Iowa lawmakers move to mandate students take Center for Intellectual Freedom classes amid low enrollment

[highplainsdem]

https://www.kcrg.com/2026/05/20/iowa-lawmakers-move-mandate-students-take-center-intellectual-freedom-classes-amid-low-enrollment/

University of Iowa students could soon be required to take classes at the Center for Intellectual Freedom — or they won’t be able to graduate.

Republican lawmakers added a provision to a massive budget bill during a 35-hour legislative session requiring University of Iowa students to complete at least six credit hours from the center to earn an undergraduate degree. The bill now heads to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk.

Democrats are urging Reynolds to line-item veto the provision.

Iowa Republicans created the Center for Intellectual Freedom to counter what they described as liberal indoctrination on college campuses.

-snip-

Students haven't been interested in this rightwing indoctrination, so now they'll be required to waste money and time on it to graduate. IF Reynolds signs the bill. No news about that yet, but I don't think there's any real chance of the line item veto Democrats are urging.

[lastlib]

1. Incredible irony---

being forced to take indoctrination classes at the "Center for Intellectual Freedom." Repuglykans have a special blend of stoopid. How Orwellian.

[EdmondDantes_]

3. You would think they would have a tiny amount of shame about this

[lastlib]

5. Ha.

A party that can turn a blind eye to an insurrection doesn't know what shame is. They are unmitigated psychopaths.

[haele]

7. And what, pray tell, is on the syllabus for such a class?

How to recognize propaganda?
How to research and apply logic to find evidence?
Logical Fallacies and approaches to argument and defense of statements?
General Rhetorical skills?
Understanding Context and Motivations?
Ethics?

[lastlib]

8. God, NO!

Teach the proles to THINK??!? SNAP out of it, man!

[Celerity]

2. Red state shitbaggery on parade.

[lostnfound]

4. For out-of state students, that is $3,285 x 2 $6,570.00 of mandatory rightwing indoctrination

$1197 x 2 =$2,394.00 for in-state (2 classes)

[Prairie Gates]

6. You will now be FORCED to THINK ABOUT intellectual FREEDOM

Fucking clowns.

[yellowcanine]

9. Won't survive a court test. Mandating a specific class is

the same as mandating speech, which is unconstitutional.

[OldBaldy1701E]

10. And, who in Iowa, or the current administration, is going to enforce that? (n/t)

[mopinko]

11. when i went to college, there were required classes.

c’mon. every college has a core curriculum.

[GenThePerservering]

12. Mandated by the college/university

NOT by the government.

[mopinko]

13. you're right. my bad.

[yellowcanine]

14. Right and even so, one almost always was able to choose

from a suite of courses to meet gen ed requirements at a state university or college.