An event nearly five years in the making, leaders from the University of Northern Iowa and Des Moines Area Community College gathered this week to celebrate the success of the UNI@DMACC partnership. UNI President Mark Nook and DMACC President Rob Denson gathered in the new 60,000 square foot building now known as the Student Life & STEM Center at the DMACC Urban Campus to officially cut the ribbon along with a number of donors and leaders from both institutions, and celebrate the expansion and renovation project.

“This partnership is all about finding a way to bring education to the people instead of making the people go get their education,” UNI President Mark Nook told the audience at the ribbon cutting ceremony.

“DMACC offers students an affordable, accessible and high-quality education that includes access to first-rate facilities and unique partnerships,” said DMACC President Rob Denson. “The new DMACC Student Life & STEM Center at our Urban Campus is truly about building community through student success.”

The new Student Life & STEM Center houses the DMACC Urban Campus Student Services Department, which includes academic and career advising, financial aid and student counseling, as well as the UNI@DMACC partnership office, a welcome center and flexible event spaces. The building’s upper floors feature science labs, state-of-the-art classrooms, additional faculty offices, study areas, student lounge spaces and meeting rooms.

​The DMACC Urban Campus serves thousands of students every year, and the UNI@DMACC partnership offers place-bound students with a unique opportunity to earn their bachelor’s degree from UNI without leaving Des Moines. Students complete their first two years at DMACC, and then take two additional years of online classes through UNI at the DMACC Urban Campus. Approximately 100 students are enrolled in UNI@DMACC online bachelor’s degree completion programs this semester.

The Student Life & STEM Center houses all UNI@DMACC programs, including new initiatives such as a hybrid (online and in-person) program to earn a UNI Bachelor of Arts in Accounting degree, and a new partnership with Des Moines Public Schools to help meet a large need for administrative positions in the district.

UNI@DMACC is grateful for the support of donors who have made the center possible, including Mark and Jill Oman who are UNI alums and West Des Moines residents. The Omans have donated $1 million to the UNI@DMACC partnership and have further solidified their support by donating $94,000 earlier this year to create a scholarship for the hybrid accounting program.