Drake plans $65 million STEM development, new degrees

Drake University plans to build a $65 million, six-building complex to meet calls for more science- and math-based education.

The private Des Moines university also plans to launch six new degree programs by the 2016 school year, Drake officials told The Des Moines Register on Wednesday.

"There's a huge amount of national discussion about the STEM crisis and the fact that we're not producing enough people in science, technology and math fields," Drake President David Maxwell said. "We've always been committed to responding to that."

Maxwell said the university is also investing in health and science programs to attract students who have opted against enrolling in Iowa.

"We want to be responsive to both the workforce projections of central Iowa ... and to be responsive to the interests of a large group of students who are out there who are not coming to Drake because we don't have these programs," he said.

New labs, classrooms

The $65 million complex would interconnect six buildings to house the university's education, math, science, pharmacy and health programs.

Drake would renovate four buildings — Olin, Fitch, Cline and Harvey Ingham halls — at the corner of Forest Avenue and 27th Street.

The university would also construct two new buildings:

-- A 58,000-square-foot building would connect Fitch to Olin and host classroom and lab space.

-- The second, at about 45,000 square feet, would serve as the new home for Drake's School of Education and Department of Mathematics and Computer Science.

Drake's Board of Trustees still needs to give the plan final approval.

If it's approved, Drake would start construction in summer 2015. The new buildings would be complete by fall 2017.

Maxwell said the design of the buildings will focus on the changing nature of how students want to learn.

There's a "very strong emphasis now on collaborative learning, on problem-based learning," he said. "It requires different kinds of spaces, not necessarily people sitting in rows with someone talking at the front."

Academic programs

About $30 million of the project, Drake officials said, will come from donations to the university. Donors have already committed about $11 million.

The rest will come from student tuition and other revenue.

Maxwell said the project should not require tuition increases. Final financing plans have yet to be approved.

Starting in the 2015 school year, Drake plans to offer bachelor's programs in data analytics and kinesiology.

The university also plans to offer secondary education teaching license endorsements for health, physical education and coaching.

The next school year, Drake plans to start a master's program in athletic training, a bachelor's program in pre-occupational therapy and a doctorate program in occupational therapy.

Tom Delahunt, Drake's vice president for admission, said the university chose the programs based on what prospective students said they were interested in. He said Drake followed students who had applied at Drake but went elsewhere to see why they chose a different university.

"They are going into programs that we do not currently offer," Delahunt said.

Even though other universities in the state offer similar programs, Maxwell and Delahunt said, there is enough room for Drake to offer its own programs.

Occupational therapy jobs, for example, are expected to jump 29percent between 2012 and 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Larry Zimpleman, chairman of Drake's Board of Trustees, said data analytics will become more important as financial services and health care companies look to mine data to become more effective.

"Some companies are struggling on the top line, some companies are struggling on the bottom line. ... Data analytics is one of the things that can help in both areas," said Zimpleman, the CEO of Des Moines-based Principal Financial Group.

Meeting demand

Drake's plans come when lawmakers and business leaders at all levels have said more science, technology, engineering and math education is needed to meet workforce demands.

Iowa faced a shortfall of more than 10,000 STEM jobs from 2011 to 2012, according to a study from the governor's STEM Advisory Council.

Michael Crum, Iowa State University's vice president for economic development and business engagement, said Drake's foray into more STEM programs comes at an opportune time.

"Are they going into an already satiated space? I think the answer to that is no ... we have not satisfied the need for (STEM)," he said.

Other Iowa universities have also put a renewed emphasis on STEM careers.

Earlier this year, both Iowa State University and the University of Iowa announced redesigned economic development offices that would work more closely with Iowa businesses.

"We really do see that as where the future lies for not only the state of Iowa but for the U.S. economy," Crum said.