Know someone whose research, scholarship, creativity, or mentorship deserves to be celebrated? Nominations are open for the 2027 Discovery and Innovation Awards, recognizing faculty, staff, and students whose work is making a difference on campus and beyond. The deadline is Jan. 15.

Why do people choose to use drugs even when they’re fully aware of the negative consequences? A University of Iowa neuroscientist received funding to determine what happens in the brain when people make that decision.

Tara Bynum, associate professor in the Department of English, has received a $50,000 fellowship from the John Carter Brown Library to support work on her book, A Revolutionary History of Black Joy.

Tony Tulathimutte went from an unhappy career in Silicon Valley to the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Now the acclaimed writer is helping University of Iowa students envision their own paths forward.

Researchers in the College of Engineering and College of Pharmacy are developing advanced computing tools to predict how drug ingredients behave during manufacturing. By identifying potential problems earlier, the approach could make drug development faster and less expensive while helping ensure medications are effective when they reach patients.

Dana Thomann, University of Iowa associate professor of instruction in Rhetoric, has been named the 2026 Hudson Prize winner for her story collection, Erratics.

The University of Iowa is building a campuswide strategy for artificial intelligence to coordinate and strengthen efforts across teaching, research, and public engagement. This approach will focus on three core components that connect the entire campus: engaging across disciplines, ensuring responsible expertise, and amplifying human potential.

Every day, researchers at the University of Iowa are seeking answers to questions that will change the health and well-being of people who live in our state and beyond. External funding in fiscal year 2026 allowed UI researchers to translate ideas into discoveries.

As another academic year draws to a close, UI President Barbara Wilson reflects on your hard work to support student success and have a positive impact on communities. “You have done it with a commitment to access, excellence, and stewardship that defines Iowa. It’s not easy work, and it does not go unnoticed.”

In addition to exceptional health and retirement benefits, you have access to a variety of other programs and resources that support your well-being, finances, and work-life balance — including some offered through trusted external partners. Learn what’s available to you.

Lisa Heineman, a UI professor of Gender, Women’s and Sexuality Studies, was interviewed about Judaism Unbound, a digitally-savvy organization founded in part as an alternative to the mainstays of American-Jewish life.

The UI Council on Teaching has named five faculty members as the 2026 recipients of the Hubbard-Walder Award for Excellence in Teaching: Theresa Bechtel, Stella Elias, Elizabeth Heineman, Brian Lai, and Jan Steyn. Honorees demonstrated outstanding teaching and meaningful contributions to curriculum and program development.