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September 15, 2024 - December 15, 2024
Drawing Salon with Robert Caputo
2:00 pm - 3:30 pm (CDT)
Where: 160 West Burlington Street, Iowa City, IA US 52242

The Drawing Salon focuses on drawing artworks from the museum's collection. Each session will focus on a different artwork. The sessions will begin with an introduction and discussion of the selected work. Participants will be encouraged to pursue their own visions and to take inspiration from the artworks in the gallery.

Pencils and sketchbooks/paper are the only artmaking materials allowed in the galleries. The museum has golf pencils with erasers and clipboards for participants to use. Stools and benches are available in the galleries.

Robert Caputo, an Iowa City-based painter and sculptor, will lead the Drawing Salons.

The drawing salon is limited to 15 participants. Please reserve your spot by clicking below:

Sept. 15, 2024

Oct. 20, 2024

Nov. 17, 2024

Dec. 15, 2024

Contact: Stanley Museum of Art 319-335-1727

Departments: University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art, Pentacrest Museums, Center for Advancement, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

December 21, 2024
Hawkeye Huddle-Iowa Men´s Basketball at Sanford Pentagon
2:30 pm - 4:30 pm (CST)
Where: 2210 W Pentagon Pl, Sioux Falls, SD US 57017

Join your fellow Hawkeyes for a Hawkeye Huddle before the Iowa men´s basketball team takes on Utah at the Sanford Pentagon. Please note: A game ticket will be required to attend the Hawkeye Huddle. 

This Hawkeye Huddle is hosted by the I-Club, in partnership with the Office of Alumni Engagement and the Iowa Swarm Collective.

Pre-registration is requested.

Contact: Iowa Athletics Development 319-467-3410

Departments: Center for Advancement

January 4, 2025 - January 11, 2025
Hawkeyes at Home
10:00 am (CST)

Explore the cutting-edge research and stories shaping our world with Hawkeyes at Home, two new video specials from the University of Iowa.

  • Hawkeyes in Flight (Streaming begins Jan. 4)
    Take to the skies with UI experts from the Department of Physics and Astronomy, the Iowa Raptor Project, and the Stanley Museum of Art.

  • Make No Bones About It (Streaming begins Jan. 11)
    Dig into stories about natural history and archaeology, topped off with a special musical performance by the UI Trombone Choir.

Sign up here to receive a reminder ahead of the video debuts. Stream for free from your living room, or wherever you like to tune in, and let Hawkeyes at Home bring these fascinating stories to you.

Contact: Tegan Donaue 319-467-3393

Departments: Center for Advancement, Department of History, Department of Biology, Office of the State Archaeologist, Pentacrest Museums, Office of the Provost

January 22, 2025
Tippie Webinar: Financing Your Startup
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm (CST)

Every entrepreneur knows that cash is king, but how do you get your initial startup funding? Would your business concept attract angel investors, venture funds or should you look at debt financing? Our panel of experts will provide insight into how entrepreneurs can secure funds for their business as well as when you might want to look at your exit strategy. Moderator: Adam Keune, Executive Director, John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center Panelists: Tej Dhawan, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Plains Angels; Adrienne Greenwald (MA15), Managing Principal at VentureNet Iowa, and John Hall (MBA66), founder of Goose Island Brewery.

 

Contact: Barbara Thomas 319-335-2188

Departments: Tippie College of Business, Iowa MBA

February 6, 2025
Provost´s Global Forum: Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy
2:30 pm - 6:00 pm (CST)
Where: 200 South Capitol Street, Iowa City, IA US 52240

The 2025 Provost´s Global Forum, Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy, will bring together experts from across the University of Iowa campus, the greater Iowa City area, and around the world to identify and showcase evidence, strategies, approaches, and solutions that form sustainable university private sector partnerships that bring added values to stakeholders of campuses, business, communities, and nation-states.

Experts will convene in Iowa City in early February 2025, for a three-day symposium.

Date: Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025
Time: 2:30-6 p.m.
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

Date: Friday, Feb. 7, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Location: Tippie College of Business, Pappajohn Business Building, room S401

Date: Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

RSVP to let organizers know which sessions you´ll attend and help determine the amount of refreshments needed for various breaks and meals.

Highlights of the forum include:

  • Three days of sessions, including a highlight of the currently active Private Sector Partnership to Strengthen Higher Education Activity, the USAID-Kosovo activity between the University of Iowa and Kosovo, which has been instrumental in supporting higher education reform in Kosovo, providing a model for global collaboration.
  • A keynote presentation by Catherine Chong, director of the Office of Industry Engagement at Singapore Management University in Singapore.
  • The 2025 Joel Barkan Memorial Lecture by Dr. Helena Jerregård, deputy vice-chancellor cooperation & vice president at Mälardalen University in Västerås, Sweden.

Universities support society by contributing to discovery and innovation, and offering expertise that produces new insights, solutions, processes, and technologies. Throughout this symposium, presenters will share insights on industry-informed approaches to reforming and creating curriculum that prepares students for the global economy. Additionally, thought leaders in education and business will showcase the strategies the universities around the world use to build and deepen partnerships with companies. Evidence will be provided of the ways university research and expertise can be utilized to support global economic goals in emerging democracies and markets.

This event is made possible through the generous support and financial contributions from the Stanley-University of Iowa Foundation Support Organization, UI International Programs, and UI Tippie College of Business. Activities for the 2025 Provost's Global Forum are hosted in collaboration with the UI College of Education, UI Tippie College of Business, and the Kosova Education Center.

Contact: Daniel Vorwerk 319-467-1619

Departments: International Programs, Office of the Provost, International Studies Program, Division of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Center for Advancement, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

February 7, 2025
Provost´s Global Forum: Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy
10:00 am - 4:30 pm (CST)
Where: 200 South Capitol Street, Iowa City, IA US 52240

The 2025 Provost´s Global Forum, Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy, will bring together experts from across the University of Iowa campus, the greater Iowa City area, and around the world to identify and showcase evidence, strategies, approaches, and solutions that form sustainable university private sector partnerships that bring added values to stakeholders of campuses, business, communities, and nation-states.

Experts will convene in Iowa City in early February 2025, for a three-day symposium.

Date: Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025
Time: 2:30-6 p.m.
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

Date: Friday, Feb. 7, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Location: Tippie College of Business, Pappajohn Business Building, room S401

Date: Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

RSVP to let organizers know which sessions you´ll attend and help determine the amount of refreshments needed for various breaks and meals.

Highlights of the forum include:

  • Three days of sessions, including a highlight of the currently active Private Sector Partnership to Strengthen Higher Education Activity, the USAID-Kosovo activity between the University of Iowa and Kosovo, which has been instrumental in supporting higher education reform in Kosovo, providing a model for global collaboration.
  • A keynote presentation by Catherine Chong, director of the Office of Industry Engagement at Singapore Management University in Singapore.
  • The 2025 Joel Barkan Memorial Lecture by Dr. Helena Jerregård, deputy vice-chancellor cooperation & vice president at Mälardalen University in Västerås, Sweden.

Universities support society by contributing to discovery and innovation, and offering expertise that produces new insights, solutions, processes, and technologies. Throughout this symposium, presenters will share insights on industry-informed approaches to reforming and creating curriculum that prepares students for the global economy. Additionally, thought leaders in education and business will showcase the strategies the universities around the world use to build and deepen partnerships with companies. Evidence will be provided of the ways university research and expertise can be utilized to support global economic goals in emerging democracies and markets.

This event is made possible through the generous support and financial contributions from the Stanley-University of Iowa Foundation Support Organization, UI International Programs, and UI Tippie College of Business. Activities for the 2025 Provost's Global Forum are hosted in collaboration with the UI College of Education, UI Tippie College of Business, and the Kosova Education Center.

Contact: Daniel Vorwerk 319-467-1619

Departments: International Programs, Office of the Provost, International Studies Program, Division of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Center for Advancement, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

August 2, 2024 - December 5, 2025
Art & Write Night
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm (CDT)
Where: 39-53 East Jefferson Street, Iowa City, IA US 52240

Join the long, rich, historical tradition of artists creating in our spaces.

Professional, aspiring, and amateur artists alike, make our museum your muse. The return of this popular program series welcomes guests into the Museum of Natural History's magical gallery spaces after-hours to work on sketching or writing projects with other campus and community artists.

Tell a friend, grab a notebook, and join us on the first Friday of each month. We'll provide a new inspo prompt for each session and will sometimes move about the Museum but we'll always start in the Hageboeck Hall of Birds (Bird Hall) on the third Floor of Macbride Hall. Join anytime between 6-8 p.m. and feel free to participate in a themed creation challenge or work on your own project with our exhibits as inspiration. We'll save the last 15-30 minutes of each session to share what we've been working on, connecting with others (optional, of course!).


Please note, the Museum is typically closed during this time, meaning the main entrance to Iowa Hall (atop the large staircase outside on the east side of Macbride Hall) will be closed and locked. All other building doors will be open, offering access to the Ground Floor of Macbride Hall. Bird Hall is located on the third floor of Macbride Hall and can be reached by stairs or by taking the elevator to the third floor and crossing the auditorium to the north side of the building. 

Contact: Carolina Kaufman 319-467-3130

Departments: Pentacrest Museums, Museum of Natural History, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Division of Student Life, Leadership and Engagement, Department of Biology, University of Iowa Stanley Museum of Art, University Libraries, Department of English

February 8, 2025
Provost´s Global Forum: Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy
10:00 am - 12:00 pm (CST)
Where: 200 South Capitol Street, Iowa City, IA US 52240

The 2025 Provost´s Global Forum, Private Sector and University Partnerships: Pursuing Pathways for Global Collaboration, Learning, Prosperity, and Democracy, will bring together experts from across the University of Iowa campus, the greater Iowa City area, and around the world to identify and showcase evidence, strategies, approaches, and solutions that form sustainable university private sector partnerships that bring added values to stakeholders of campuses, business, communities, and nation-states.

Experts will convene in Iowa City in early February 2025, for a three-day symposium.

Date: Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025
Time: 2:30-6 p.m.
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

Date: Friday, Feb. 7, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Location: Tippie College of Business, Pappajohn Business Building, room S401

Date: Saturday, Feb. 8, 2025
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: International Commons, University Capitol Centre, room 1117

RSVP to let organizers know which sessions you´ll attend and help determine the amount of refreshments needed for various breaks and meals.

Highlights of the forum include:

  • Three days of sessions, including a highlight of the currently active Private Sector Partnership to Strengthen Higher Education Activity, the USAID-Kosovo activity between the University of Iowa and Kosovo, which has been instrumental in supporting higher education reform in Kosovo, providing a model for global collaboration.
  • A keynote presentation by Catherine Chong, director of the Office of Industry Engagement at Singapore Management University in Singapore.
  • The 2025 Joel Barkan Memorial Lecture by Dr. Helena Jerregård, deputy vice-chancellor cooperation & vice president at Mälardalen University in Västerås, Sweden.

Universities support society by contributing to discovery and innovation, and offering expertise that produces new insights, solutions, processes, and technologies. Throughout this symposium, presenters will share insights on industry-informed approaches to reforming and creating curriculum that prepares students for the global economy. Additionally, thought leaders in education and business will showcase the strategies the universities around the world use to build and deepen partnerships with companies. Evidence will be provided of the ways university research and expertise can be utilized to support global economic goals in emerging democracies and markets.

This event is made possible through the generous support and financial contributions from the Stanley-University of Iowa Foundation Support Organization, UI International Programs, and UI Tippie College of Business. Activities for the 2025 Provost's Global Forum are hosted in collaboration with the UI College of Education, UI Tippie College of Business, and the Kosova Education Center.

Contact: Daniel Vorwerk 319-467-1619

Departments: International Programs, Office of the Provost, International Studies Program, Division of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, Center for Advancement, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

February 15, 2025
Application Deadline: Obermann International Fellowships (Fall 2025)
11:59 pm (CST)

The UI Obermann Center for Advanced studies is currently accepting applications for its new International Fellowships Program, which offers dedicated space, time, and funding for interdisciplinary scholars to collaborate on innovative research at the University of Iowa. Up to eight international fellowships will be granted every academic year. Applicants must be active researchers at an accredited institution of higher learning outside of the United States or independent researchers/artists with a track record of excellence based outside of the U.S. Their area of research must have a direct equivalent at the University of Iowa. 

Obermann International Fellows will receive:

  • A $2,000 stipend to help defray the cost of travel and lodging
  • University of Iowa health insurance coverage for the duration of the fellowship
  • Office space at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies
  • Temporary University of Iowa affiliation, including access to UI libraries
  • Structured opportunities for scholarly exchange (seminars, lectures, introduction to UI researchers, etc.)
  • An official letter of invitation for institutional and visa purposes
  • Information about accommodations and other practical needs

Read more about the program and application process at https://obermann.uiowa.edu/obermann-international-fellowships. Applications for the Fall 2025 semester are due Feb. 15, 2025. 

Obermann International Fellowships are funded by the University of Iowa's Obermann Center for Advanced Studies with generous additional support from International Programs.

Contact: Erin Hackathorn 319-335-4034

Departments: Obermann Center, International Studies Program, International Writing Program, Center for Advancement, Office of the Vice President for Research, Division of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

March 26, 2025
One Day for Iowa | The University of Iowa's 24-Hour Online Giving Day
All Day ()

Level-up your giving by taking advantage of limited-time matches and unlock opportunities - which can lift your gift by double or more.

Contact: Shaina Spencer 319-335-3305

Departments: Center for Advancement

March 28, 2025
Iowa Symphony Band and Iowa State University Wind Ensemble Concert
7:30 pm (CDT)
Where: 20 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL US 60604

The Iowa Symphony Band will once again appear in one of the finest concert halls in the world when they perform in Orchestra Hall in Chicago. The Symphony Band, under the direction of Director of Bands Mark Heidel, will join the Iowa State University Wind Ensemble under the direction of Director of Bands Michael Golemo to present a unique collaborative performance. 

These ensembles have never collaborated, and the March performance will be a thrilling experience for the performers as well as a proud moment for the State of Iowa. Alongside the 2008 Carnegie Hall concert, the 2025 Orchestra Hall concert will rank among the most noteworthy achievements in the rich history of Iowa Bands.

Tickets:
General Admission - $20
Discounted group rates are available for groups of 10 or more
Get your tickets through the Chicago Symphony Orchestra website

Contact: UI School of Music 319-335-1603

Departments: Center for Advancement, School of Music

April 4, 2025 - April 6, 2025
Iowa Black Alumni Association Reunion
12:00 pm - 2:00 pm (CDT)
Where: 328 S. Clinton St., Iowa City, IA US 52240

We hope you can join us for the 2025 Iowa Black Alumni Association Reunion!

Check-in begins on Friday, April 4, at noon at the Hilton Garden Inn registration desk where you´ll receive an information packet for the weekend. Check-in will continue throughout Friday as well as Saturday morning. Other than the IBAA/African American Studies Recognition/Awards program at the Iowa City Public Library and a campus tour, all events will take place at the Hilton Garden Inn.

Friday: The IBAA/African American Studies Recognition/Awards program runs from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Iowa City Public Library (Meeting Room A), followed by a Mix & Mingle Variety Performance at the Hilton Garden Inn. If you´d like to showcase your skills at this event, sign up to be a performer.

Saturday: Participate in reunion workshops from 9 a.m. to noon, a campus tour, and the Black & Gold Gala at 6 p.m., which includes a banquet and dance. Venise Berry (77BA, 79MA) will lead a workshop to discuss the nature of racial ideology that has changed in our society. She and filmmaker Steven Berry created a documentary that explores racialism beyond traditional racism. It involves images, ideas, and issues that are produced, distributed, and consumed repetitively and intertextually.

Sunday: Our business brunch meeting begins at 9 a.m. If you´d like to attend a church in the area, we will have a list available during registration. If you wish to attend Bethel A.M.E. Church, you may take a personal tour of the newly renovated church. 

Visit the registration page for more details and the complete schedule.

The hotel´s hospitality room will be open periodically throughout the weekend for registrants. Free Wi-Fi and parking are included with your hotel reservation.

If you have questions, email alumni.engagement@foriowa.org. We look forward to seeing you!

Contact: Vanessa Sandoval 319-467-3515

Departments: Center for Advancement, Multicultural and International Student Support and Engagement, Carver College of Medicine

April 16, 2025
Tippie Webinar - Open for Business: Launching and Growing Your Startup
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm (CDT)

Establishing a business provides many challenges - from launch, to expansion, to selling the business or even closing the doors. Our panel of experts will share experiences from their entrepreneurial journeys that will provide insight and ideas for attendees. Moderator: Kurt Heiar (BA83), Associate Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurship Panelists: Tom Cardella (MBA95) Founder and CEO of TLCx, Eric Engelmann (BBA97), General Partner at ISA Ventures, Partner at Novy, and Board Chair of the New Bohemian Innovation Collaborative (NewBoCo), and Frances Johnson, Chief Innovation Officer at Perspective Therapeutics.

Contact: Barbara Thomas 319-335-2188

Departments: Tippie College of Business, Undergraduate Program, Graduate Management Programs, Center for Advancement, Graduate Program

May 8, 2025
Eight Over 80 Awards
11:00 am (CDT)

As Hawkeyes, we give back throughout our lives.

We're leaders in our professions. We're generous with our time and talent. We're passionate about things we love - especially anything black and gold. And some Hawkeyes continue to make an impact well beyond retirement.

That's why we are honoring Iowa alumni, age 80 and over, who carry the Hawkeye spirit of achievement and continue to help others.

Nominate a Hawkeye for this award: https://www.foriowa.org/eight-over-80/

Contact: Erin Brokel 319-467-3668

Departments: Center for Advancement, Office of Community Engagement, Office of the Provost

May 8, 2025
Wide Lens: LISTENING
5:30 pm (CDT)
Where: 93 East Burlington Street, Iowa City, IA US 52240

In a world full of noise, we often try listening to something: conversations with colleagues and family, music in our headphones, videos blasting from our smartphones. We hear all these things daily, but what does it mean to truly listen? In what sense do devices also listen to us? What is the role of silence in listening? How has listening changed over time? Can political tensions be solved through "listening"? How is listening both an art and a science? This Wide Lens event brings together researchers from science, social sciences, the humanities, and the arts to investigate what it means to listen deeply and thoughtfully.

Note: The event will take place on Thursday, May 8, 2025, in the Herald Stark Opera Studio at Voxman Music Building. It is tentatively scheduled to begin at 5:30, but this may change. Please check back closer to the event.

Presenters:

  • Gerta Bardhoshi, Counseling (College of Education)
  • Brittany Bettendorf, Rheumatology (Carver College of Medicine)
  • Eric Hunter, Communication Sciences and Disorders (CLAS)
  • Julianna Pacheco, Political Science (CLAS)
  • Damani Phillips, Jazz Studies, School of Music (CLAS)
  • Morten Schlütter, Religious Studies (CLAS)

Hosts: Luis Martín-Estudillo, Director, Obermann Center for Advanced Studies; Roland Racevskis, Associate Dean for the Arts and Humanities, CLAS; and Kristy Nabhan-Warren, Associate Vice President for Research in the Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences

Free and open to all.

About the series:

The Wide Lens series, a joint initiative of the UI College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, and the Office of the Vice President for Research, aims to inspire and connect the University of Iowa community across the disciplines. For each Wide Lens event, researchers, scholars, and artists from across the university briefly present their work on a shared topic of interest pecha kucha-style. Then, we open the floor to questions and conviviality over hors d'oeuvres and drinks.

Wide Lens is sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, and the Office of the Vice President for Research. 

Contact: Erin Hackathorn 319-335-4034

Departments: Obermann Center, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Carver College of Medicine, College of Education, Center for Advancement, Office of the Vice President for Research, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Related Content

Here are the Iowa athletes and alums to watch on the road to this year?s Summer Games.

Former Hawkeye letterwinner P. Sue Beckwith, MD, makes a transformational gift to endow Iowa's head women's basketball coaching position, a first for the Big Ten Conference. Brian Ray P. Sue Beckwith P. Sue Beckwith (80BS, 84MD, 15MBA) has fond memories of many of her coaches?not because of the wins and losses, but because of the life lessons she learned. "The coaches I had throughout my life inspired me and helped me to constantly grow, improve, and stretch as a student and an athlete," she says. "Great coaches know your strengths and weaknesses, and they can identify potential?even if you can't see it." Lark Birdsong, the University of Iowa's first women's basketball coach, saw potential in Beckwith and brought the Boone, Iowa, native into the starting lineup as a freshman. Beckwith became a four-year letterwinner for the Hawkeyes from 1976 to 1980?averaging about 10 points a game her junior and senior seasons. Since her time as a Hawkeye student-athlete, Beckwith has gotten to know every coach throughout the program's nearly 50-year history. "Iowa has a tremendous legacy of coaches, and today, Lisa Bluder and her staff continue to exemplify our rich tradition of women's basketball," says Beckwith, who is one of UI athletics' most generous supporters and is committed to ensuring that current and future Hawkeyes find success in competition, in the classroom, and beyond. Beckwith has made one of the most significant contributions in the history of UI women's athletics?a total gift of $7 million, which will endow the Iowa women's basketball head coaching position and continue to grow the P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Black and Golden Opportunities Fund, which provides annual support to all of Iowa's women's sports. "Sue is a passionate and ardent supporter of Iowa women's basketball and all of our Hawkeye women's sports teams," says Bluder, who is in her 21st season as Iowa women's basketball head coach and is the winningest coach in program history. "Sue, as an alumna of this program, has made a difference within Iowa women's basketball through her involvement and her philanthropic contributions. For me, this is truly a great day to be a Hawkeye." In recognition of Beckwith's transformational support, Bluder and all future head women's basketball coaches will hold the title of P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Head Women's Basketball Coach. This leadership gift means Beckwith has now given nearly $9 million to Iowa women's athletics. "Sue's professional accomplishments, personal drive, and philanthropic commitment is truly an inspiring example of a lifelong and loyal Hawkeye. I'm grateful to be able to call her a friend," says Gary Barta, the Henry B. and Patricia B. Tippie Director of Athletics Chair. "Her dedication to athletics is inspiring other female philanthropists to give back in their own way here at Iowa." A Hawkeye for Life The Daily Iowan/Bill Paxson Sue Beckwith goes up for a bucket in The Field House as the Hawkeyes take on in-state rival Drake. Sue Beckwith was destined to be a doctor, and for her, the University of Iowa was the obvious choice for pursuing a career in medicine. Not only did she fulfill her educational aspirations at Iowa, she was also a successful contributor and letterwinner for the Hawkeye women's basketball program. Beckwith tried out as a freshman in 1976?the third season ever for Hawkeye women's basketball?and made the team despite never playing 5-on-5 basketball. At that time, Iowa high school girls' teams played 6-on-6?where three members from each team would play offense and three would play defense. "I vividly remember the first time coming down the court, dribbling the ball, and seeing all of these people at the other end," says Beckwith. "I had never played defense before and never really dribbled much before, but I made the team and earned a partial scholarship." While she fondly remembers practices in the UI Field House North Gym and gutting out a tournament while battling the flu, her most cherished memories surround Coach Birdsong, her teammates, and the valuable lessons she learned as a Hawkeye. "My experiences are one of the reasons I feel so strongly about athletics?the lessons it teaches us," says Beckwith, who graduated with a psychology degree before pursuing medical school. "Iowa was such a formative time for me?learning teamwork and time management, overcoming adversity, and gaining self-confidence and self-control." Beckwith is also grateful to leaders like Christine Grant (70BA, 74PhD), who was women's athletic director at Iowa from 1973 to 2000, was a pioneer for women in collegiate athletics, and advocated for the implementation of the federal civil rights law Title IX, which took effect in 1972. "At the time, I didn't know all of the things Dr. Grant had done or was doing," says Beckwith. "I remember the little things, like getting a new pair of shoes each year or being able to practice on the same floor as the men's basketball team. Dr. Grant was responsible for the opportunities I had, as well as the opportunities that hundreds of thousands of women around the country had and continue to have." Following medical school?as well as a general surgery residency and colon and rectal surgery fellowship?Beckwith went on to have a successful surgical career in Des Moines that spanned more than 30 years. Prior to retiring in 2018, Beckwith went back to school and earned an MBA from the UI Henry B. Tippie College of Business?pursuing a passion she had her entire life. "I had always been interested in the subject matter, and I wanted more breadth of knowledge," says Beckwith, who has been a board member of Fareway Stores, Inc., for more than 20 years, and more recently, was named board chairperson for the Midwest grocery store company. "My classmates and professors at Iowa provided that breadth of knowledge, and since then, an MBA has given me more confidence in my role on the board." A Leading Hawkeye Philanthropist Sue Beckwith (right) and Lisa Bluder, who now holds the title of P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Head Women?s Basketball Coach. In 2019, Bluder was named the Werner Ladder Naismith Women?s Coach of the Year. Beckwith, who lives in Waukee, Iowa, has a long history of remarkable philanthropy at the University of Iowa?giving back to her alma mater every year since 1984. She's also a loyal season-ticket holder for women's basketball, men's basketball, and football. For Beckwith, it's all about the people. "Athletics is the vehicle?the arena?for us to learn life lessons," says Beckwith. "A successful program is going to help that cause, but what is really important to me is the environment provided for student-athletes to come in, grow, and become tremendous citizens. To me, that's important to see in all programs." In 2004, Beckwith gave back to help student-athletes by creating three endowed scholarships to support women's basketball and rowing, as well as a scholarship to honor Grant. In 2005, she made a leadership gift of $1 million for a new boathouse to benefit the coaches and student-athletes of the UI rowing program. The P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Boathouse, which opened in 2009, became the first building on the UI campus to be named in honor of a female philanthropist. In 2016, Beckwith established the P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Black and Golden Opportunities Fund, which provides funding and opportunities, on an annual basis, to Iowa's women's athletic programs and their most pressing needs. "It was important for me that a portion of my giving supports all programs," she says. "Although basketball is the most visible, student-athletes in all sports have the same passion, work equally hard, make similar sacrifice, display awesome talent, and reap the same benefits through their athletic endeavors." Her most recent contribution, which creates the P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Head Women's Basketball Coach position, is an effort to support the legacy of great women's basketball coaches at Iowa and those yet to come. "Coach Bluder recruits very high character kids who work tremendously hard," says Beckwith, noting that Iowa women's basketball is tied for best in the Big Ten for its graduation success rate. "They perform well on the court, get good grades, and do good things off the court. Coach Bluder provides an environment that breeds success." In addition to her generous financial contributions, Beckwith has offered her time and leadership talent on a number of university boards and committees, including as a current member of the UI Center for Advancement Board of Directors and as former board member for the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the National I-Club, and the Varsity Club, amongst others. "We're so thankful for Sue's support and friendship," says Barbara Burke, the UI's deputy director of athletics. "Her leadership on behalf of all of our student-athletes is an inspiration. This gift commitment and her vision creates an immediate and long-term impact on our women's basketball program."

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