Every college has something unique and special that you just won’t find anywhere else. For Iowa State University, VEISHEA is definitely it! Named by college Professor Frank D. Paine, Department of General Engineering, back in 1922, VEISHEA is an ISU classic, like apple pie, or in this case, cherry — more than 10,000 cherry pies are sold throughout the week-long event!
Sam Ose / Olai Skjaervoy / Sam / Olai Ose / Skjaervoy
What is VEISHEA? It’s an acronym that stands for Veterinary Medicine, Engineering, Industrial Science, Home Economics, and Agriculture, the colleges offered at that time. Today, VEISHEA is on Facebook and Twitter (a great way to keep tabs on events) — even Iowa State University Twitters. VEISHEA is definitely what we would consider event-FULL!
Past events have included hypnotism, a carnival, BMX Ramp Riders, a battle of the bands, 5K Run/Walk, Campus BBQ, Cyclone Idols (American Idol for ISU), guest speakers, and a two hour parade, to name a few! Iowa State University’s large variety of international organizations puts on a huge International Food Fair, there’s also a Taste of VEISHEA, not to forget other fun activities like flag football, laser tag, and various basketball tournaments that make up a very small part of the week long event!
As if that wasn’t enough, the different college departments and student groups host various activities. Search for things at the scavenger hunt (hosted by the Agriculture & Life Sciences Student Council), tinker with the Cyclone Amateur Radio Club equipment (one of the oldest student groups on the ISU campus, it dates back to 1913), or purchase a hissing cockroach of your very own from the ISU Entomology Club – even the Wiki says the hissing cockroach is a popular pet! Who knew?
You know how important it is to make the college campus visit – why not make sure it’s a good one? There is no rule that says that you can only visit a college campus once. If you are having trouble narrowing down your list of colleges, why not make a second (or third), visit when something really big is going on, so you can associate with actual students and, like the case with VEISHEA, even the community. It might just be the perfect opportunity to see how you think you’ll fit in with the college — and the community — at large!
