Feelings throughout the student body about exactly how student behavior at the April 18 riot in Campustown should affect Veishea remain decidedly mixed.

Agreement and disagreement with Tuesday’s decision to suspend Veishea were both plentiful.

Katie Dickens, senior in health and human performance, said she was surprised to hear ISU President Gregory Geoffroy’s decision to suspend Veishea. However, Dickens said she is glad to see Geoffroy will be taking time to thoroughly consider the fate of the student-run celebration.

“I’m glad he didn’t say he was going to cancel it completely,” she said.

“Basically, President Geoffroy is giving us a second chance to see if we can grow up.”

Dickens said the behavior displayed on April 18 was unacceptable.

“It’s time for the ISU campus to come together and try to keep the few people who acted out in vicious ways to not do it again,” she said.

Dickens said because many campus organizations hold fund-raising events on campus during Veishea, these organizations will likely have to face budget cuts as they will have to make up for revenue they will lose next year.

This loss could mean organizations will not have the funding necessary to participate in certain events.

Carl Wertzberger, junior executive co-chairman of Veishea cherry pies, said the cherry pie fund-raiser raised nearly $15,000 for the College of Family and Consumer Sciences this year.

The money is used to create scholarship opportunities for students and to support the college.

“It’s a huge deal and a huge money booster for our department,” said Wertzberger, junior in hotel, restaurant and institution management.

Without Veishea next year, Wertzberger said, the cherry pie committee is uncertain how it will raise money.

Its members will try figure out an alternate plan.

Wertzberger said he was surprised by Geoffroy’s decision to suspend Veishea.

“There could be an alternate way to manage the problem rather than suspend it,” he said. “Veishea is too much of Iowa State’s tradition to suspend it.”

Sororities and fraternities participate in Veishea events on campus as well, and some have vented their frustrations.

“I’m pissed off,” said Kristen Koch, freshmen in construction engineering and member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority.

Veishea is a large part of Iowa State, Koch said.

“I think they should make some changes,” she said. “They should limit what goes on Welch [Avenue], but not suspend Veishea.”

The suspension of Veishea will affect the ability of the greek system to showcase its involvement in the community through participation in the parade and other activities on campus during the festival, Koch said.

Aside from how the decision will affect campus organizations, John Greving, junior in animal science, said it affects students in general by punishing those who weren’t involved in the riot.

“I think there are a lot of good things of Veishea they are going to miss,” Greving said.

“They shouldn’t look down on the whole Veishea situation because of the small group of people who were involved,” he said.

Geoffroy also announced two task forces will be created to work together in order to try to improve the relationships among students, the university and the City of Ames.

Greving said the relationships among the three groups needed to be improved prior to the riot.

He is unsure what the outcomes of the Veishea task forces will be.

“They might have a plan, but if it works is a different story,” he said.