Iowa State is behind Ames High School in enrollment of minority students, university and local officials said.

Currently, about 7 percent of ISU’s population is minority students. The Ames Community School District is about 17 percent minority students — nearly 10 percent more than Iowa State, Ames Mayor Ted Tedesco said at the Oct. 22 City Council meeting.

Peter Englin, dean of students, said Iowa State’s 2,572 international students represent more than 117 countries.

Englin said more minority students are choosing Iowa State, and the university is closer to its goal of 8.5 percent minority students. In 2002, 1,943 students were members of ethnic minority groups.

Of the 1,565 students enrolled in Ames High School, 273 are minorities, said Michael Avise, associate principal at Ames High School.

Avise said Iowa State welcomes students from Ames High of all backgrounds.

“ISU’s admissions office makes themselves very available to our students and to Ames High,” he said.

Emily Nau, 2001 Ames High graduate and sophomore at the University of Iowa, said she doesn’t think her high school was diverse.

“This is Ames we are talking about,” she said. “Most of the Asian population is there because their parents are somehow associated with ISU.”

Nau said she thinks Ames completely lacks diversity.

“If you look at [small towns in Iowa], AHS is noticeably diverse, but if you look outside of Iowa, or even to Des Moines, Ames is not diverse at all,” she said. “AHS’ diversity is relative and nonexistent.”

Julie Reger, 2001 Ames High graduate and sophomore in elementary education, said attending Iowa State was the right decision for her.

Reger said she requested to live on an international residence hall floor her freshman year. “I figured that if I was surrounded by people from all over the world, it wouldn’t feel much like Ames, and it didn’t,” she said. “When I’m on campus, I many times forget I even am in Ames because it feels like I’m away from home, not five minutes away.” Reger said Ames High School can work with Iowa State to increase diversity on campus. “I think that because of the university, Ames will always be changing in terms of diversity,” she said.