Special Collections Department
403 Parks Library
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-2140

MS 688
Iowa Research Council
Records, 1993-2004, undated


Descriptive summary

creator: Iowa Research Council
title: Records
dates: 1993-2004, undated
extent: 1.68 linear feet (4 document boxes)
collection number: MS 688
repository: Special Collections Department, Iowa State University.

 

Administrative information

access: Open for research
publication rights: Consult Head, Special Collections Department
preferred citation: Iowa Research Council Records, MS 688, Special Collections Department, Iowa State University Library.

 

Historical note

The Iowa Research Council (IRC) was formally created in 1994 to provide state leaders and agencies a vehicle through which complex issues could be efficiently researched and better understood. Modeled partly on the National Research Council, the IRC served the research needs of state policy makers by consulting public and private experts in the field. Through the Iowa Research Council, research-oriented professionals were assigned to compile, evaluate, perform relevant research, and report back to the client agencies.

The idea behind the Iowa Research Council was first suggested by F. H. "Mike" Forrest while working for Iowa Governor Terry E. Branstad during the early 1990s. Encouraged by the Governor to pursue the idea, Forrest gathered a group of other interested people from both public and private sectors to discuss the idea of creating a research board to study public policy issues in Iowa. The group met on August 10, 1993, to discuss potential candidates for the board of directors. The first meeting of the board took place on February 9, 1994, and during the following meeting Patricia Swan, Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate College at Iowa State University, was elected President. The Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws were approved shortly thereafter.

The Iowa Research Council worked with several State of Iowa agencies on research projects during its ten-year existence. The Council provided services to the Iowa Department of Economic Development, Iowa Department of Workforce Development, Iowa Department of Corrections, and the Governor's Strategic Planning Committee.

The Council was dissolved in 2004 due to a lack of research funding.

 

Collection description

This collection (1993-2004, undated) contains documents related to the Iowa Research Council. The records include board minutes, committee correspondence and meeting minutes, organizational documents, research proposals and projects, and final reports. Also in the collection is a narrative by John M. Lewis (Executive Director, 1996-2001) regarding the history of the organization (see file 4/9).

 

Organization

The collection is organized chronologically.

 

Container list

Box

Folder

Title

Dates

1

1

Announcement luncheon

1993

1

2

History: Documents and information on the formation of the Iowa Research Council

1993-1994

1

3

Board meeting minutes

1993-1997

1

4

Board minutes book

1993-2004

1

5

Correspondence

1994-1995

1

6

Organizational documents: Articles, bylaws, and tax exempt status records

1994-1996

1

7

Income tax exemption: Correspondence and documents

1994-1997

1

8

Proposal: "Development of a Corporate Tax Comparison Software Program (TAIM2)," submitted to the Iowa Department of Economic Development

1996

1

9-10

Study Development Committee on Public Finance

1996-1998

1

11

Study Development Committee on Law and Justice: Membership and correspondence

1996-1998, undated

2

1-3

Iowa Department of Economic Development: Projects, contracts, and correspondence

1996-1999

2

4

"Board Briefs" from John Lewis, Executive Director

1996-2001

4

12

Informational booklet: "The Iowa Research Council - Evaluating Information for Iowa's Future"

ca. 1997

2

5

Study Development Committee on Early Childhood Development and Education: Membership, correspondence, and meeting materials

1997, undated

2

6-8

Iowa Workforce Development: Projects, contracts, and correspondence

1997-1999

3

1

Study Development Committee on Early Childhood Development and Education: Membership information and proposals

1997-1999

3

2

Contracts

1997-2001

3

3

Report: "Analysis of Technical Violations of Community Supervision: Offenders Revoked to Prison in Iowa During Fiscal Year 1998. A Research Report Completed for the Iowa Department of Corrections"

1998

3

4

Correspondence

1999

3

5

Newsletter: IRC Digest

1999

3

6

Project binder: Iowa Department of Corrections - University of Iowa project

1999

3

7-10

Report: "Iowa Sentencing Project - County Comparison. A Research Report Completed for the Iowa Department of Corrections" (2 copies)

1999

4

1

Report: "Workforce Development and Productivity Growth. A Research Report Completed for the Iowa Department of Workforce Development"

1999

4

2

Iowa sentencing project: News clippings

1999-2000

4

3

Project binder: Iowa Department of Corrections - University of Northern Iowa project

1999-2000

4

4

Study Development Committee on Law and Justice

1999-2000

4

5

Project status and evaluation reports

2000

4

6

Report: "Preliminary Assessment of Potential Cost Savings and Framework of Strategies for Improved Delivery of Government Services.  A Research Report Completed for Governor's Strategic Planning Committee"

2000

4

7

Operations manual

2001

4

8

History: Correspondence and report (1- 3.5" floppy disk)

2002

4

9

History: "The Iowa Research Council: Assisting in Governance for the Long Term - A Review of the Creation and Activities of the Iowa Research Council from 1993-2002"

2002

4

10

Correspondence

2003

4

11

Correspondence: Dissolution of Iowa Research Council

2003

4

13

Proposal: "Sentencing Policy Research," submitted to the Iowa Bar Association

undated