IOWA CITY — Affordability of higher education is only one of many problems facing Iowa’s education system, Gov. Tom Vilsack pointed out in a speech to the Board of Regents on Wednesday.

Vilsack stressed the need for a transformed state economy, a transformation he said needs to be supported through changes in all levels of Iowa’s educational system.

“From listening to students at [the University of Iowa] and the other regent universities, I recognize in order for us to embrace this new economy, we must embrace them,” he said.

As part of his speech, Vilsack touted recent work done by his newly created Iowa Learns Council, a group of 37 Iowans charged with looking at the quality of education in the state.

The council released recommendations earlier this week that stress the need for a rating system for early childcare providers, higher standards for high school graduates and consolidation of more of Iowa’s small, rural schools.

Vilsack referenced a council study that tracked the progress of 100 randomly sampled ninth-graders to see how prepared they were for college. He said 83 would graduate from high school, and of those, 54 would go onto to college right away, with 38 staying for their second year.

“One reason for these trends is the cost,” Vilsack said. “We need a stronger commitment from the state government to ensure a world-class education system.”

Of utmost importance to the regents and university officials on hand was the governor’s call for universities to improve communication with employers about what skills are needed of employees. Vilsack emphasized teaching biosciences to help with Iowa’s changing bioeconomy, an area to which Iowa State is committed.

“Our expectations of youngsters’ graduation [from] high school are not high enough; they are not prepared,” Vilsack said. “If we are going to embrace this bioeconomy, I don’t think two years of math and science are enough.”

The university has allocated several million dollars in the past three years to support new faculty in bioscience initiatives, and has reorganized biological science departments on campus. ISU President Gregory Geoffroy said more funding is needed to continue growth, a message Vilsack also repeated.

“Where does the money come for all of this?” Vilsack asked. “As the economy of this state grows, it will produce additional revenue. The No. 1 priority for those revenues is this transformed Iowa, which includes every level of education.”

This was particularly evident as the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education released a report later that day indicating Iowa has lost ground in making higher education affordable.

The result is an increase in the amount of family income needed to pay for college expenses (minus financial aid) from 18 percent a decade ago to 24 percent in 2004.

Iowa was one of 36 states to receive an “F” grade for affordability.

“[The F grade] is the direct shortfall from funding from the Iowa Legislature, and we have pushed the responsibility of maintaining excellence on the students,” said La Porte City Regent David Neil, adding that that is the reason why the regents requested a four-year commitment for the Legislature for an increase of $40 million an annual in higher education funding. “As Gov. Vilsack said, it will take a change of heart or change of faces in the Legislature if that’s to happen. And he’s got the right prescriptions.”