In the spring of 1998, I was sitting on a couch with my girlfriend talking with her parents about which college I should go to. My two top choices were Iowa State and the University of Iowa. Like all great ISU alumni, her parents were smart, caring, and realized the weight of the situation. Thankfully, they intervened.

As they began to talk about Iowa State and why I should go there, the discussion quickly turned to Veishea. The floats, the carnival, the flocks of people and, of course, the cherry pies. Throughout that conversation, they painted a very colorful, vibrant picture of Veishea and Iowa State. Needless to say, because of this conversation and their wonderful experiences, along with many other factors, I decided to attend Iowa State.

The history of Veishea is indeed vibrant and colorful. Started in 1922 as an all-college festival, it evolved into the largest-student run festival in the nation. Veishea brought people from around the Midwest to our campus. Presidents, heads of state, and the top celebrities of the time came to participate in events. Parents and alumni from around the world converged on Ames and the whole student body was involved.

However, throughout the years the festival has changed, losing much of its luster and its status as a must-attend event. Top bands and celebrities stopped showing up, alumni and parents were fewer and far between, and students became even more apathetic.

Unfortunately, the downturn was compounded by the events of the 1997 Veishea. My first experience in ’98 took place in the setting of President Martin Jischke’s police-state environment. The year before, Harold Sellers was murdered on Welch Avenue amid a drunkfest. Subsequently, Jischke decided to crack down, and the administration took every step possible to make sure the previous year’s events did not recur. No alcohol, even if you were of age, and no guests in the residence halls or university property without them signing in.

These extreme steps had an adverse effect on Veishea. Throughout the fall and spring my freshman year, the student body was very vocal about its feelings on the future of Veishea and the new policies significantly decreased student participation in the spring festival, probably turning some students away from Veishea forever.

By the time my first Veishea arrived, there was a very negative stigma about it. A lot of the student body left campus to party elsewhere. However, my first experience was good. Dave Chappelle did the Rec, the Goo Goo Dolls rocked Hilton Coliseum, and I got to see all the other festivities involved. Overall, it was a fun weekend.

Unfortunately, for the next three years, Veishea got progressively worse. This was probably because it was the same thing every year, plus the events got smaller and less quality. Less people showed up each passing year, the big concert went from the Goo Goo Dolls to a battle of the bands, and the Taste of Veishea had less and less games and food vendors each year.

The only real highlights for me include riding in a convertible in the parade throwing out Mardi Gras beads with Charlie Johnson and Lisa Dlouhy, the wonderful comedians at “Dew the Rec”, the Society of Chemistry Undergraduate Majors magic show, and helping cut the World’s Largest Rice Krispies Treat.

I realize I have painted a negative picture of my experience with Veishea, but what you need to understand is that it is the picture most students I went through Iowa State with would paint. Growing up with the stories of Veisheas past, the Veisheas we experienced were disappointing, to say the least.

In the next few years, the future of Veishea is at stake as a viable all-student-body festival. As Veishea has evolved throughout the last five years, it has become less about regular students. I think it is imperative that the entire student body work together to reinvent Veishea so it is effective and fun in this new environment. Students who are not involved must become involved, because without students from all different backgrounds driving change, it will never get any better. If Veishea is not reinvented by students with a student focus, one of our wonderful ISU traditions may fade away to irreversible mediocrity.

Veishea may never have the luster that it once had, but I believe with fresh thinking and hard work from students, there is the potential to add many wonderful chapters to its rich history.

Andy Tofilon was GSB President in 2001-2002