Bondurant Selected to Partner with the University of Iowa through its Initiative for Sustainable Communities Program
The Initiative for Sustainable Communities (IISC) at the University of Iowa selected the City of Bondurant as one of two community partners for the 2023-24 academic year. Through this unique partnership, more than 100 faculty and students will collaborate with Bondurant officials to complete 15 community projects, ranging from museum studies to engineering to law.
Dubuque is also a partner city for IISC. The University of Iowa program has completed partnerships with sixteen communities across the state, but Bondurant is the first community near the state capital.“One of the goals in the university’s strategic plan is to expand our impact on local and regional communities, and IISC is thrilled to have Bondurant as a community partner,” said Travis Kraus, IISC director and associate professor in the UI School of Planning and Public Affairs. “We are excited to work in Polk County.”
The community’s rapid growth and commitment to its rural roots inspired IISC to select Bondurant from a competitive field of applicants. The city’s planning and economic development team provided a slate of projects that reflect its need to support Bondurant’s growing population.
"The City of Bondurant is thrilled to have been chosen as an IISC partner community," said Maggie Murray, Bondurant’s Director of Planning and Community Development. "Through this partnership, we aim to tap into the creative ideas and expertise of IISC students and faculty, working towards enhancing Bondurant’s distinctive community essence as it continues to develop."
Bondurant's Mayor, Doug Elrod, further expanded on the community’s enthusiasm, stating, "We are immensely proud to have been designated as a community partner within the Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities. This collaboration encompasses a range of specific projects designed to support Bondurant's evolution amidst its growth phase." Elrod added that the city “stands to gain by accessing innovative thoughts and strategies across various realms of city management.”
Students in the UI School of Planning and Public Affairs spend the most time in the partner community, working for the entire academic year on capstone projects. In Bondurant, these students will undertake a parks and recreation master plan and a law enforcement feasibility study. The first project will provide a comprehensive vision for the local park system, recreation facilities, natural resources, and other public open spaces. The other project considers how the city should meet its future law enforcement needs as the community continues to grow.
Other work that will be accomplished during the fall and spring semesters includes a trail expansion project undertaken by students in the College of Engineering’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Two projects will help the community preserve and share its history. Students in a museum studies course will collect oral histories about the Famers’ Cooperative site and Bondurant’s Summerfest. An English class will locate archival documents about the city’s past and help a new historical society build its collection and consider ways to share materials with the public.
Students and Bondurant officials will have a chance to get to know each other during a site visit on Sept. 1. The team from the University of Iowa will tour the area, meet with Mayor Doug Elrod, and taste pie at Home Slice Handmade Pies.
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The University of Iowa’s Initiative for Sustainable Communities is a campus-wide, engaged learning program housed in the Graduate College. IISC invests University of Iowa faculty and student time to increase the capacity of Iowa communities and to help them plan for a sustainable future. By taking students out of the classroom and into communities to complete real-world projects, IISC accomplishes two university-wide goals: enhancing sustainability across the state and transforming teaching and learning at the University of Iowa. To view current projects and past partnerships, visit http://iisc.uiowa.edu.