A Program to Strategically Recruit and Retain Talented Faculty

Project Lead: Council of Deans

Funding Approved: Fiscal Year 23
Project Status: In Progress  
Funded amount: $7.5M over two years

Building a campus community that is talented, inclusive, and rich in diversity of backgrounds and perspectives is fundamental to the university’s mission of excellence in teaching and research.

The first round of funding for the HIHI program (FY21) provided funds towards the strategic hiring and retention of 25 high-performing faculty in seven colleges. The success of the HIHI program has had a measurable impact across all strategic priority areas.

The continuation and expansion of the program to include strategic recruitments in areas of excellence has had an even greater impact on educational and research programs that make Iowa distinct. 

Activities to date:

  • As of July 1, 2023, $5.9 million had been committed to fund thirty HIHI requests, including 19 faculty recruitments across six colleges
  • HIHI funds were used to support faculty retention efforts in three different UI colleges

Next Steps:

The HIHI program has been an incredibly useful tool for the university in its efforts to recruit and retain exceptional faculty members. More than 75% of the funds for the Fiscal Year 23 program had been committed as of July 1, 2023. 

In the News

Fall photo of Old Capitol

Supporting the success of our faculty

How the UI is prioritizing faculty recruitment, retention, development, and recognition

HIHI, a P3 initiative that provides funding to help recruit or retain faculty, has contributed more than $13 million to support 49 recruitments and 21 retentions across 10 colleges since the program started in 2021. Faculty hires have included established researchers from other AAU institutions, nationally recognized performers, award winning writers, promising early-career faculty, and experts in aging, big data, climate science, genetic diseases, neuroscience, physics, public policy, speech disorders, and more.

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