Lonnie Gamble, an assistant professor of sustainable living at Maharishi University of Management, demonstrates how an old satellite dish was converted to provide solar heat for toasting foods. (Photo by Beth Dalbey)

Cypress Villages, a 145-acre subdivision taking shape on organically-certified land north of Fairfield, aims to be Iowa’s first community to be completely LEED-Platinum — the U.S. Green Building Council’s highest designation.

The low-powered radio station KRUU-FM is believed to be the only one in the country to use solar energy to power its broadcast booth and signal.

And Fairfiled Mayor Ed Malloy is listed alongside big-city counterparts New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels on a list of the 15 greenest mayors in the United States compiled by the Grist, a Seattle-based online provider of environmental news.

So, building a sustainable future may not seem like a big leap in a small city where living “off the grid” rates not even a raised eyebrow. But a strategic plan to institutionalize sustainable living is “blazing a trail” for other small Iowa cities, said Brian Crowe, a program manager for the Iowa Power Fund.

Fairfield, population 9,500, received an $80,000 Power Fund grant to develop its Go-Green Strategic Plan, which sets forth a broad vision of sustainability upheld by solid goals, aims and objectives its architects think will significantly lighten the city’s carbon footprint.

Impressed by a cultural predisposition to sustainable living in Fairfield, Crowe and the Power Fund board thought Fairfield could serve as a model for other cities of similar size. “There’s really no roadmap at this point,” Crowe said.

Easily duplicated strengths in Fairfield’s plan include methods to establish both baselines in areas such as carbon impact and criteria to measure success, he said. “It’s hard to manage what you don’t measure, and I was pleased to see they are looking at that.”

Crowe thinks a community-by-community response to climate change offers Iowa its best chance to become a national leader in sustainability. “If progress can be measured and quantified, and there is someone on the ground to make sure the program is implemented, it could mean a great deal for Iowa,” he said. “For the things we’re good in — biofuels development and wind development — we’re certainly among the leaders in the nation, But we’ve certainly got a long way to go when you look at energy efficiency as a whole, because a lot of the low-hanging-fruit work has been done.”

‘Big-time accountability’

The sweeping plan addressing environmental, economic and social needs envisions, among other things, wind projects, a local foods system supplying as much as 40 percent of Fairfield’s produce needs, and an already vibrant entrepreneurial spirit burgeoning with new business growth to support green technologies and services.

Support for the plan is broad and those committing to it do so strongly, said Malloy, the sparkplug behind the initiative and Fairfield’s mayor since 2001. For example, he said, the Dexter Corp., a washing machine factory with a foundry operation, offers a $1,000 cash incentive to employees purchasing hybrid vehicles. But he acknowledges that not everyone in the city believes that human activity is a contributing factor to climate change, or that humans can mitigate their influence, meaning the city’s sustainability council faces an ongoing educational hurdle.

“The focus from the beginning has been on how we can create a culture where we voluntarily do the right thing in terms of managing our resources, capturing their economic benefits and leveraging them in local commerce, in particular, foods, where we’re burning a lot of fuel to get it here, and recycling,” he said. “The bigger vision is how we build and design the community going into the future, whether in designing buildings or managing our natural resources in a way that’s more responsible.”

Scott Timm, Fairfield’s community sustainability director, who was hired in a partnership between the city and Iowa State University Extension Service, said “big-time accountability” makes the difference between a feel-good set of values and a plan with teeth.

Businesses and institutions pledging to implement the plan run the gamut from already sustainable projects like Gamble’s Abundance Eco Village to emissions-belching factories, and include elected councils and boards, schools and health-care institutions, cultural organizations, service industries and retail businesses. They’ve signed off on what they’ll do and when they’ll do it, Timm said.

Plan architects also got creative — and practical, For example, an invitation to join the new Green Business Council, made up of the town’s top CEOs, doesn’t come with an expectation for dues, but rather that the business will invest that money in sustainable practices.

Timm said Fairfield’s methodology — holding community conversations facilitated by the Institute for Decision Making at the University of Northern Iowa and involving every corner of the community — is a valuable lesson for other cities with an eye on sustainability.

“There are common themes almost everyone can agree on,” he said. “We’re not asking everybody to go off the grid, we’re just looking for ways to tighten things up, promote healthier ways of living and conserving resources. It’s not radical New Age hippie stuff, but values everybody can buy into.”

The sustainability council is working with the Iowa Interfaith Power & Light Group (Iowa IPL), which offers a faith-based response to climate change. The three-year-old organization brings together the voices of Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other faith communities arguing that environmental stewardship is a spiritual concern.

It’s a smart bit of strategy, Timm said, because “if the religious communities don’t get behind this movement, we are in serious trouble.”

By following the plan relating to energy audits of government-owned buildings and schools, Timm said it’s realistic to expect Fairfield can not only offset a proposed 7 percent utility increase, but also achieve deep. Gas and electricity costs for city-owned facilities run about $500,000 annually, and saving just 30 percent of that — a realistic goal, the plan’s architects say — amounts to at least one salary for a city employee, an all important consideration during a sour economy.

“That’s the low-hanging fruit,” Timm said.

Another thing Fairfield did correctly was tap into funding streams, like the Iowa Power Fund, a state program supporting energy innovation and independence.

“If you can really work with your local city government and the utility companies and look into where there are funding options — state or federal — you can get some amazing projects moving,” Timm said. “There is some serious funding out there.”

Changing behaviors

Dubuque Sustainability Coordinator Cori Burbach said Fairfield’s strides help guide similar efforts in hers and other Iowa cities. She took part in a sustainable communities workshop Timm hosted last fall and was impressed by intricacies in Fairfield’s plan. “I was really impressed with the local foods program, and the involvement of the local school district and university,” Burbach said. “Getting local foods into the schools is really exciting.”

Both the Fairfield Community School District and Maharishi University of Management also have developed educational curricula around the principles of sustainability. The university offers what officials say is the country’s first four-year bachelor of science degree in sustainable living with some four dozen courses. Energy independence pioneer Gamble, an assistant professor for the new department, said the breadth of courses epitomize the overarching goals of Fairfield’s sustainability goals.

“The sustainable department has morphed from a biology department with six students to a sustainable living department with 90 fulltime students,” he said. “Students are involved in innovative enterprises, like a 1,000-gallon-per-day capacity biodiesel cooperative, and wind generator and solar projects.”

The building housing the department was slated for demolition, but students convinced university higher-ups to leave it standing and allow them to refurbish it using green technology.

Timm said the schools’ efforts go a long way toward institutionalizing sustainable living in Fairfield.

“My impression is that Fairfield is a community of people who want to do good things,” said Timm, whose first full day as a Fairfield resident coincided with a Labor Day concert by the Beach Boys, where Mayor Malloy proclaimed bandleader and sometime Fairfield resident Mike Love “energy czar for a day.”

“We’re finding that people want to get plugged in, and that they aren’t afraid to try something new and to find ways to change their behavior,” he said. “That’s the real key, looking at ways to change behavior.”

Beth Dalbey edited the Fairfield Ledger from 1996 to 2001. An award-winning journalist, she has also edited newspapers in Adel and Des Moines.

City officials in Memphis, Tenn., are so fired up they’ve filed a lawsuit charging Wells Fargo &Co. with discriminatory lending practices.The allegations they are making are almost identical to those leveled here in Iowa, where a study found that minority homeowners in Des Moines were three times more likely to receive high-cost subprime mortgage loans from the mortgage giant than white homeowners.

The New York Times reports:

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Tennessee, marshaled a raft of statistics to argue that Wells Fargo offered one lending reality for whites and another for blacks. In Shelby County, which includes Memphis, one of every eight Wells Fargo loans in predominantly black neighborhoods resulted in foreclosure, compared with only one in 59 such loans in white neighborhoods, the lawsuit said.

Such charges, if proven, amount to reverse redlining — marketing expensive loan products specifically to black customers.

For anyone who’s been following the reporting of The Washington Independent’s Mary Kane on Wells Fargo, this should come as no surprise. First, there was that Cleveland case in which Wells was found to be violating public nuisance laws by failing to clean up its foreclosed properties. Next came the charges from the state of Illinois that Wells had targeted Latino residents for subprime loans, even in cases when potential borrowers could afford less expensive options. Then came the California-based class-action lawsuit alleging subprime discrimination against the bank. And finally, Mary uncovered the bank’s alleged strategy of hiring high-profile black figures such as Tavis Smiley to lure potential black borrowers to “Wealth Building” seminars, where Wells employees would be waiting to sign attendees up for more expensive subprime loans, according to a lawsuit filed by the Illinois attorney general.

So far, there has been no legal action taken against Wells Fargo in Iowa.

Mike Lillis covers Congress for The Washington Independent, a Center for Independent Media site.

Opponents of health care reform shook signs, shouted and heckled U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack during a town hall forum in Cedar Rapids on Saturday. Compared to reports from other parts of the nation, however, the four forums Loebsack held in the 2nd District over the weekend were mild.

“Part of the job that I had today, I think, was to do the best that I could to explain the bills that are before us now,” Loebsack said. “My main job, however, was just to hear people and learn what they had to say. In that sense, I think the meetings were very successful, and I hope those who participated feel the same way.”

Across the country, congressional town hall events previously attended by only a handful of the most wonkish citizens have become shouting matches between opponents and supporters of health care reform. More often than not the elected official hosting the forum has ended up playing a sideline role to the action of the participants.

While there is no denying that Loebsack’s events in eastern Iowa were spirited, they did not devolve into the anger and violence seen in other parts of the nation. Before beginning his tour, Loebsack, a Democrat, acknowledged that emotions are running high and expressed his hope that there would still be opportunities for measured discussion.

“At every stop today that held true much of the time,” Loebsack said. “Clearly people are extremely passionate about this issue. And that’s especially true for those who are opposed to the type of health care reform that we are talking about. So, yes, there were folks who were very upset about one thing or another, and I did the best I could to hear what they had to say and to engage them.”

Loebsack’s largest and most raucous stop was the first of the day in Cedar Rapids, where more than 500 people crammed into an auditorium with a capacity of 432 and others were turned away due to space constraints. Even before Loebsack entered the room, Emma Nemecek, a Mount Vernon Republican who launched two prior unsuccessful campaigns for Iowa House, drew applause and boos as she paraded through the center aisle with a sign that read, “Obama Lies, Grandma Dies.” Loebsack, like U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, entered the room to cheers and jeers from those attending. Throughout the forum, opponents attempted to interrupt by shouting comments from the audience, but Loebsack, who had a microphone, ignored the heckling and continued to answer audience questions pulled from a basket.

Mount Vernon Republican Emma Nemecek was applauded by many attending U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack's town hall when she raised a sign that read, "Obama Lies, Grandma Dies!!!"

Although most disruption was limited to verbal shouts — between audience members just as often as toward Loebsack — Cedar Rapids Police did remove two individuals when an argument involving a pro-reform sign escalated and the sign holder was knocked to the floor. After visiting with law enforcement about the incident, both were allowed to return to the audience.

Loebsack’s other stops in Mount Pleasant, Burlington and Fort Madison were much smaller and much less rowdy than the Cedar Rapids event.

“As I said, there are some folks who are really, really upset about a lot of things. And, I think many of them — perhaps most of them — are upset [by] misinformation that’s out there,” Loebsack said. “I did the best I could to explain what’s in the bill that I voted for and that we are now working on in the House of Representatives, and I hope that will convince some of the folks that some of their fears are a little bit unfounded. I think many of [their fears] are unfounded, but I still understand why there is so much concern. When we talk about health care, we are talking about life and death decisions. Given that, I have no desire whatsoever to de-legitimize their feelings on this.”

As expected, Loebsack fielded questions on end-of-life care and abortion. Perhaps not expected were audience request for Loebsack, a former college political science professor, to define socialism or discuss medical loss ratios. Despite all the input and activity, however, Loebsack said he didn’t really hear anything from constituents that he hasn’t already heard.

“Keep in mind that before these town hall meetings, I had already visited every hospital in the District and talked with health care providers. I come home nearly every weekend and, even when I’m just stopping at the Casey’s, I try to talk with people.  So, I had already heard many of the concerns that were voiced today, including those concerns on the side as to why we need health care reform,” he said.

“I think the real difference for me today was that it was an opportunity for 500 people in Cedar Rapids and 200 people in Henry County to all be in one room and express these concerns that I’ve been hearing for quite some time. I did hear all sides of the issue. I think that’s what is really important.”

Sen. Tom Harkin discussed federal health reform during an AARP/Divided We Fail forum in North Liberty on Saturday.

NORTH LIBERTY — The current state of health care delivery in America is so grim that U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin no longer uses the word “care” in reference to reform.

“We need health reform,” the Democrat told the roughly 200 individuals who gathered at an AARP forum in North Liberty on Saturday. “I don’t say that we need health care reform because you can’t reform something you don’t already have. We don’t have a health care system in America. We have a sick care system.”

Harkin said the World Health Organization ranks the U.S. health care system 37th in the world, on par with Serbia. Despite the fact that the U.S. spends twice as much per capita on health care as European countries, he explained, Americans face twice the number of chronic diseases.

“We spend 95 cents of every dollar on treating illnesses and conditions after they occur,” he said. “In other words, we’ve been neglecting wellness and disease prevention. That’s the bad news. The good news is that right now I think that we have a chance to make a dramatic change.”

Although Congress is not always known for its ability to act swiftly, Harkin said President Obama “is adamant” that health reform be complete by October of this year. In addition, Harkin is optimistic, if not fully confident, that the deadline will be met.

“What we are doing is marking up our bill … during the last two weeks of June,” Harkin said. “We plan to be done with it before the July Fourth recess. We will come back after July 4 and will be on the floor of the U.S. Senate in July with both the finance bill, which basically covers Medicare and Medicaid and the taxing part of it, and our bill, the health bill. We plan to have it done before the August recess. It will go to conference during August and September so that it can be done in October.

“And I’m telling you, we cannot fail in this. We have got to get it done.”

President Barack Obama invoked the same sense of urgency on health reform during his weekly radio address, released Saturday.  That drew criticism from Iowa’s other senator, Republican Chuck Grassley, via the social messaging site Twitter.  Grassley complained that Obama had “nerve” to tell Congress to deliver on health care while he was off “sight seeing” in Paris.  Obama is on an oversees trip that took him to Egypt, where he delivered a major address intended for muslim nations; Germany, where he visited the site of a Nazi concentration camp; and France, where he observed the anniversary of D-Day with other world leaders.

Harkin said that because the country has come together in what describes as “a critical mass,” comprehensive reform is much more of a certainty now than it was during discussions during the 1990s.

“I want to impress upon you: We aren’t dancing around the edges,” he said. “What we are planning on doing will change the very fabric — the very fabric — of how we do health in America. It’s not just changing medicine, but it is changing the kind of medicine we do.”

Despite a recently published column by Grassley listing reasons for his opposition to a public plan option, Harkin confidently proclaimed that the reform will contain such an option, and that it will be national. Harkin also lamented the fact that single payer was not on the table despite his personal support and the growing support of the majority of Americans for that option.

Noting that there is not enough support in Washington to pass a single-payer system, Harkin said that “there are a lot of things the majority of Americans support that Congress won’t do.” Harkin also praised members of the audience who carried signs calling for a single-payer system, saying that one of the major reasons that a public plan is now a real possibility is due in large part to their advocacy.

Although members of the audience grumbled during the question-and-answer portion of the forum when Harkin indicated full implementation of such sweeping change could take several years, panel member Cathy Glasson, state president of the Service Employees International Union, pointed to the nation’s looming nursing crisis as evidence of why reform will take time.

“I don’t think people are considering [the shortage of nurses and other health care professionals] in relation to reform of our nation’s health care system,” said Glasson, who has worked for more than two decades as a registered nurse. “We are going to be adding between 47 to 52 million currently uninsured individuals into the system. If we don’t have the qualified professionals to care for the influx of those folks, we are going to have a major disaster on our hands.”

Harkin also wanted to assure those in attendance that existing low federal reimbursement rates that have been negatively impacting Iowa hospitals and health care professionals will be revamped during the course of reform.

“Our Iowa doctors, nurses and professionals have a lot to be proud of,” Harkin said. “I don’t know how many more studies we need from the Commonwealth Fund and Dartmouth and others ranking Iowa in the top places nationally for providing quality health care delivery. But our current reimbursement system is based on volume, not quality. Well, if you reimburse on volume, you get volume. But if you start reimbursing on quality, you’ll get quality.”

“Holding a meeting in each of our 99 counties gives me the opportunity to have an open and honest dialogue with the people I serve in the U.S. Senate,” Grassley said in a statement.

As his reelection efforts begin to build, constituents will likely see more of their senior senator.  Grassley’s schedule for the week, starting last Sunday, is reprinted below:

Grassley’s meetings will take him to the counties of Appanoose, Cedar, Clarke, Clinton, Davis, Decatur, Delaware, Des Moines, Henry, Jackson, Jefferson, Jones, Lee, Louisa, Lucas, Monroe, Muscatine, Scott, Story, Van Buren, Wapello, Washington, Wayne and Warren.

Grassley will hold town hall meetings in Albia, Bloomfield, Burlington, Chariton, Corydon, Hopkinton, Keosauqua, Leon, Maquoketa, Mechanicsville, Monticello, Ottumwa, Wapello and Washington. He will tour businesses and meet with employees at Rathbun Regional Water Association in Centerville, Davenport Community Health Center in Davenport, Siemens in Fort Madison, Bandag in Muscatine, Capital City Fruit in Norwalk, Osceola Foods in Osceola, and MD Orthopaedics in Wayland. He will meet with students at Clinton High School in Clinton. He will also speak with the Fairfield Young Professionals in Fairfield and meet with members of the Iowa State University Department of Agriculture Education and Studies at their annual banquet.

Here is detailed information about Grassley’s upcoming county visits.

Sunday, February 15, 2009

1:50 – 3 p.m. Story County Meeting, meet with the Iowa State University Department of Agriculture Education & Studies, Prairie Moon Winery, 3801 West 190th Street, Ames

Monday, February 16, 2009

8 – 9 a.m. Warren County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at Capital City Fruit, 1505 North Avenue, Norwalk

10:15 – 11:15 a.m. Clarke County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at Osceola Foods, 1027 Warren Avenue, Osceola

12:15 – 1:15 p.m. Decatur County Town Hall Meeting, Leon Community Center, 203 NE 2^nd Street, Leon

2:15 – 3:15 p.m. Wayne County Town Hall Meeting, Wayne County Courthouse, 100 North Lafayette Street, Corydon

4:30 – 5:30 p.m. Lucas County Town Hall Meeting, Chariton Public Library, Conference Room, 803 Braden Avenue, Chariton

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

7:30 – 8:30 a.m. Monroe County Town Hall Meeting, Albia Area Chamber of Commerce, 18 South Main Street, Albia

10 – 11 a.m. Appanoose County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at Rathbun Regional Water Association, Rathbun Regional Water Treatment Facility, 16166 Highway J29, Centerville

12:15 – 1:15 p.m. Davis County Town Hall Meeting, Southern Iowa Electric Cooperative, Touchstone Energy Training Center, 22458 Highway 2, Bloomfield

2:15 – 3:15 p.m. Wapello County Town Hall Meeting, Bridge View Center, 102 Church Street, Ottumwa

4:15 – 5:15 p.m. Jefferson County Meeting, meet with Fairfield Young Professionals, Fairfield Arts and Convention Center, 200 North Main Street, Fairfield

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

7:30 – 8:30 a.m. Van Buren County Town Hall Meeting, Village Cups and Cakes, 202 Main Street, Keosauqua

10 – 11 a.m. Lee County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at Siemens wind turbine blade facility, 2597 Highway 61, Fort Madison

Noon – 1 p.m. Des Moines County Town Hall Meeting, Burlington Public Library, Meeting Rooms A and B, 210 Court Street, Burlington

2:30 – 3:30 p.m. Henry County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at MD Orthopaedics, 604 North Parkway Street, Wayland

5 – 6 p.m. Louisa County Town Hall Meeting, Wapello Ambulance Building, 400 Highway 61 South, Wapello

Thursday, February 19, 2009

7:15 – 8:15 a.m. Washington County Town Hall Meeting, Washington County Hospitals and Clinics, Robert Nicola Conference Room, 400 East Polk Street, Washington

*Attendees should enter through South Entrance

10:30 – 11:30 a.m. Scott County Meeting, tour and meet employees and patients at Davenport Community Health Center, 500 West River Drive, Davenport

2:15 – 3:15 p.m. Muscatine County Meeting, tour and meet with employees at Bandag, NAM Award Presentation, Bandag Learning Center, 2000 Bandage Drive, Muscatine

5 – 6 p.m. Cedar County Town Hall Meeting, Mechanicsville Public Library, 218 East 1^st Street, Mechanicsville

Friday, February 20, 2009

7:45 – 8:45 a.m. Clinton County Meeting, meet with Clinton High School Government Class, Clinton High School, 818 8^th Avenue South, Clinton

10:15 – 11:15 a.m. Jackson County Town Hall Meeting, Hurstville Interpretive Center, Community Room, 18670 63^rd Street, Maquoketa

1 – 2 p.m. Jones County Town Hall Meeting, Mary Lovell LeVan Monticello Renaissance Center, Community Media Center, 220 East 1^st Street, Monticello

2:45 – 3:45 p.m. Delaware County Town Hall Meeting, Hopkinton Community Center, 115 1^st Street SE, Hopkinton

Rep. Kerry Burt

The Ankeny Police Department has confirmed that Iowa Rep. Kerry Burt, a Democrat from Waterloo, was arrested in Polk County early Wednesday morning for operating while intoxicated.

Charlotte Eby of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier was first with the story and reports that Burt is expected to release a statement on the incident later today.

Burt, a 44-year-old former Hawkeye football standout, was elected to the Iowa House this past November.

On Monday night, the final night of Hanukkah, a group of about 50 people gathered outside the Dubuque County Jail where Rubashkin is being held, to perform religious rituals and light an oversized menorah.

Most of the people who peacefully protested the ruling in Dubuque, according to a report by Andy Piper of The Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, drove the 70-some miles from Postville.  But the demonstration was cut short by law enforcement officials who said that the event had gone beyond what had been expected and that they could not allow public-access areas to be blocked.

“This is very troubling for all Jews across the U.S.,” said Amy Dickel, a Postville businesswoman who helped organize the demonstration. “We think this is a new legal thing. [U.S. Attorney] Mr. [Matt] Dummermuth basically has a different legal interpretation that says if you are a Jew, then you are a flight risk.”

…

Demonstrators Sunday held signs reading “Where is the Bill of Rights?” “Equal protection under the law” and “No bail for Jews.”

“Hanukkah is a symbol of freedom and light and hope,” Dickel said. “We think this is one U.S. attorney who is out of hand.”

Abraham Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, has appealed in writing to the U.S. Attorney General for the U.S. Dept. of Justice to make a blanket policy that would prevent general use of Israel’s Law of Return in detention hearings concerning Jews.

Agriprocessors, which never fully recovered from a massive May 12 immigration raid, has been placed in the hands of a bankruptcy trustee. The trustee has resumed limited production and continues to work with potential buyers.

From the Spencer Daily Reporter:

“Duty calls” topped the statement from state Rep. Royd Chambers, who announced that he will be unable to participate in the first session of the 83rd General Assembly.

The Sheldon Republican serves in the Iowa Air National Guard and recently received notice that he will be deploying again.

“Previous deployments happened to fall outside the legislative session, but not this time,” he said, in an announcement to his constituents. “I will be leaving immediately after the first of the year and am not likely to see any of the session.”

AP reports that Chambers will be deployed to the nation of Kyrgyzstan, a very cold former Soviet Republic in a strategically important location in central Asia.

I told her I appreciated her help, since I’m sure she’s been bombarded with requests these last few weeks. The clerk’s office keeps all City Council meeting agendas, minutes, legislation, ordinances, etc. She chuckled. Then she told me that I’m the first person who has asked her office for anything.

Meanwhile, it appears Palin’s record on earmarks is less cut-and-dried than it once appeared.

If you’d like to follow McGann’s great Alaskan adventure, click here for her Twitter feed.  There you’ll learn fun facts like this:

Palin beat her opponent in the 1996 mayor’s race 616-413.

and

Walmart employs 4 times as many people here as the city of Wasilla.

"The Best I Can Do," by Marvin Pomerantz

Marvin Pomerantz, a prominent Des Moines businessman who advised Republican governors and presidential candidates for the past 40 years, died Thursday at the University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City.

Pomerantz, one of only six Iowans inducted into the Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, played an influential role in Iowa education. In addition to serving two terms as president of the Iowa state Board of Regents, Pomerantz donated millions of dollars to the University of Iowa.

“The University of Iowa joins our entire state in mourning the loss of Marvin Pomerantz,” UI President Sally Mason said in a statement Thursday. “Mr. Pomerantz was a true friend to the UI and to higher education throughout Iowa. His leadership, his insight, his advice and his generosity have been crucial to our success and our excellence for decades.”

Pomerantz died of complications stemming from a heart attack he suffered in June.

Born in Des Moines on Aug. 6, 1930, Pomerantz was one of nine children whose parents immigrated from Poland in 1912. In his recently penned autobiography, “The Best I Can Do,” published in 2006, Pomerantz credits his humble upbringing for helping shape his philanthropic efforts:

Looking back on my life, it would be hard to find anyone with a more humble beginning than mine. Growing up in Des Moines, there was barely enough food to feed the family, but we always shared what little we had. We didn’t think we were poor, we knew we were poor …

Pomerantz’s interest in education did not stop in 1952 when he graduated from the UI with a bachelor of science degree in commerce. He led the regents from 1987-93 and 1995-96 and recently served as head of the Institute for Tomorrow’s Workforce, a group that studied Iowa’s education system.

Last fall, Pomerantz was honored for his contributions to a scholarship for minority students at Des Moines University.

“Marvin’s commitment to education and the children of Iowa was remarkable,” Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said in a statement. “He was a premiere philanthropist, who invested his own dollars in making our state a better place to live.”

Despite recent health concerns, Pomerantz remained politically active in Iowa. During the Republican presidential campaign, he served as Iowa co-chair of former Gov. Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign.

“Marvin is the epitome of the American dream, and his support is going to be enormously helpful to my campaign,” Romney said in an April statement. “He shares my vision of a strong and vibrant economy, one that is able to successfully compete with extraordinary economic challenges from abroad. To do so, Marvin and I share the same belief that we must have a rigorous educational system preparing our children for the future.”

Pomerantz was also active in shaping Iowa’s educational policy. He co-chaired the Institute for Tomorrow’s Workforce (ITW), a nonprofit educational foundation created by the Legislature in 2005 to provide lawmakers with recommendations ensuring that all Iowa learners are rigorously challenged and adequately prepared for the 21st century.

Last fall, Pomerantz stepped down from his post after accusing Gov. Chet Culver of failing to support the institute’s recommendations. Upon his resignation, Pomerantz threatened to file a lawsuit if Culver didn’t follow through with the ITW’s recommendations and followed through with his threat this spring, financing a lawsuit that asks Iowa to adopt measures such as creating a state-wide, mandatory curriculum to ensure equal opportunities for all students. The suit is still pending.

Pomerantz also made news last summer when he resigned his position as head of UI College of Public Health’s capital-raising committee. After procuring a $15 million naming gift from the Wellmark Foundation, Pomerantz voiced his displeasure with the college dean’s rejection of the gift. “I think the College of Public Health dean embarrassed me and embarrassed the university,” Pomerantz said in statement. “It is a terrible insult to the university what Dean Merchant has done.”

The gift was intended to be used for the proposed $45 million building for the College of Public Health, but was ultimately rejected by the teaching faculty, which cited concerns about naming public institutions after private businesses.

Pomerantz was tough, but he also was innovative and creative and gave of his time, energy and money, Regent Michael Gartner of Des Moines told the Cedar Rapids Gazette.

“As head of the board of regents he accomplished immense gains and made the universities better when he left office than they were when he came into office,” Gartner said.