- Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteen, the first woman to hold the position, is retiring in January after eight years.
- The university also saw fundraising success under her leadership, exceeding its $1.1 billion goal with a total of $1.542 billion.
- Wintersteen fostered a strong focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, earning Iowa State recognition as the Entrepreneurial University of the Year for the Americas in 2023.
Iowa State University's first female president is stepping down after an eight-year run.
Wendy Wintersteen, who's worked for the university for more than 40 years, recently announced her intention to retire in January.
Iowa State's 16th president was the second alumna to hold the university’s highest office when she was selected in 2017.Wintersteen announced her retirement on Friday, May 16, to the campus community.
“I am fortunate to have served Iowa State University in many roles over the past 46 years, and it’s been a fascinating journey,” Wintersteen said in ISU's news release. “I am truly proud of Iowa State’s extraordinary faculty and staff for their remarkable performance these past years. Perhaps most of all, I will miss the amazing energy, talent and potential of our Iowa State students.”
Wintersteen's tenure included upgraded campus facilities, record-breaking research grants, and improved student outcomes. She engineered vast growth in the ISU Research Park and strong fundraising success, according to the news release.
Iowa Board of Regents President Sherry Bates said Iowa State's reputation has soared under Wintersteen's leadership, especially in research growth, student outcomes, and an emphasis on innovation.
"With her steady guidance, Iowa State has met and overcome many external challenges, including a derecho, an international pandemic and more. The state of Iowa has been blessed to have an accomplished leader like Wendy Wintersteen leading this great land-grant university," Bates said in a news release.
Wintersteen was pulling in an annual salary of $710,000 according to a Iowa City Press-Citizen report. She received a $60,000 raise from the Iowa Board of Regents in June 2024.
A strong focus on innovation and entrepreneurship
Although entrepreneurship has been offered at Iowa State's seven colleges for a quarter-century, Wintersteen’s guidance has elevated entrepreneurship to a university brand and a strategic priority.
The focus has earned the university many awards and recognition, such as in 2023 when Iowa State earned the status of Entrepreneurial University of the Year for the Americas, outlasting a field of 33 countries.
In 2024, Iowa State received the Model University Accelerator/Incubator awardfrom the U.S. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
“These awards are validation, and I think it’s important to have that measure,” Wintersteen told the Ames Tribune in 2023. “We’ve always been about innovation and research, but to have this kind of success and this kind of buy-in across the university for entrepreneurship is unique.”
Innovation goes hand-in-hand with the focus on entrepreneurship. Iowa State is in the Top 100 universities worldwide for U.S. patentsand is tied for 57th with 60 patents in 2024.
Wintersteen's support of Iowa State's cutting-edge research has helped it rank in the top 3% for research out of about 500 universities without human medical schools.
The university received more than $4.2 billion in external funding during Wintersetten's tenure, including three consecutive years ofrecord-setting research funding.
ISU has seen improved student outcomes
Iowa State set several records for student outcomes under Wintersteen’s leadership, including first-year student retention and length of time to graduate. During her presidency, 57,698 students graduated from Iowa State
The university’s retention of first-year students has climbed to 87.6%, which is more than 10 points higher than the national average for four-year public institutions.
Iowa State's students are also graduating faster than ever before. The average time to degree has decreased to a historic low of 4.12 years in 2024 from 4.4 years in 2018.
Iowa State’s six-year graduation rate outperforms the national average of four-year public institutions by more than 18 points.
Wintersteen had historic fundraising success
During Wintersteen’s first four years as president, the Iowa State University Foundation exceeded its initial fundraising goal of $1.1 billion and achieved a historic $1.542 billion fundraising total for the Forever True, For Iowa State campaign.
More than 96,000 alumni, donors and friends made gifts and commitments to the university.
The donations included $500 million directed for student support, which funded 56,000 scholarships. The campaign also created 148 named faculty positions, which provide faculty with resources to invest in teaching programs, research and other strategic priorities.
Iowa State saw many new or improved facilities, including CyTown creation
Wintersteen helped secure more than $275 million for new or revitalized facilities, according to the news release.
Iowa State University’s Research Park added nearly 50 new tenants during Wintersteen's tenure and underwent a 150-acre expansion.
She also worked with Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard to receive approval from the Iowa Board of Regents for the CyTown development, a multipurpose project to enhance the Iowa State Center.
“President Wintersteen has worked tirelessly to advance the mission of the university,” Charles Sukup, chairman of Sukup Manufacturing and Iowa State alum, said in a news release. “Her efforts to generate support for new facilities, teaching and research will benefit students and the state of Iowa for years to come. She has been an outstanding servant leader who has earned the trust of faculty, students and the citizens of Iowa.”
Wintersteen's Iowa State career included dean of agriculture, life sciences
Wintersteen began her career as one of the first female ISU Extension associates in integrated pest management, where she focused on eastern and central Iowa.
She completed her doctorate in entomology at Iowa State and rose through the ranks to become a professor of entomology. She served a brief stint at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture in Washington, D.C., then served in senior administrative roles in extension and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS).
Wintersteen served 11 years as the inaugural endowed dean of the CALS and director of the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station.
Her experience in CALS, along with her upbringing on her family's farm in Kansas, has been instrumental to Wintersteen's outlook on education, especially as it relates to entrepreneurship and innovation.
Wintersteen's farm life was foundational, but her real impetus for Iowa State's entrepreneurship push came from Roger and Connie Underwood, both ISU grads, she told the Ames Tribune in 2023. The “really extraordinary entrepreneurs” donated $1.6 million to Iowa State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in 2004.
“They said they wanted us to work with students and help them see what it meant to be an entrepreneur,” said Wintersteen, who was senior associate dean of that college at the time.
She worked closely with Roger Underwood and saw his vision for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to allow young men and women to grow as entrepreneurs.
“For me, that was the difference maker,” Wintersteen said.
The Iowa Board of Regents are holding a special meeting at 11 a.m., Monday, May 19, to accept Wintersteen's resignation. They'll also establish a search committee to find her replacement and discuss securing a search firm.
(This story has been updated to add new information and photos.)
Ames Tribune reporter Ronna Faaborg can be reached at rfaaborg@gannett.com.
