Not long ago, the curtain closed on Iowa State’s 2023 Homecoming Celebration, Carnival and Gold. In a week dedicated to celebrating our university, we were able to showcase around 1,250 students in Yell-Like-Hell’s 60th year, host over 40 organizations between the Kickoff Celebration and Painting Victory Lane, revitalize ExCYtement in the Streets by returning it to Friday night and serve nearly 5,000 meals at Food on Campus.
While we are proud of the strides that Homecoming made to embrace the campus community in 2023, our team has been working diligently since its selection in December to find new ways to amplify the diverse voices of the Iowa State community – examining our slate of events and encouraging innovative ways to reach new audiences. Without a spring counterpart, we recognize Homecoming’s unique position as the annual unifying tradition for Cyclone Nation. Iowa State University is strong because of the many organizations, perspectives and disciplines that call it home. Our goal is to build Homecoming 2024 into a truly cross-campus celebration, showcasing as many students, faculty and staff as possible during Homecoming, Oct. 27 through Nov. 2.
Our success depends upon student organizations’ willingness to embrace our events as parts of their fall semester, and we hope to increase their opportunities for visibility in 2024. The Homecoming Central Committee will spend the majority of the next 10 months preparing our events behind the scenes: a reimagined Kickoff Celebration, a new event Friday night to follow ExCYtement in the Streets on Central Campus with student performers and beloved traditions like Cardinal Tournaments, Food on Campus and Yell-Like-Hell are in store, among other events and scheduling adjustments.
We are inspired by the connections forged at Iowa State and see each of our events as conduits to create lasting memories for the university and Ames community. Be sure to follow ISU Homecoming on social media to get the latest updates. If you’re unfamiliar with Homecoming or are involved in a student or professional organization that wouldn’t usually participate, we welcome you to mark your calendars and plan to join the fun. We are committed to crafting the best possible Homecoming Celebration for all Cyclones in 2024 and are grateful to serve in this capacity.
Adam Wolf and Radhika Sharma serve as co-directors of the Homecoming Central Committee, a Student Alumni Leadership Council subcommittee tasked with planning Iowa State’s Homecoming Celebration. They can be reached at [email protected].
