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“As an academic, social, and cultural force, the arts and humanities comprise the soul of the University.” So says UI President David Skorton, on the eve of the University’s ambitious Year of the Arts and Humanities, celebrated through more than three dozen special projects that emphasize the cultural engagement of the University with people in all parts of Iowa.
UI-sponsored events are organized around a unifying theme each month from September through April. For example, September celebrates “The Life of Discovery,” beginning with a kick-off festival featuring music, art, lectures, readings, and discussions.
Keep up with news and events in the Year of the Arts and Humanities at www.yah.uiowa.edu.
The University of Iowa, for the second consecutive year, is the 19th best public national university in the country, according to the latest rankings published by the magazine U.S. News & World Report. The ranking—a tie with Rutgers University and the University of Georgia—places Iowa in the top 12 percent of some 162 public national universities.
The magazine also
ranked undergraduate programs in business and engineering, where the
UI Henry B. Tippie College of Business is ranked 21st among
public universities. (The college currently is ranked 34th among all
public and private universities.) Also, in the fields of accounting
and management, the college is ranked 9th and 15th, respectively. The
UI
College of Engineering is ranked 33rd among public universities. (The
college is ranked 60th among all public and private universities.)
The rankings and other information are available online at www.usnews.com.
The University is launching an energy conservation program to help faculty, staff, and students reduce energy expenditures paid through the General Education Fund (GEF). The program is designed to help answer a $250,000 reduction in the utilities budget for fiscal year 2005.
The University is confident that the savings in energy costs can be realized by turning off unnecessary lights and equipment, and by turning off computer monitors, printers, and other office equipment overnight and on weekends. In the weeks and months ahead, faculty, staff, and students will start to see signs reminding them to do so.
“ Every GEF dollar realized by the energy conservation program is a dollar that doesn’t have to come out of other programs,” says Don Guckert, associate vice president and director for facilities management. “While each item may only reduce costs by pennies, when you multiply that by the number of items and number of hours, we can save a lot of energy dollars.”
