Students in the Tippie College of Business Marketing Institute partnered with three Sioux City based community organizations that promote sustainability to better coordinate the organizations' activities and messaging to the Sioux City public.

Students from the Urban and Regional Planning Department completed a housing plan for Sioux City, IA with the main goal of coordinating reinvestment in distressed areas.

This project focused on the Leeds Neighborhood, located in northeast Sioux City. The commercial corridor within this neighborhood serves as the northeast entryway into Sioux City. The corridor contains a mixture of small retail stores, restaurants, and service establishments that serve the local neighborhood. As new national brand commercial developments continue to develop to the south of the Leeds neighborhood, the future character of its commercial corridor has been called into question. Students from the Urban & Regional Planning Dept.

Graduate students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted a project that aided Sioux City in fulfilling its recently-designated Blue Zones ProjectTM requirement of developing an active transportation plan.

Graduate students in the College of Public Health worked with the Cedar Rapids Blue Zones Project™ staff to enhance engagement with the Blue Zones Project™ among target demographics in Cedar Rapids. In particular, students worked to target high school students, aging populations, and faith-based organizations around particular Blue Zones Project™ initiatives like walking MOAIs (groups of individuals forming social circles to support healthy behaviors) and cooking MOAIs.

Mass communication students enrolled in "Philanthropy Communication in a Digital World" worked with Brucemore Historic Estate in Cedar Rapids to develop and implement a marketing plan, including research, event planning, and use of technology to produce promotional messages and a social media campaign. The students focused on volunteer recruitment and retention.

In collaboration with Arts Share, graduate students in the School of Art & Art History worked with local businesses in the Czech Village/New Bohemia Main Street District to design window displays for the holiday season.

Student in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted a project that evaluated the workforce of Cedar Rapids and determined the gap between supply and demand for quality workers. Students sought to understand the reasons for both attracting and retaining new workers.

The iGreenCR program was developed in late 2011 as a coordinated strategy to promote and brand Cedar Rapids’ sustainability efforts under one program rather than separate departmental initiatives. Students conducted research to evaluate community awareness and willingness to embrace sustainability, as well as their current level of awareness of iGreenCR.

Students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning conducted research on best practices for creation of a SSMID for Cedar Rapids, IA. Students held public meetings and worked with CV/NB Main Street staff to acquire the necessary support to pass a SSMID.

In collaboration with Iowa Digital Engagement and Learning (IDEAL), honors rhetoric students created podcasts in sping 2014 through IDEAL's Digital Narratives project. Podcasts focused on IISC's partner community of Muscatine, particularly on the growth and development of Muscatine.

Here are the five stories told through podcasts:

Graduate students in Organization and Community Practice worked in groups to put their social work training into practice. Students identified a social justice community issue to investigate and conducted a needs and strengths assessment using data on the community, key informant interviews of different stakeholders, and other sources as necessary.

Students analyzed a land use plan against development in the northeast section of the city, and, where appropriate, enhanced the concepts contained in the plan.

As part of the Senior Design Capstone Course of the  Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the students had the opportunity to complete a site design for the Center Complex and the structural design of the Welcome Center for the city of Muscatine. The students coordinated with the City in the building design specifications so it is capable of hosting all the desired programs envisioned by interested parties.

Muscatine was interested in developing its first dog park as a community amenity. Students surveyed best practices for dog parks in communities similar to Muscatine and identified recommended amenities, including water, water features, ground covering, benches, pavilions, fencing, walking paths, waste control, among others. Students created preliminary designs for the dog park, including potential planned phases where restrooms and water features would be included at a later time.

The IISC and Arts Share developed a low-cost public art project for a student in the MFA program. The project used recycled materials to create a sculpture that pays homage to an important member of the Mississippi River Valley's ecosystem, the bald eagle.

Graduate students in the College of Public Health developed health intervention projects that focused on reductions in childhood obesity through behavior change counseling. Students worked with organizations in Muscatine such as the YMCA, Sunset Park After School Program, and local preschools.

As part of the Senior Design Capstone Course in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, the students completed a regional hydrologic and hydraulic analysis of the watershed north of the City of Muscatine.

Senior undergraduate students in the College of Business’ Marketing Institute completed a year-long study and evaluation of Muscatine’s community brand, working with the Muscatine Chamber of Commerce.

To address the lack of trails and poor connectivity in Muscatine, IA, students in the School of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Iowa prepared a connectivity study, which included recommendations on trail improvements and expansions.