Summaries of the minutes of the meetings of the CLAS Graduate Educational Policy Committee (https://clas.uiowa.edu/faculty/graduate-educational-policy-committee) for Fall 2018 and Spring 2019 can be found below.

August 22, 2018
The members of the GEPC met to review ongoing initiatives by the GEPC, to familiarize the new members with committee efforts, and to discuss future projects and what the committee will be working to achieve this year.

September 4, 2018
The members of the GEPC met to discuss the possibility of extending the CLAS-GC-IP Grant and Fellowship Writing Seminar for PhD and MA/PhD students in the Humanities and Social Sciences to STEM fields, the English department’s recent Summer Placement Collaborative, and advising & professional development for students pursuing non-academic careers.

September 19, 2018
The members of the GEPC met to discuss CLAS and the Graduate College’s efforts to collect data on graduate student interest in non-academic careers, data on how many students are participating in CLAS Certificate Programs, and the Graduate College’s grant writing initiatives and its support of extending the CLAS-GC-IP Grant and Fellowship Writing Seminar for PhD and MA/PhD students in the Humanities and Social Sciences to STEM fields.

October 1, 2018
The members of the GEPC met to discuss the newly implemented CLAS Graduate Student webpages, and the extension of CLAS Grant and Fellowship Writing Seminar for PhD and MA/PhD students in the Humanities and Social Sciences to STEM fields. The committee also discussed the outcome of the first New DGS Orientation, and the possibility of the committee meeting with one or more of the CLAS Dean candidates.

November 5, 2018
The GEPC welcomed Echo Smith (Classics), who will serve as the 2019-2020 graduate representative to the committee. The GEPC held a follow-up discussion of the proposed STEM Grant Writing Seminar and CLAS’s conditional approval of another year of the Grant Writing Seminar for the Humanities and Social Sciences. The GEPC also discussed the upcoming review processes of the CLAS Dissertation Writing Fellowships and the Marcus Bach Fellowships.

December 3, 2018
The GEPC met to discuss and review the CLAS Dissertation Writing Fellowship applications and put forth suggestions to change requirements of the application and review process for next year.

January 16, 2019
The GEPC met to review Biology’s MS-Advanced Studies proposal and made recommendations that Dean Getz will discuss with the department. The committee also discussed proposed changes to the CLAS Dissertation Writing Fellowship application process.

February 4, 2019
The GEPC met to discuss the feedback from Dean Getz’s meeting with Biology regarding its MS-Advanced Studies proposal. The committee also held the Marcus Bach Fellowship Application Review Session and will award four fellowships for the upcoming academic year.

March 13, 2019
The GEPC met to discuss Biology’s MS-Advanced Studies proposal and the process going forward for appointing a graduate student to the committee.

April 1, 2019
The GEPC met to continue its discussion of Biology’s MS-Advanced Studies proposal and the process going forward for appointing a graduate student to the GEPC.

April 17, 2019
The GEPC discussed Biology’s MS-Advanced Studies proposal and the NSF-GRFP webinar that Dean Getz attended earlier in the day. GEPC also discussed ways to further its mission of supporting URM students.

May 6, 2019
The GEPC discussed Biology’s MS-Advanced Studies proposal and recognized the service of members who are rotating off the committee.