Here at the Iowa State Daily we’re excited to announce a new initiative we’re launching called #AskMeAmes. Why? Because we believe that journalism can best serve its community when our readers are involved in the reporting process.

So, instead of just assuming that we know what type of stories you’d like to read, you can tell us. And it’s an easy process, trust us.

To produce #AskMeAmes, we’re partnering with Hearken, a consulting service and platform that aims to generate “deep audience engagement that builds trust and leads to original, high-performing journalism.”

We want your questions to shape the stories we do.You can ask us anything about the Iowa State campus or the greater Ames area that you want to know but might not be able to find through a Google search. Your questions can be about anything, silly or serious.

You might wonder:

• How many Iowa State students live in Ames and what impact does that have on its population?
• How will my identity be perceived on campus?
• What’s the most common type of restaurant?

From there, we’ll put some questions up for a vote so that you can weigh in on which question you’re burning to have answered. If your question gets selected, our tireless newsroom staff will begin reporting and writing the story.

On top of bringing our readership into our journalism, we’re also very excited that #AskMeAmes is in direct partnership with Voices, a website launched last year in an effort to increase conversations of diversity and inclusion on campus. For example, you can ask us anything about what it’s like to be who you are on our campus.

As a news organization, the Iowa State Daily sees it as pertinent to its role of serving the community by providing a platform to facilitate discussion, build curiosity in our community and empower our readers, so we want you to ask us anything about identity, being who you are, and the state of diversity and inclusion on campus as part of #AskMeAmes.

So, Ames, what questions do you have about life on the Iowa State campus or in the Ames region? Ask away!