Analisa Iole was introduced as the new Hawkeye Marching Band drum major at the Sept. 23 football game against Penn State, becoming the first woman to hold the role since World War II.

Over the course of 20 years at the UI, Kevin Kastens has had an immense impact on the Hawkeye Marching Band and the UI School of Music: maintaining old traditions while adding new ones; finding the band a permanent practice facility; and developing software to design marching band routines.

The University of Iowa Veterans Association and Iowa Reserve Officers’ Training Corps honored Iowa’s veterans during the week of Nov. 5–11 with a reveille ceremony and the fourth annual Veterans Day flag display on the west lawn of the Pentacrest.

The Iowa Cultural Corridor Alliance presented Hancher Auditorium Executive Director Chuck Swanson with the Larry Eckholt Award for arts advocacy Nov. 8 at its annual Celebration of the Arts.

In support of its goal to build high-impact neuroscience research, the Iowa Neuroscience Institute (INI) has awarded its first Accelerator Grants. The four funded proposals represent a mix of foundational, translational, and clinical research. They focus on neuroscience topics that are new or that add value to existing research by branching out in a new direction.

The University of Iowa’s Employment Practices Committee has selected Des Moines law firm Fredrikson & Byron, P.A. to review the university’s employment policies and practices as defined by the Iowa Civil Rights Act. The UI signed a professional services agreement with the firm on Nov. 6, 2017.

The University of Iowa has created a Path Forward Steering Committee that will advance implementation of the UI Strategic Plan 2016–2021. Each calendar year, work groups facilitated by the steering committee will focus on critical tasks specified in the strategic plan.

The Phase II committee for the University of Iowa Academic Organizational Structure 2020 initiative is asking all members of the university community to help shape the future of the UI. Read on to find out how you can get involved.

Cornelia Lang, departmental associate chair and associate professor in the UI Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Andrew Forbes, associate professor in the Department of Biology, co-teach the Big Ideas course Origins of the Universe, Earth and Life. Here, they discuss the importance of broad-focused Big Ideas courses.

Peter Thorne, professor of occupational and environmental health in the UI College of Public Health and former chair of the EPA's Science Advisory Board, comments on proposed changes in the agency that would prevent scientists who receive EPA funding from acting as advisors.

The University of Iowa will honor six members of the armed forces for exceptional service to their country and the Hawkeye community on Wednesday, Nov. 15.

The UI College of Public Health is working with the Michael J. Fox Foundation on a new clinical trial for a cancer drug that could be used to help people who have Parkinson’s Disease.