A new Veterinary Diagnostics Lab, new majors and center closures were all approved for future votes on the first day of a two-day meeting being held at the University of Iowa.

Pam Cain, interim senior vice president of the division of finance at Iowa State, led the presentation to request permission from the board to move forward with planning and later construction on the new lab. The proposal, if approved, would create 83,000 to 88,000 square feet of space for the lab and destroy three other smaller buildings in its vicinity.

The original plan for the building put the cost at $125 million, $100 million of which would have come from state appropriations. When the state provided $63.5 million instead, the cost estimation on the job was worked down to $75 million. The remainder of the cost would come from private donations and university funds.

According to the proposal, the new building is needed to “address critical space deficiencies” and create better biosafety and biocontainment facilities.

The project would also improve sample delivery, submission, receiving and processing capabilities.

The current VDL is the only accredited veterinary diagnostic laboratory in Iowa, Cain said, meaning the project improves upon the unique opportunities already provided at Iowa State.

They also discussed using alternate methods in the construction and planning process moving forward to save time and money while being as efficient as possible.

The board also approved two new majors at Iowa State for a larger vote at their Nov. 15 to 16 meeting. These programs of study include a Doctorate in education and a Bachelor of Science in cyber security engineering — a program that would be one of the first of its kind.

Senior Vice President and Provost Jonathan Wickert also discussed approval to close five centers at Iowa State due to the program’s leaders retiring or the functions of a program being integrated into other programs.

The programs that were discussed being cut included the Biosafety Institute for Genetically Modified Agricultural Products, the Center for Carbon Capturing of Crops, the Center for Sustainable Environmental Technologies, the Midwest Forensics Resource Center and the Nutrition and Wellness Research Center.

Wickert said research wasn’t going to stop in these areas, but instead many of the research areas would be looked into by other research centers at Iowa State.

The last Iowa State related topic discussed was led by Paul Fuligni, assosciate vice president of Facilities Planning and Management. Fuligni discussed areas on campus that needed renocations including a three-year plan to update Parks Library.

Usage of Parks Library has gone up 30 percent over the last five years, Fuligni said. He discussed transforming the second and third floors for more individual study and collaborative efforts through a request of $26 million from the state and $2 million from private donations.

To complete the renovation they would want to replace the more than 50 year old heating, venting and air conditioning equipment, increase capacity on the second and third floor by 600 seats collectively and add 24 new “technology enhanced” spaces.

Thursdays meeting will begin at 9:15 a.m. and will primarily consist of administrative matters and the congregation of committees.