The University of Iowa’s strategic focus on supporting faculty success is helping it retain more of its talented instructors, researchers, and clinicians, with faculty resignations decreasing by 11% in 2024, according to the Iowa Board of Regents’ Annual Human Resources Report.
Progress reflected in faculty feedback
Data from the 2024 Working at Iowa survey underscores the university’s progress in creating an environment where faculty can thrive. Faculty responses showed improvement in 16 of 19 survey questions compared with 2022, including:
- An 8% increase in faculty feeling the university does a good job recognizing accomplishments.
- A 4% increase in faculty feeling there are opportunities to pursue their career goals at Iowa.
- A 6% increase in faculty who would recommend the university to a friend seeking employment.
“Our faculty shape the student experience, drive discovery, and strengthen our impact across Iowa and around the world,” says Kevin Kregel, executive vice president and provost. “It is critical we ensure Iowa is a place where talented faculty know they can be successful.”
The UI has made faculty success a cornerstone of its 2022-2027 Strategic Plan, focusing on recruitment, development, recognition, and retention. These efforts are making a difference, with the university’s faculty retention rate increasing to 96.3% for FY 2024. The UI made significant gains in the retention of early and midcareer faculty, with 29 fewer resignations among assistant and associate professors.
Supporting clinical-track faculty
While clinical-track faculty — a growing segment of the university’s faculty who primarily practice medicine at UI Health Care and train future physicians — accounted for more than half of the 106 total faculty resignations, Iowa’s 4.8% resignation rate for nontenure track faculty remains well below the national average of 7.1%.
The Carver College of Medicine, which is home to the largest number of clinical-track faculty at the UI, has consistently worked to address some of the challenges faced by clinical faculty.
“Recruitment and retention of our clinical faculty is critical to our ability to provide access to the most advanced care for the people of Iowa and beyond,” says Peter Snyder associate dean for faculty affairs and development in the Carver College of Medicine. “Their success is at the core of our mission to teach the next generation of physicians and health care providers.”
Recent efforts by the college include leadership training and mentoring for early-career faculty, including the THRIVE program and the Recharge Retreat. THRIVE — which stands for Teaching, Health care, and Research Innovation through a Vibrant Environment — was launched in 2022 to help faculty navigate continual changes in academic medicine. Thirty-two faculty were selected for the first cohort, which focused on pandemic-informed health care, medical education, and research leadership skills.
The college also has invested in and implemented new technology to reduce time spent on administrative tasks and increase efficiency for clinical faculty. AI tools such as Evidently and Nabla have reduced the time that many faculty previously spent in the evenings completing clinical documentation.
Strategic investments yield results
The High-Impact Hiring Initiative (HIHI), launched in 2021, has played a pivotal role in strengthening the university’s recruitment and retention efforts. The program has invested nearly $17 million to support 65 recruitments and 27 retentions across 10 colleges. Of the 65 faculty recruited through HIHI, all but one remain at Iowa.
The Transformational Faculty Hiring Program complements HIHI by focusing on attracting exceptional faculty who are national leaders in research, scholarship, and teaching. Additionally, the Dual Academic Career Fund helps recruit or retain faculty by supporting career placement for faculty spouses and partners.
“These programs provide us with multiple avenues to bring world-class faculty to Iowa and give collegiate leaders the tools to retain top performers,” says Lois Geist, associate provost for faculty.
Other university-funded initiatives — including the P3 Post-Tenure Program, Scholarly Teaching Program, and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Scholars — support faculty in various career stages and tracks, offering development and mentorship opportunities that strengthen the faculty community.
Growing leaders and empowering faculty
Industry research suggests dissatisfaction with direct supervisors is a leading reason employees leave their positions. At the UI, leadership development has become a focus of retention efforts, ensuring that department and program leaders are equipped to manage, guide, and support their faculty.
The Iowa Academic Leadership Academy, launched in 2023, prepares new and aspiring leaders — such as departmental executive officers (DEOs), program directors, and associate deans — for the challenges of academic leadership. The program delivers a competency-based curriculum informed by national best practices, with small, cross-college cohorts fostering collaboration and mentorship. Participants also benefit from one-on-one executive coaching and sessions focused on management skills and creating a vision for their department.
“What I appreciated most about the training is that it helps you look at your department as a whole,” says Lucy Santos Green, director of the School of Library and Information Science and participant in the 2023-24 Iowa Academic Leadership Academy. “Instead of thinking as a faculty member who is focused on your particular area of expertise, they really showed us how to have an outward, more objective sense of what is good for the department, the college, and the university.”
Current DEOs also benefit from resources such as the DEO Leadership Development Seminars, which provide practical tools for managing faculty at all career stages. Topics range from conducting annual reviews and fostering collaborative leadership to supporting faculty well-being and creating a culture of care.
“Of all the places I’ve ever worked, the University of Iowa has done the best job of really addressing the skills and knowledge you need to be an effective manager,” says Green.
