Students looking for the Asian American Cultural Center will be disappointed.

The cultural center, listed in the student information handbook as being located in 1501 Helser, doesn’t exist.

Neither does Centro Latino in 1507 Helser.

In fact, the two rooms in Helser Hall don’t exist.

According to the Department of Residence, they never have. The first floor of Helser, where the two offices are said to be, begins at room 1520.

Although several people within the student services could recall the existence of the two organizations, no one seems to be able to say where they were located.

“They’re gone?” said Leonard Perry, director of Minority Student Affairs. “I have no idea where they are.”

Of the four cultural centers listed in the handbook distributed by the Dean of Student Services Office, only two exist — the Black Cultural Center, 517 Welch Ave., and the Indian Student Offices in the Memorial Union.

“As I recall, somebody told me that when they tore down part of Helser, [those groups were] moved to Towers,” said Thomas Hill, vice president for student affairs.

However, neither of the centers were recognized by Towers’ hall desk workers and custodial staff. The two phantom groups aside, Iowa State does offer a few resources for multicultural students. The Multicultural Action Group is located on the first floor of Helser Residence Hall. According to the Department of Residence Web site, Helser Hall was scheduled to close for the 2004-2005 academic year. The Multicultural and International Student Network also has an office in Wallace Residence Hall.

But only locked offices may greet students who want to get involved in multicultural organizations. Neither the Multicultural and International Student Network or the Multicultural Action Group had office hours or contact information posted on their doors.

The Government of the Student Body has worked to establish an official multicultural center on campus.

“There is not a lot of empty space on campus available for something like that,” said William Rock, vice president of the Government of the Student Body.

GSB hopes that there will be space available to start a multicultural center after the renovation on the Memorial Union is complete, Rock said.

A multicultural center can be defined as a student advocacy group or an umbrella organization for the multiple student cultural organizations on campus. GSB has distributed a survey to determine what kind of center Iowa State needs.

“We are at a standstill until the Memorial Union renovations start,” Rock said.