The Board of Regents recently selected the members of the Transparency Task Force, a committee devoted to informing the community to increase trust amongst Iowans.

At its March 13 meeting, the Board of Regents approved nine qualified candidates for the force including members from regent universities and influential Iowa programs.

The first meeting for the Task Force is April 5, 2013 in Des Moines from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Their main idea will be informing the members the charge of the force and a presentation on Iowa’s Open Meetings and Open Records Law.

A recording of the meeting will be available on the Regents website shortly after the meeting is done. The Force is also scheduling public hearings across the state through the next couple of months.

Suggested on February 6, the Force includes one member of Governor’s Iowa Public Information Board, two members of the Iowa Legislature, one Regent, three members from Iowa’s public universities, Executive Director of Board of Regents and a member of the public.

Representative of the public, Jack Lashier, believes he was selected because of his unique position as director of the Iowa Hall of Pride. Around 50,000 Iowa students go on field trips to the Hall of Pride each year.

“If you look at the committee, they all represent a certain segment of the population of Iowa. When I was asked to do it, they asked me if I would be the voice that represents the public in general,” Lashier said.

The goal for the Transparency Task Force is to form a method to best respond to public information requests and provide access to information that would be found important to Iowans.

“I’ve always thought that it is good to give back,” Lashier said. “I feel lucky to be in Iowa. I feel anything we can do to help our state become better and more informed and more open, I’m all for that.”

Representing the Governor’s Iowa Public Information Board, Kathleen Richardson has been active in the area of open government for over a decade. She has worked for the Des Moines Register for 20 years and is the executive secretary of Iowa Freedom of Information Council.

“A lot of my career is devoted to these issues,” Richardson, also the director in journalism and mass communications at Drake University, said. “I’m very interested in getting involved in this [Force]. I’m looking forward to it.”

Lashier suspects the members will be informed of how they are expected to function, how to interact with each other and how they are to represent the people of the public.

Both Lashier and Richardson said they look forward to showcasing all the great things about Iowa and Iowa’s universities.

“I feel blessed in what I do,” Lashier said. “I think it’s a way that I can give back. I hope that is the attitude of the whole force. I’m anticipating a really positive experience.”