Recruiting students, especially minority students, isn't as big of a problem as everybody thinks. Retaining them is. I really don't have a tangible solution to this, but this needs to be a collective effort by Iowa State, the city of Ames and the student body. Artistic and cultural events need to be supported better by the student body, and in return, they will be provided more often. The city of Ames, and more specifically the ISU campus, needs to grow more of an urban and trendy feel if we are going to recruit and hold students from Chicago, New York and Los Angeles.
Athletic success helps, too.
It's pretty hard to stick out your chest and brag to your friends about a Plant Sciences Institute, so having top-notch athletic teams will serve this purpose. Again, this should not be the first priority of Iowa State, but if we can have it happen within the context of our current priorities, we need to. Everything is easier when your teams win. Alumni want to give more, as if they're somehow helping the team, it gives people something to brag about to their friends, and national television exposure for games helps recruit students. Iowa State has the tools to become a better, if not the best, land-grant university.