Inside Iowa State: Iowa State University

INSIDE IOWA STATE
March 30, 2001

ISU opens learning center in Des Moines

by Steve Sullivan
Iowa State has landed in downtown Des Moines.

The university's new Learning Connection is located in Suite 200 of the Locust Center, 700 Locust St., and on the Des Moines skywalk. Learning Connection is a collaboration of all Iowa State colleges, Continuing Education and Communication Services and WOI Radio.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony will be from 1:30 to 2 p.m. Thursday, April 5, with an open house following from 2 to 4 p.m.

Training programs, workshops, short courses and conferences will be offered at the Learning Connection. The facility also will serve as an information source about each college, continuing education, and athletic and cultural events. WOI Radio has a studio in the facility for news coverage and live broadcasts. Learning Connection has hosted Master of Business orientation meetings and a WOI Radio roundtable discussion on urban sprawl.

Learning Connection will offer programs based on local community and business needs, said Sherry Glenn, extension education director and Learning Connection director. For example, ISU College for Seniors will offer a course this spring, the first time in the program's nine-year history that any class has been offered outside of Ames. The course, "Des Moines: Glimpses of its Past," will examine the history of Iowa's capital and include a walking tour of East Des Moines and presentations by local historians and newspaper reporters.

"Learning Connection will foster two-way communication between Iowa State and those who live and work in downtown Des Moines," Glenn said.