E-News - August 2025

Inaugural Athletic Day of Giving is tomorrow!

We’re kicking off the fall season with a powerful new tradition: the inaugural Kohawk Athletic Day of Giving. Tomorrow, August 14, alumni, fans, families and friends are rallying together to celebrate and support the athletic programs that represent the spirit and strength of Coe College!

There’s still time to give back and get involved. Timed to coincide with the start of the 2025–26 athletic season and fall move-in, this special day invites you to give back, gear up and get loud for Kohawk Nation. Your support helps us start strong — providing travel support, uniforms, equipment and more!

Learn more and give back today!

Kohawk Athletic Day of Giving

From the desk of President David Hayes

David Hayes.jpg We invite you to read a letter from President David Hayes '93.

Read the President's Letter Now

Princeton Review Rankings: Coe earns national acclaim for providing student support

The student comes first at Coe College. New and updated accolades from The Princeton Review laud Coe as a Top 20 college in the nation across three crucial student support categories. Coe has the #11 Best Career Services, is #14 for Best Student Support and Counseling Services and has the #18 Most Accessible Professors. Coe is the only college or university in Iowa to earn a ranking in these categories.

The rankings were announced Tuesday by The Princeton Review as part of the publication’s annual review of the best colleges and universities across the country. Once again, Coe is recommended as one of the “Best 391 Colleges and Universities” by The Princeton Review. Read more.

Justice Learning Initiative launches a crowdfunding campaign

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Make an impact today by supporting JLI’s first-ever crowdfunding campaign! Gifts of all sizes are warmly welcome, and your generous support will allow us to:

Provide incarcerated students with the benefits of a liberal arts education
Fund student volunteer trips to make a difference in the lives of others
Offer on-campus events about the impact of the criminal legal system

The Justice Learning Initiative at Coe began in 2023 and remains today under the direction of Coe faculty members, Associate Professor of Social and Criminal Justice Neal McNabb, Associate Professor of Sociology Katie Rodgers ‘03 and John William King Professor of Literature and Creative Writing Gina Hausknecht.

They have built the project – focused on “Education, Collaboration, Community” -- with a range of hands-on, high-impact experiences for students and community members to engage with social justice issues of pressing importance.

A main point of emphasis is community education about real-life impacts of the criminal legal system, the effects of incarceration and the challenges of reentry. These critical community events focus on real-life experiences of prison and reentry, illuminating the consequences of mass incarceration and how we all can contribute to more supportive, thriving communities.

Some examples include:

A college-in-prison program offering classes taught by Coe professors at Anamosa State Penitentiary. Coe is proud to extend our mission to incarcerated learners as higher education is one of the most transformative experiences within prisons.
Midwest Books to Prisoners providing Coe students the opportunity to bring donated books to the Chicago distribution center of this non-profit organization and volunteer there, fulfilling requests for reading material from incarcerated people across the midwest.
Reentry Simulation during which participants role play month in the life of someone just released from prison.

We hope you will join the effort to raise funds to continue the work of this initiative. Please consider donating today.

Justice Learning Initiative Crowdfunding.

Kohawks add women's wrestling

On July 30, Director of Athletics & Recreation Steve Cook announced the addition of women’s wrestling as an NCAA sport at Coe. He is adamant Coe is "all in" on building the program.

"With women’s wrestling, there’s a lot of momentum state and nationwide, and just seeing how much fire it’s caught in Eastern Iowa — there’s just a lot of excitement about the sport. The time is now to welcome it with open arms," Cook said.

Since 2013, the number of participants in women’s wrestling has quintupled at the high school level. It is a sponsored sport at the high school level in 46 states, and was announced as an emerging sport by the NCAA in 2020. The first official NCAA championship will occur in 2026, and the Coe team will begin competing in the next year for the 2026-27 season. The program will be led by Head Coach Kaleb Reeves ’23. As a Kohawk wrestler, Reeves earned NCAA All-American status three times and graduated from Coe with an overall record of 103-22 in his five-year career.

The women’s program at Coe will be the college’s 23rd NCAA sport, and its establishment opens the doors for new student-athletes to join a successful wrestling tradition. Read more.

Kohawk Family Update

We are so happy to have students returning to campus! Please read the Kohawk Family Update for more on current Kohawk resources and information regarding the fall term.

Read Kohawk Family Update

Introducing the new risk management/insurance concentration

Announcing new risk management/insurance concentration Beginning this academic year, students can study risk management/insurance as a concentration within the college’s Stead Department of Business Administration & Economics. The concentration is being launched with the generous support of a lead gift from Coe Trustee Jon Reiner ’09 of RT Specialty.

There is increasing demand for a risk management skill set, particularly across the insurance and financial industries. The growth is driven by global economic uncertainties, regulatory changes, changing weather patterns and increasing reliance on risk mitigation strategies. Read more.

Announcing a flexible and affordable online business administration degree

This fall, Coe College’s locally connected and transformative college education will be an economical career-enhancing option for more people than ever before.

The college is announcing its first online degree — a bachelor of arts in business administration with a strategic leadership concentration, offered through the Stead Department of Business Administration & Economics. The online degree will be an affordable route for those looking to improve their career readiness, and is designed specifically to be a flexible option for working students.

Those employed full-time or with other responsibilities during typical class hours will be able to earn a bachelor’s degree on their own schedule by accessing course materials and recorded lectures on demand. Courses will be available over two eight-week terms in the fall, two eight-week terms in the spring and one 8-week term during summer. Read more.