Students passing by the Iowa State Center in the last few weeks may have noticed a subtle change in the marquee facing Lincoln Way.

The electronic sign, which has been out of service for several years, is up and running, but with a new twist. While it still flashes Iowa State Center concert and performance information, it now bears a slogan urging passers-by to “Enjoy Coca-Cola.”

“[The new marquee] is part of the 10-year contract that we made with Coke earlier this year,” said Mark North, executive director of the Iowa State Center.

“The contract provides Coke with exclusive soft-drink distribution rights in the Iowa State Center and acknowledgment on the marquee, and in return the Iowa State Center has received the new marquee and will be getting a confidential amount of funds for Coke’s pour-rights.”

The original sign, which was funded in part by a 1983 class gift, was damaged in the 1993 flood.

The Iowa State Center investigated repairing it, North said, but found that the company that manufactured the sign had gone out of business.

As per the agreement, Coke installed a brand-new sign in mid-August at a cost of approximately $94,000, North said.

The marquee has met with mixed reactions from both ISU students and Ames residents.

“To me, the sign is yet another example of the corporatist attitude that has become a plague on the Iowa State administration,” said Tyler Uetz, a junior in religious studies.

Scott Christy, an Ames resident and former student, agreed that the advertisement brings a more commercial element to Iowa State.

“I think that putting up a Coke ad [on the marquee] proves that Iowa State is a whore to corporate interests,” Christy said. “It seems to me that ISU has chosen to sell its academic soul to big money players.”

However, senior Carrie Adams, pre-business, said that she recognized some good in the compromise.

“I don’t think that the ad is a nice addition to our campus at all,” Adams said. “But I can kind of understand the reasoning behind it all. It is pretty tacky, but at least the sign is working again.”

According to North, the Iowa State Center is a privately run department of the university, which makes their contract with Coke particular to only that specific site. The exclusive soft-drink distribution terms of the contract went into effect January 11.