It’s not the college students’ typical all-nighter.

Students sleeping on Central Campus weren’t cramming for tests. They wanted to express concern for the homeless and working poor.

In the sixth annual Homelessness and Housing Awareness Sleepout, students slept in cardboard boxes south of the Campanile from noon Wednesday to noon Thursday. The event was organized in part by members of St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 2210 Lincoln Way.

Kim Steffen, sleepout organizer and peer minister at St. Thomas Aquinas, said the purpose of the sleepout is to make the ISU community aware of the poverty that exists in Story County and Iowa, as well as the lack of affordable housing in the Ames area.

This sleepout is different from previous years because it focuses on the working poor, said Steffen, senior in English.

“Twenty-five percent of jobs in Story County pay less than eight dollars an hour,” Steffen said. “People with those jobs that have children have to work more than one job to meet their expenses – people have less time they can be with their families.”

Steffen said organizers worked in cooperation with members of Citizens for Community Improvement, a Des Moines group working for poverty advocacy in Iowa.

Katie Elbert, St. Thomas Aquinas service team member, said students may not realize the impact poverty has on people in Iowa and the Ames community.

“We can get caught up in our own world and don’t know what other people have to deal with on a daily basis,” said Elbert, senior in psychology. “We want students to really know what is going on.”

The element of humility was a large part of why the students were camping out, Steffen said.

“We have so many opportunities as students to get involved and help other people,” Steffen said.

“None of us are any better than anyone else, and it’s so important to help those who are less fortunate.”

Organizers planned a reflection event at 9 p.m. Wednesday evening that was designed to inform students of poverty issues.

“We want people to really talk about poverty and ask questions about how they can help,” Elbert said.

John Donaghy, St. Thomas Aquinas campus minister, said organizers expected 20-50 students to camp out overnight.

He credited the sleepout’s success to the dedication of students.

“Everyone really comes together for the sleepout,” Donaghy said.

“[The students] all huddle together to keep warm and the idea of homelessness really hits home.”