communities and students.”
Eltahir says partnering with IISC is a natural fit as the city advances Ottumwa’s 2040 Vision.
“This partnership allows us to leverage additional resources to help accelerate key projects and advance our strategic priorities,” she says. “IISC has a proven track record of helping communities move important initiatives forward, and we’re excited to build on that success in Ottumwa.”
IISC Director Travis Kraus says Ottumwa’s distinctive characteristics will offer UI students opportunities to learn how community needs differ across Iowa.
“The geographic diversity and the unique characteristics of our three partnering communities — Lyon County, Ottumwa, and Granger — really showcase the importance of place-based community engagement work,” Kraus says. “The needs and opportunities look quite different for a rural county, urban micropolitan, and rapidly growing small town, which makes this an exciting year for IISC.”
The partnership also creates experiential learning opportunities for students in fields such as urban and regional planning, civil and environmental engineering, law, journalism and mass communications, and fine arts.
“We encourage faculty who are interested in this work, either through courses or research, to reach out as we continue to develop our partnerships,” Kraus says.
In the coming months, IISC will continue seeking input from UI departments interested in developing spring courses focused on real-world community development.
