The Board of Regents is facing controversy once again after Gov. Tom Vilsack appointed two new regents and reappointed another last Friday.

Ruth Harkin, wife of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, was appointed to replace Sioux City Regent Sue Nieland and Tom Bedell, president of Pure Fishing, has been tapped to replace Des Moines Regent Owen Newlin. Des Moines Regent Rose Vasquez was reappointed to a six-year term, after filling a seat vacated in September.

Vilsack has now appointed five members to the nine-member board in the last three weeks. Michael Gartner, principal owner of the Iowa Cubs, and Mid-America Group president Teresa Wahlert were appointed to replace President John Forsyth and former La Porte City Regent David Neil, respectively, after the two resigned in January. The recent appointments would fill every board position by April.

The appointments still need to be approved by the Iowa Senate, and some state Republicans have expressed concern that the new appointments will create party affiliations within the board. The board would have five registered Democrats, which is the maximum number of individuals from one party allowed on the board. Three individuals on the board are registered Republicans, and one, student Regent Jenny Rokes, is unaffiliated.

Although it’s no surprise that either Democrats or Republicans would make a stink about who has more votes, it’s important for the Legislature to remember what the Board of Regents is all about — and it’s not politics.

The board is responsible for enhancing “the quality of life for Iowans by maintaining the educational quality, accessibility and public service activities” for the three regent universities.

This includes one issue in particular that has been a problem for the universities: approving tuition and, most importantly, tuition increases.

Before the resignations and new appointments, the board proposed recommendations that would allocate $40 million to the regent universities for each of the next four years and limit in-state tuition to rise only with inflation — a proposal supported by Vilsack.

Despite the prospective majority of Democrats on the new board, it’s important that the Legislature understand the regents’ purpose and not fuss over minutiae.

Does it really matter if there are five Democrats on the board?

No, it doesn’t.

As long as each board member has education as his or her main focus, party affiliation is meaningless. What matters is that all the regents work together to slow down tuition increases for Iowa universities.

There are situations where a majority of Democrats or Republicans would be cause for concern or debate. The Board of Regents isn’t one of them.