Des Moines, Iowa — Republicans on the House Education Committee have voted to require Iowa’s three public universities to explain terms and concepts used in courses taken by students who plan to be teachers.
Republican Representative Skyler Wheeler of Hull says if the bill is approved by both the House and Senate, the report would be due at the end of this month.
The bill also calls for a new legislative committee to be established this summer to review the reports from the Colleges of Education at Iowa, Iowa State, and UNI. Democrats opposed the bill. Representative Mary Madison of West Des Moines says the bill is hostile toward teachers.
Representative Art Staid of Cedar Rapids accused Republicans of going on a witch hunt.
Representative Steven Holt, a Republican from Denison, says college students complain to him they’re being indoctrinated with liberal concepts.
In 2021, Holt and other Republicans accused the dean of the University of Iowa Dental School of suppressing comments from conservative students in a group email about diversity training. The dean publicly apologized and retired a year earlier than planned.
