Steve Fleagle, who has guided the University of Iowa’s information‑technology enterprise for more than two decades, will retire fall of 2025 after 40 years of service to the institution.
“Steve has been a steady, visionary leader whose work quietly powers nearly every aspect of our mission,” says Executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Kregel. “From modernizing classroom technology to hardening our cyber‑security posture, his commitment to putting students, faculty, and staff first has been extraordinary.”
Senior Vice President for Finance and Operations Rod Lehnertz adds, “Under Steve’s leadership, the UI created reliable, resilient IT systems that support world‑class teaching, research, and patient care. His collaborative spirit set a standard for how central administration can partner with colleges and units across campus.”
Fleagle first joined the university in 1984 as the technical director of the Cardiovascular Image Processing Laboratory. After 10 years helping to advance several cardiac imaging modalities, he joined ITS to lead the Campus Communication Utility Project which installed the first campus wide network. In 1998 he was named the director of Telecommunication and Network Services and then CIO in 2004. Among his many accomplishments are the launch of OneIT (an innovative shared‑services model that has saved millions of dollars annually), co-leading the creation of the BOREAS regional optical network, creating an IT research support group, sponsoring the development of the MAUI and electronic workflow systems, and providing support for the 2008 flood and 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.
“It has been an honor to serve the University of Iowa and be involved in so many impactful efforts,” Fleagle says. "Helping to build the IT community and being able to support student success and research activities is something I’ve found both personally and professionally rewarding."
Reflecting on the future of technology in higher education, Fleagle adds, “Technology is evolving rapidly, and the UI is well-positioned to leverage those advances. I have complete confidence in our IT professionals that form the IT community and campus partners to continue driving innovation that supports student success, groundbreaking research, and institutional excellence.”
Next steps
The university will conduct a national search for Fleagle’s successor. President Wilson has appointed two co‑chairs to lead the search committee:
- Sarah Hansen, Vice President for Student Life
- Clark Stanford, Dean College of Dentistry
The new chief information officer will report to Laura McLeran, who was recently named vice president for administrative affairs. McLeran has a long record of service at Iowa, beginning with the Division of Student Life in 1987 before moving to the Office of the President in 2006. She was named assistant vice president in 2013, and associate vice president for administrative affairs and senior advisor to the president in 2015. She has served as the university’s efficiency program (TIER) representative to the Iowa Board of Regents and interim vice president of student life and has served on numerous search committees and strategic plan work groups.
McLeran earned a bachelor’s degree and an MBA at Iowa.
Additional details about the search committee and timeline will be shared with the campus community in the coming weeks.