Higher Education

The University of Iowa football team played its first game this weekend in a season that had previously been derailed by the coronavirus. Fans crowded into bars to watch, even as the virus continues to rage across the state and hospitals see a surge in patients.

It will be up to individual University of Iowa football players whether they choose to stand for the national anthem, or kneel to protest racial injustice. That's a change for the program, which in past years encouraged players to keep politics out of the game.

The University of Iowa says it will not meet the demands of a group of Black former football players, who have called for the firing of coaches and the awarding of $20 million in damages over alleged racial discrimination.

What could flu season look like in the midst of a pandemic?

University of Iowa President Bruce Harreld announced Thursday he intends to retire as soon as the next president is hired, leaving open the timeline for his departure. The news comes as the school is grappling with the coronavirus pandemic and resulting economic crisis.

The University of Iowa and the Big Ten Conference reverse their initial decision and announce plans to go ahead with a fall football season despite the COVID-19 pandemic and persistent health concerns. Players who contract the virus will get "comprehensive" cardiac screenings to monitor for potential complications, some of which cardiologists warn could be dire.

Host Ben Kieffer speaks with three reporters covering health, higher education and Iowa State athletics to unpack some of the latest news and developments across Iowa's college towns as cases of COVID-19 continue to rise on campuses.

A coalition of faculty, staff and students at the University of Iowa is organizing a sickout to call attention to the rapid spread of the coronavirus on campus. Organizers hope to pressure administrators to move to fully online instruction.

Iowa State University announced plans to allow some 25,000 fans to attend the first Cyclone football game of the season in-person. That's despite Ames and Iowa City having more new cases per capita than any other metro areas in the country.

Classes have resumed at each of the state’s three Regents universities – a welcome return to structured learning for many students and faculty who found their spring term suddenly interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.