In Re Ezra L. Totton Scholarship

── In Re Ezra L. Totton Scholarship ── Court: Supreme Court of Iowa Date: June 05, 2026 Category: General In the Iowa Supreme Court No. 25–0462 Submitted April 15, 2026—Filed June 5, 2026 In re Ezra L. Totton Scholarship. University of Iowa, Appellant. Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Johnson County, Chad Kepros, judge. A university appeals the dismissal of its action under Iowa Code section 540A.106(3) seeking to modify the terms of a scholarship gift. Reversed and Case Remanded. Mansfield, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which Christensen, C.J., and Waterman, Oxley, and McDermott, JJ., joined. McDonald, J., filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment, in which May, J., joined. Brenna Bird, Attorney General; Eric Wessan (argued), Solicitor General; and Halle B. Kissell and Ian M. Jongewaard (until withdrawal), Assistant Solicitors General, for appellant. Rita Bettis Austen (argued) and Thomas D. Story of ACLU of Iowa, Des Moines, for amicus curiae ACLU of Iowa; David S. Walker and Russell E. Lovell, II, Des Moines, for amicus curiae NAACP Iowa-Nebraska Conference; ReNika C. Moore and Sarah Hinger of American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, New York, New York, and Julie A. Murray of American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, Washington D.C., for amicus curiae American Civil Liberties Union  2 Foundation; and Anthony Ashton of NAACP, Baltimore, Maryland, for amicus curiae NAACP.  3 Mansfield, Justice. I. Introduction. Several decades ago, out of gratitude to the University of Iowa for educating him in its graduate chemistry program during the Jim Crow era, a distinguished Black professor of chemistry left a scholarship bequest to the University. The bequest established a scholarship for “Black students majoring in the physical sciences, preferably chemistry,” at the University. Three years ago, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (SFFA), 600 U.S. 181, 230 (2023), that universities could not use race-based preferences in admissions. The University believed that this decision raised serious doubts about its ability to administer the scholarship going forward, so it brought a legal proceeding to modify those terms, as authorized by Iowa Code section 540A.106(3) (2025). Specifically, the University sought to replace “Black” with “first generation.” The district court dismissed the action without prejudice. In its view, no legal authority conclusively demonstrated that it would be unlawful to continue the scholarship under its existing terms. The University appeals. On appeal, we conclude that it is at least “impracticable” to administer the scholarship as is. Iowa Code § 540A.106(3). But we do not find support for the University’s proposed modification. Therefore, we reverse this case and remand so that the district court may consider other modifications. We give the following guidance on remand: (1) an advocate for the donor’s intent should be allowed to participate in the proceeding, (2) the entire terms of the will and relevant extrinsic evidence may be considered, and (3) modifications that may be  4 considered include release of the restriction or an order that the funds be paid without the restriction to another institution. II. Facts and Procedural History. A. Dr. Totton’s Bequest to the University. Nearly thirty years ago, in March 1997, the University received notice of a bequest from the Last Will and Testament of Ezra L. Totton, Ph.D. The bequest stated, A share is bequeathed to the University of Iowa to establish a scholarship named the “Ezra L. Totton Scholarship” for Black stude