We were disappointed to read the editorial “Yet another commission in the Veishea discussion” in the Feb. 10 Iowa State Daily. Contrary to the Daily’s denigration, the One Community Implementation Committee is not just “another commission.”

We want to remind the Daily editors that there are two kinds of commissions/committees/task forces — one charged with studying a situation and the other charged with taking action.

The Task Force on Assuring Successful Veishea and Other Student/Community Celebrations and the Commission on Improving Relations Among ISU Students, the University, the city of Ames and the Ames Community were study committees. They put in an incredible number of hours over several months and did an excellent job. We should all be grateful to the members for their exceptional dedication and commitment on these important issues.

But what good would their work be if we stopped there? The Commission, for example, put together some very valuable recommendations to improve relations, regardless of the future of Veishea. One of the most significant recommendations is to work toward the concept of “one community” in Ames.

The One Community Implementation Committee, appointed by ISU President Gregory Geoffroy, Ames Mayor Ted Tedesco and GSB President Sophia Magill, has been charged with developing a plan to foster the “one community” concept. The committee includes ISU students, faculty and staff and representatives of the Ames city government, business community and neighborhoods. This is definitely an action committee, not a study committee, and we are taking our assignment as seriously as the previous commission and task force did theirs.

We are sincere in our efforts to foster the “one community” concept in Ames, and we invite everyone — including the Daily editors — to join us in this endeavor.

Tahira Hira and Bob Kindred

Co-Chairpersons

One Community Implementation Committee