The state Board of Regents approved a $395 million plan for a new University of Iowa hospital in North Liberty. The building will have both a hospital and academic section to accommodate the increasing number of people in need of heath care from university facilities.

The university is experimenting with biomass fuels, UI Director of Utilities Operations Ben Fish said. In particular, the university is testing the burning of oat hulls, miscanthus grass, and energy pellets alongside the remaining coal, he said.

The University of Iowa Athletics Department announced Wednesday the naming of Duke Slater Field at Kinnick Stadium. The naming was approved by the Board of Regents, State of Iowa. Slater, a 6-foot-2, 210-pound tackle for the Hawkeyes from 1918-21, was the first Black student-athlete in school history to earn All-America honors.

The UI recently was awarded a level II accreditation by the ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program, meeting advanced standards that recognize the UI campus as an arboretum dedicated to public education and engagement.

Employees from key services that kept campus running over the past year — IT, custodial services, and dining employees — speak on what it means to be “essential.”

The recent removal of Seashore Hall on East Jefferson Street created a unique opportunity for the UI to reimagine an area that has been occupied for more than 100 years. Rather than erect a new building in its place, the university will create a multipurpose green space that will serve as a place to study, hold outdoor classes or small events, and more.

While all energy systems are vulnerable to the impacts of extreme weather, Iowa’s interconnected, diverse energy infrastructure and electrical grid has made it less prone to failures.

The University of Iowa has announced they will begin testing wastewater to help monitor the presence of COVID-19 on campus. According to officials, existing research indicates people who have been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 shed virus particles through their feces.

The fall 2020 semester has been unlike any Hawkeyes have experienced in our university’s 173-year history. Essential workers in our health care operations have selflessly provided incredible care for Iowans while others across campus have worked tirelessly to keep buildings open and safe, provide quality education to our students, and keep other essential operations running smoothly.

Despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on instruction, the University of Iowa Office of Sustainability and the Environment is looking forward to the future of sustainability on campus, and recently released a rough draft of their 2030 goals for sustainability.