The Board of Regents has approved a new center at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls that will be named after Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley and his wife.
UNI president Mark Nook says the center has been in the works for several years. “This is a request to really honor his commitment and his legacy and that of his wife Barbara to the people of Iowa. His lengthy career and his dedication to the people of Iowa is really amazing. Very few are like it,” Nook says. Grassley is from New Hartford and earned a bachelor’s degree at UNI in 1955 and then a master’s degree. He was elected to the Iowa House of Representatives in 1959, and then went on to the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate.
“The center will be nationally recognized resource for civic engagement, leadership development, archival stewardship and public programming that connects Iowa to the nation through learning, dialogue, scholarship and public service,” Nook says. Grassley’s papers from his long political career will be housed at the school. “The mission that will drive this center is to preserve and provide access to Senator Grassley’s historic career while advancing civic education, student leadership development, public engagement, and educational programming that strengthens the understanding of American government and representative democracy.
The naming was approved Thursday on Grassley’s 93rd birthday. It will become official when Grassley leaves public office. He has filed to run for a ninth term in 2028, when he’ll be 95, but has not announced an official campaign.