Hawkeye Caucus Day is a major, once-a-year gathering of UI students, university leaders, and state legislators, showcasing the university’s commitment to statewide service. This year two students from the School of Planning and Public Affairs (SPPA) attended the event at the capitol in Des Moines, Armando Bryson (MPA class of 2024) and Kaylynn Sieverding (URP class of 2024).

They took the opportunity to highlight their academic accomplishments by sharing their work on  this year’s capstone projects. Kaylynn is part of the student team working on affordable house with the City of Dubuque and shared information with legislators about how policy could influence those issues. She enjoyed an additional advantage of the caucus, networking with other UI students at the capitol. Kaylynn was able to see a variety of projects from other programs at UI, hear what they were doing across the state, and learn how other’s work could additionally guide legislators’ policy decisions.

Armando valued the day’s opportunity to interact with legislators and to utilize public relations skills outside the classroom. His long-term goal is to work at the national level in the House or Senate. Armando came to the caucus ready to share how he’s giving back to the state of Iowa through his capstone project with the City of Bondurant. The project involves assisting public administration in the city as they look for alternative, cost-effective public safety measures, with the goal of reducing crime and increasing community engagement. Both student capstone projects are through the Iowa Initiative for Sustainable Communities.