Iowa State will host the All Malaysia Midwest University Sports and Cultural Festival this May for the first time in the three years the festival has been held.

“We are expecting about 20 universities from the Midwest region as well as other universities, such as Columbia University in New York City and Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio,” said Audrey Cheng, funding director of the Midwest festival and a junior in dietetics.

This is the third year for the festival and the first year ISU will host the event, which will be held May 18 and 19, Cheng said. While the Malaysian population at ISU is not the largest international student population, there are about 288 Malaysian students here, she said.

The theme of the festival is “Rhythm of Unity,” which represents the coming together of Malaysian students, Cheng said.

The two-day event begins on May 18 at 8 a.m., and the opening ceremonies will be held at 11:15 a.m.

Malaysian food will be available at a dinner at 7:45 p.m. on May 18 in the Ames Middle School. The dinner is open to the public and costs $5 for adults and $2 for children aged two to 12, Cheng said. Tickets may be purchased at the door.

After the dinner, a cultural festival will begin at about 8:30 p.m. Part of the cultural festival will be a dance competition with seven universities competing against one another. The cultural competition is free and open to the public.

The opening ceremonies, the cultural festival and the dinner are open to the public, but the rest of the events are for the participation of the Malaysian students, Cheng said. However, anyone is welcome to come and watch the events, she said. The festival is meant from all over the Midwest for Malaysian students to get together and celebrate , Cheng said.

“I think this will be a really fun event and we expect 700 to 1,000 students will come here. We hope the community will come and get a taste of our culture,” she said. Those with questions and concerns may contact Cheng during the summer before the event at 292-0160.