Hundreds of people flocked to the Memorial Union on Saturday for the Engineers’ Charity Ball, which marked the end of Engineers’ Week.

The Great Hall had the lights dimmed, accenting the candles on the tables. Most of the women were in formal, prom-style dresses. The men’s styles varied, from suits to dress shirts and pants to a baggy, purple-checked suit.

This year’s E-ball was to raise money for “Minds of Tomorrow,” a program created by the E-ball committee that provides grants to schools to support classes in science, technology, engineering and math.

Since the ball was a fundraiser, this year it was opened to all faculty, students and staff – not only those in the engineering program, said Mary Byron, E-ball committee co-chairwoman and junior in chemical engineering.

The ISU Jazz Band was playing as people filtered in. For the first part of the evening, the dance floor was empty while

people took advantage of the buffet table, which was stocked with crab cakes, chocolate-covered strawberries and other treats.

A capella group Shy of a Dozen made an appearance, starting with “Lean on Me” and eventually singing “Folgers Coffee” by Rockapella. The large crowd parted to let an ex-member join to sing along, and a few girls decided to be the group’s personal backup dancers.

Shy of a Dozen member John Feekes, junior in anthropology, said E-ball was a “great opportunity” to sing for a large group of people.

The ISU Ballroom Dance Company was the next attraction of the evening, and most of the 700 attendees took to the dance floor to learn a waltz. Thomas Meierotto, ISU Ballroom Dance Company president and senior in agricultural business, said he had been nervous about trying to teach such a large group, but everyone seemed to pick it up nicely.

“I was impressed,” he said.

A DJ played for the rest of the night. For a while, waltzes dominated to allow people to practice their new skills, but then it fell to more familiar classics, including the “Chicken Dance” and the “Cha-Cha Slide.” A little past 11 p.m., “Dragostea din Tei” – aka the “Numa Numa” song – was played, causing confusion to those not familiar with it as dancers started jumping around and waving their arms.

“We decided to go get water during that song,” said Megan Mathias, senior in mechanical engineering.

There were a few complaints about the music, but overall people seemed to enjoy themselves.