The Iowa Board of Regents met Wednesday in the Iowa State Alumni Center to address several topics including student financial aid, mental health resources and online coursework. Here’s a brief look at what was discussed:

Student Financial Aid Report

Student aid is an issue that the board hears about periodically. In a presentation, the panel saw that regent financial aid has been increasing over the past several years with $277.1 million in funding from 2017-18. About 70 percent of that figure is composed of undergraduates.

Several issues of student debt were addressed including the expected unmet need for tuition costs of Iowa families. The total estimated unmet need is $38.3 million statewide which amounts to $4,590 per family.

In addition to the unmet financial needs of families, it was estimated that the average Parent Plus Loan for a student is $9,524.

Despite the issues faced by the board, the overall message was one of positivity. Large numbers of students are graduating with zero dollars in debt or very close. The default rate on loans for Iowa State students was also reported to be around 2.9 percent in a three-year window.

Miller Faculty Fellowship Program

Sara Marcketti of the Miller Faculty Fellowship Program gave a presentation about the benefits that it has brought to Iowa State. She claimed that the program benefits students and professors alike because it allows them to work together on projects and improve undergraduate courses. Faculty members may apply to take part and could receive up to $15,000 in support.

Student Mental Health

Student health had a special presentation in which Erin Baldwin, the assistant vice president of student affairs, spoke about the situation on campus. She began by reinforcing the importance of addressing new issues and the diversity of student needs.

“Student health and well-being are inextricably linked to student academic success,” Baldwin said.

Baldwin said the demand for mental health services has increased dramatically in the last 10 years, and the university is trying to meet it. The challenge for her is that colleges aren’t meant to address long-term mental health care and can usually provide a dozen or less sessions to each student.

“A holistic campus-wide approach is the best way to serve students,” Baldwin said in response to the difficulty in providing long-term care.

The university hopes to accomplish this by providing different options. A text line has been set up for students to address their problems and the ISU police have hired a mental health professional to help students.

Baldwin expressed that Ames is fortunate to have services available, but more improvement can be made.

Online Education

Expanding online education was another subject of interest, and new options were added for people taking Iowa State courses off-campus. In the future, students will be able to receive a certificate in swine science and a bachelor’s degree in agricultural studies.

Program Name Changes

The first issue related to Iowa State was the changing of department names. One department was changed to “biochemistry” and the other was changed to “experiential graphic design.”

Both items were on the consent agenda and received immediate approval without disagreement.