The human welcome mat

Stuffing bags

Cyclone Aides -- those versatile, energetic undergraduates who help all year with new student programs -- were preparing 6,000 string bags Monday morning for freshmen and transfer students participating in Destination Iowa State Thursday through Saturday. Director of new student programs Liz Kurt said just under 5,200 new students are registered for Destination Iowa State (DIS), up 18 percent from a year ago.

Kurt's staff recruited another 415 team leaders – returning students who each will guide a group of about a dozen new students through DIS events.

New students living on campus move in Tuesday or Wednesday. Destination Iowa State events open at 5 p.m. Thursday with an outdoor picnic and a large-group session at Hilton Coliseum. It concludes Saturday night with a Hilton performance by comedian Michael Palascak and "Cyclone Sweep" – a private two hours of late-night shopping at the Ames Target store.

Kurt noted that not all new students participate in Destination Iowa State; they're too busy.

"Students are doing other things to get connected – and that's good," she said. For example, students involved in marching band, Greek recruiting, a Cyclone athletics team or an ROTC program, have other demands on their time this week. Photo by Bob Elbert.