Congratulations to spring 2010 graduates of Iowa’s public universities

When Lisa Jorgensen begins teaching at Webster City Middle School this fall with her newly minted University of Northern Iowa art education degree, she will bring to her students a global perspective gained from doing half of her student teaching in Sydney, Australia, which Lisa says "confirmed and strengthened my passion for teaching over ten-fold."

More than 5,000 May 2010 graduates from Iowa's Public Universities will work or continue their education right here in Iowa just as Lisa has chosen to do. At the Board of Regents we are proud of the many contributions that the University of Northern Iowa, Iowa State University, and the University of Iowa make to the growth of Iowa's economy, but none are more important than providing Iowa, the nation, and the world highly educated, productive citizens and leaders.

This year's spring commencements have provided over 5,000 stories like Lisa Jorgensen's, as our newest teachers, social workers, agricultural professionals, entrepreneurs, business managers, doctors, nurses, engineers, artists, and so forth, begin to give back to this great state.

Nearly 60% of those who receive degrees from Iowa's Public Universities stay in Iowa. Seventy-three percent of Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences graduates get jobs in Iowa. Eighty percent of the state's dentists have been trained at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry. Eighty-four percent of all University of Northern Iowa graduates stay in our state to work. And, the University of Iowa reports a steady increase in the number of graduates remaining in the state each year since 2005. Moreover, those who elect to move elsewhere show the world what the excellence of an Iowa education is all about.

Our students reflect the excellence of Iowa's Public Universities better than statistics, so let me share a few more stories of recent and current graduates who have chosen to live and work in Iowa.

William Griffin earned chemistry and physics undergraduate degrees at UNI and went on to complete a Professional Science Master's (PSM) there in 2007. Last year, the Council of Graduate Schools named him one of 18 distinguished PSM graduates nationally. William works for DISTek Integration in Cedar Falls, an applied technology company at the cutting edge of the new Iowa economy, and he is currently on a project at John Deere for DISTek.

Jessica Luke received her bachelor's degree in animal science from Iowa State University and this month started her new job as a territory manager for Murphy-Brown, a farm management company. Jessica could have gone anywhere with Murphy-Brown but chose to stay in Iowa. She wants to be close to family, but she also says she loves Iowa life. In fact, she credits Iowa State for aiding in her feeling of belonging to our state, including cultivating many career connections. While Jessica will work in a traditional Iowa industry, many of her fellow 2010 ISU graduates will work in emerging professions. Victoria Watson will put her BFA in Graphic Design to work at Bluespace Creative in Denison, and William Schneller landed an art director position at Virtual Reality Applications Center in Ames thanks to his BFA in Integrated Studio Arts.

Many of our state's newest health care professionals have just received their degrees from The University of Iowa. But so have UI alumni in many other areas. English major Ryan Venem will be working for GoDaddy.com in Cedar Rapids as part of its technical sales and support staff. Communication studies major Shannon Kane will be working for Hy-Vee as a human resources manager trainee. And finance major Jon Raftis, who also earned a risk management and insurance certificate, parlayed his internship at Arthur J. Gallagher & Company Risk Management Services in West Des Moines into a full-time job.

Iowa is known for its talented and dedicated work force. Each year, Iowa's Public Universities produce thousands of imaginative, highly educated thinkers and leaders, who not only renew that reputation, but also move the Iowa economy forward into the future.

Today we offer our congratulations to each of our new graduates, and send them forward with our best wishes. You make us proud!