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STATE OF IOWA
KIM REYNOLDS
GOVERNOR
June 11, 2025
The Honorable Paul Pate
Secretary of State of Iowa
State Capitol
Des Moines, Iowa 50319
Dear Mr. Secretary,
I hereby transmit:
House File 437, an Act establishing a center for intellectual freedom at the university of
Iowa.
The above House File is hereby approved on this date.
Sine
nolds
Governor of Iowa
cc: Secretary of the Senate
Clerk of the House
STATE CAPITOL DES MOINES, IOWA 50319 515.281.5211 WWW.GOVERNOR.IOWA.GOV
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House File 437
AN ACT
ESTABLISHING A CENTER FOR INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM AT THE
UNIVERSITY OF IOWA.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
Section 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act shall be known and may be
cited as the " Center for Intellectual Freedom Act - .
Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 263C.1 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise
requires:
1. ' Board - means the state board of regents.
2. " Center - means the center for intellectual freedom
established by section 263C.2.
3. " Regents institution - means an institution specified in
section 262.7, subsections 1 through 3.
4. " University - means the state university of Iowa.
Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 263C.2 Center for intellectual
freedom.
1. A center for intellectual freedom is established as an
independent academic center under the board at the university.
2. The center shall conduct teaching and research in the
historical ideas, traditions, and texts that have shaped the
American constitutional order and society.
3. The board may name the center in accordance with any
philanthropic naming policies or practices of the board or
university.
House File 437, p. 2
Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 263C.3 Functions of the center.
1. The center shall provide scholarship in all of the
following subjects:
a. The texts and major debates that form the intellectual
foundation of free societies, especially that of the United
States.
b. The principles, ideals, and institutions of the American
constitutional order.
c. The foundations of responsible leadership and informed
citizenship.
2. The center shall offer university- wide programming
related to the values of free speech and civil discourse.
3. The center shall work to do all of the following:
a. Expand the intellectual diversity of the university's
academic community.
b. Foster civic engagement among university students and
faculty.
c. Coordinate with the center for cyclone civics at Iowa
state university and the center for civic education at the
university of northern Iowa to enable academic offerings that
may be offered to students at any of the regents institutions
either in person or online.
4. The center, in collaboration with any of the regents
institutions, may offer courses; develop certificate, minor,
and major programs as well as graduate programs; and offer
degrees.
5. The center shall offer at least one three- semester
credit hour course in American history and civil government.
If a regents institution has established general education
requirements for undergraduate students that include an
American heritage course requirement, the center shall ensure
that the course satisfies that requirement. The center shall
coordinate with the center for cyclone civics at Iowa state
university and the center for civic education at the university
of northern Iowa to ensure that the course is offered to
students at each regents institution either in person or
online.
Sec. 5. NEW SECTION. 263C.4 Bylaws.
The center shall establish bylaws governing the center
House File 437, p. 3
subject to the approval of the board. In addition to any
other bylaws established, the bylaws must include all of the
following requirements, which shall take precedence over any
other requirements in the bylaws:
1. The center shall educate students by means of free, open,
and rigorous intellectual inquiry to seek the truth.
2. The center affirms its duty to equip students with
the skills, habits, and dispositions of mind they need to
reach their own informed conclusions on matters of social and
political importance.
3. The center affirms the value of intellectual diversity
in higher education and aspires to enhance the intellectual
diversity of the university.
4. The center affirms a commitment to create a community
dedicated to an ethic of civil and free inquiry, which respects
the intellectual freedom of each member, supports individual
capacities for growth, and welcomes the differences of opinion
that naturally exist in a public university community.
Sec. 6. NEW SECTION. 263C.5 Funding — use.
1. The center may accept and administer private and
external donations and gifts. The university of Iowa center
for advancement shall be the designated foundation for
philanthropic gifts or funding for the center.
2. Any moneys appropriated to the center, and any private
and external donations to the center, shall be used only for
the direct operation of the center.
3. Any additional funding required to operate the center
shall be proportionally provided by the regents institutions,
subject to approval of the board.
Sec. 7. NEW SECTION. 263C.6 Center faculty.
The university shall employ tenure- eligible faculty members
to provide instruction through the center. The university
shall incrementally increase the number of such faculty to five
based on market research and student demand. Faculty members
appointed to the center may hold joint appointments to other
academic units of the university. Faculty members who are not
affiliated with the center shall have no authority to approve,
deny, or modify the terms of appointment of faculty to the
center.
House File 437, p. 4
Sec. 8. NEW SECTION. 263C.7 Advisory council.
1. No later than December 31, 2025, the board shall appoint
an advisory council for the center.
2. The board shall appoint a minimum of nine members to the
council. A majority of the members appointed to the council
shall constitute a quorum. No more than one member of the
council may be an employee of the university.
3. The board shall determine the initial length of each
member's term in accordance with this subsection. A majority
of the members initially appointed to the council shall serve
initial terms of four years. The remaining initially appointed
members shall serve initial terms of two years. The board
shall appoint new members to fill vacancies on the council in
accordance with this section.
Sec. 9. NEW SECTION. 263C.8 Appointment of director.
1. The advisory council established under section 263C.7
shall conduct a nationwide search for candidates for the
director of the center. The council shall adhere to all
relevant state and federal laws in conducting the search. The
council shall submit finalists for the position to the board.
The board, upon approval of a candidate, shall appoint the
candidate as the director. All subsequent directors shall be
chosen in the same manner.
2. The director shall have the academic standing to be
eligible for tenure at a regents institution.
Sec. 10. NEW SECTION. 263C.9 Duties of director.
1. The director of the center shall have the sole and
exclusive authority to manage the recruitment and hiring
process, and to extend offers for employment, of the center
and to terminate employment of all staff of the center in
accordance with state and federal law.
2. The director shall conduct a market assessment to
determine course demand and the number of faculty required to
meet any unmet needs of the center and may conduct additional
market assessments as needed. A market assessment shall
include the subjects described in section 263C.3, subsections 1
and 2.
3. The director shall have the authority to invite guest
speakers to the university on behalf of the center.
House File 437, p. 5
4. The director shall report directly to the board.
Sec. 11. NEW SECTION. 263C.10 Annual report.
Beginning in 2026, the director of the center shall submit an
annual report to the governor, the general assembly, and the
board of regents by December 31. The report shall provide a
full account of the center's achievements and shall identify
any opportunities, challenges, and obstacles in the development
of the center.
PAT GRASSLEY
Speaker of the House
? 2
AMY SINQUIR
President of the Senate
I hereby certify that this bill originated in the House and
is known as House File 437, Ninety-first General Assembly.
Approve l
2025
MEGHAN NELSON
Chibf C rk the House
KIM R N DS IO Governor