Veishea is just around the corner, and one of the most important events in which Iowa State students participate is the Veishea parade.

Eight student organizations are preparing floats for this year’s parade, which will be held on Saturday, April 18.

Greek houses provide the majority of floats for the parade, according to Brent Carmichael, the Traditional Float co-chairman for the parade.

Each year, seven fraternities build floats. They are Beta Theta Pi, Alpha Tau Omega, Sigma Chi, Delta Tau Delta, Delta Sigma Phi, Phi Delta Theta and Tau Kappa Epsilon.

Each fraternity works with a sorority house to build the float, and Noble House in Friley also builds a float each year.

Ann Hansman, Veishea co-chairwoman for Delta Delta Delta sorority, said the floats are built by the members of the greek houses and they are not allowed to bring in any outside help.

She said the planning for a float usually starts in late January, but construction is not allowed to begin until Feb. 14.

A “barn” is built to give shelter for float construction. Hansman said a barn is not required to build a float, but it is encouraged.

A barn’s purpose is to protect the float from the weather and other damage that might occur to the float while it is kept outside.

Hansman said the term “staging” the float refers to the rule that the float has to be moved off the organization’s property the night before the parade and driven to the parade site. Members of the organization stay up all night with the float and work on details for the parade the following day.

According to Carmichael, the floats are divided into three categories — large, medium and small — which vary in size as well as the amount of money spent.

Large floats can be no more than 50 feet long and have a spending limit of $11,000. Medium floats can be no longer than 35 feet and have a spending limit of $7,000, and small floats can be no longer than 25 feet and cannot cost more than $5,000.

Of this money, only a certain amount can come from sponsorships, said Carmichael. In the large division, $8,500 can come from sponsorships. In the medium division, $5,500 can come from sponsorships, and $4,000 in the small division can come from sponsorships. Of these sponsorships, 20 percent of the funds must come from outside the Ames community.

During the parade, each organization is required to carry a banner in front of the float listing their sponsors, Carmichael said.

For the 1998 Veishea parade, two floats are entered in the large category, five are entered in the medium category, and one is entered in the small category, he said.

The floats are also divided into the categories of traditional and non-traditional floats, he said. Traditional floats are self-propelled and have a much higher cost than non-traditional floats.

To ensure the originality of the floats, patents are issued to each organization building the float. The group must then submit an application describing their float’s appearance and theme. These applications were due on January 23.

There are no specific rules regarding the building of the floats, just guidelines that must be followed, Carmichael said.

One guideline is that all materials on the float must be built by the members of the organization. No already-built materials such as glass or grass can be used, he said.

Also, each float must have fire extinguishers inside the float, as a safety precaution.

The floats in the Veishea parade are judged on three criteria: public appeal, construction and artistic design.

In the public appeal category, judges award points based on the float’s theme, originality, clarity and interest. In the construction category, judges look at craftsmanship, animation and special effects.

Artistic quality is judged on balance, continuity, proportion, contrast and color. There are two judges in each category, awarding a total of 1,000 possible points.

Carmichael said the judges are usually faculty members at ISU, although in the construction category this year, a general contractor from the Ames area is serving as a judge. The exception is in the public appeal category, whose judges are the Veishea general co-chairs from the previous year.

Carmichael said trophies are awarded in each category for first, second and third place.

Trophies and plaques are also awarded in each of the divisions, and there are first- and second-place awards given to the overall sweepstakes winner of all the floats in the parade, as well as other specific awards.

The Grand Marshal Award is presented by the parade’s Grand Marshal to the float with the best theme and originality, Carmichael said.

Other awards include the President’s Award, the Spirit Award, given by the Traditional Float co-chairs, the Public Opinion Award, given by the Veishea parade co-chairs, and the Veishea Gold Star Award, given by the Veishea general co-chairs.