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UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA CEDAR FALLS, IA THURSDAY, APRIL 5 VOLUME 114, ISSUE 42
CEDAR FALLS, IA
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2023
VOLUME 120, ISSUE 4
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
OPINION
An active sorority member compares UNI sorority recruitment and Alabama Rush. SEE PAGE 5
CAMPUS LIFE
Fraternity Kappa Sigma supports veterans on a national and local level. SEE PAGE 6
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION/STEPH STARK, CATHERINE CROW, EMILY EAVES
NOAH HACKBART Staff Writer
Last week, enrollment numbers for the University of Northern Iowa were released, and after years of pandemic and post-pandemic decreases, the numbers are finally on the rise. Reporting from the university shows total fall 2023 enrollment up at 9,021 with sizable increases in freshman and transfer student populations. These numbers show the biggest increase in enrollment in over ten years. Last week, the Northern Iowan sat down with Director of University Relations, Pete Moris, to discuss these promising new numbers, what they mean, and other
SEE PAGE 11
With Enrollment having increased, what are the administrative team’s feelings about the new numbers? “Number one, we are extremely thankful for students and their families for choosing UNI. We are grateful for those who put their faith in us that we are the college home for their students. Number
two, it’s not the end, it’s just the next step on the journey. We’ve taken a lot of thought and planning to adjust our academic offerings. We continue to be strong in those traditional areas that we are known for whether it’s music, education, or business, but with nursing coming on board next fall, we’ve got our new College of Health and Human Sciences. We’ve also got some new engineering degrees, so we have really listened to the needs of Iowa students and employers who are telling us about areas of need and demand.”
For the last few years enrollment has been on the decline, especially coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. How did UNI turn that around? “There’s a great appetite for students to get back on campus and experience college life. It’s hard to quantify the sense of community we have at UNI. It’s hard to quantify in numbers. The one number we do know is that we had a 7.5% increase in the number of students who signed contracts to live on campus.” See ENROLLMENT, page 2
The entire state of Iowa camping hammock during the Taylor Fundermann experiDorm residents experienced sweltering heat the particularly hot days. enced increased stress related first week of classes, with temto the heat. “It was better outside than resorted to sleeping peratures reaching their peak it is inside 100%,” he noted. See NO AC, page 2 outside, faced med- at 105 degrees on Wednesday, Spurgeon would move his Aug. 23. Six of UNI’s ten hammock every night and ical emergencies dorms do not have air con- bring a light blanket along with ditioning: Rider, Hagemann, during late-August Schull, Noehren, Dancer and him.“It was like Where’s Waldo, According to Annie but where was Oscar sleeping heat wave Bender. Karr, the Associate Director tonight,” he added. When the
Executive Editor
Football falls in home opener against Weber State, 34-17.
topics related to the upcoming school year. More information about enrollment and students can be found online at UNI’s Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning or online at InsideUNI.
Students without AC desperate for relief
CAROLINE CHRISTENSEN
SPORTS
Highest enrollment jump in over decade
For transfer student and Dancer resident Makenna Arbogast, her numerous fans were in full blast to stave off the stifling heat brought on by the record breaking heat wave during the first week of classes. “Throughout the whole week I was excessively sweating,” Arbogast said. “I also had to sleep in the lounge for a couple nights because I had to get some sleep somehow.”
of Marketing for University Housing & Dining (UHD), “UHD sent out an email to all residential students living in non-air conditioned buildings about the various places they had access 24/7 to find relief from the heat. Additionally, we allowed students to sleep in air conditioned spaces throughout the buildings.” Given the excessive heat, many students living in these dorm halls found creative ways to keep cool. For freshman Noehren resident Oscar Spurgeon, he decided to sleep outside in his
sun rose, he would pack up his hammock, shower in the dorms and head to class. Freshman Rider resident Olivia Walley froze paper towels to keep cool, while sophomore Dancer resident Kaya Baca used cold showers, ice packs and fans. Although Baca grew up with no air conditioning, she admitted the heat and humidity of those first couple weeks made it difficult to cope. For many residents, the heat exacerbated the stress and uncertainty of navigating the first week of college. Freshman Hagemann resident
MALLORY SCHMITZ
As temperatures reached 105 degrees Aug. 23, students in nonair-conditioned dorms like Bender Hall relied on opening windows and placing fans throughout their rooms. Many still did not find relief, adding to first-week stresses.