New IU student blog aims to relay college experiences

The new website We Are IU was launched this school year to give prospective students a chance to learn about IU through the eyes of current students.

The site administrators sent an email to all current undergraduates and said they have about 100 students who write for them on a regular basis, which means they submit a story about once a week.

Jay Steele, administrator and IU graduate, said employees of Compendium, the company that helps the website with technology, were astounded at how many students wanted to contribute. Out of 400 clients, WeareIU.com became a top-10 client less than a month after it started.

“It’s a testimony to IU students and a direct reflection of the passion and enthusiasm they have,” Steele said. “The number one thing potential students want to hear from is current students.”

He said the site receives about 10 new stories and 600 to 700 visitors each day.
“It’s a way for us to capture different stories in one place,” Steele said. “They’re organic stories, not just stuff we’re making up. IU students are passionate about IU.”

Director of Interactive Communication in the Office of Enrollment Management Laura Wisley said she likes to be able to read stories that students write about professors and classes.

“As a staff person, as I’m reading stories, I feel closer to the students here. I find myself laughing and smiling,” she said. “The quality of things they write impressed me from day one.”

Megan Freeman, a December 2011 IU graduate and site administrator, said she learned most of what she knew about IU before she came to campus through
other people.

“It would have been such a gift to have a resource like this, to understand what college is like,” Freeman said. “Some of the experience they talk about blows my mind. It makes me proud to be a Hoosier.”

Steele said some students have offered dorm-room recipes such as “nutella mud cake.”

“Hundreds of stories can build a picture of academics, dorm life and student life,” Steele said. “It starts to capture the whole thing.”

Students who write for the website each have individual author accounts through which they submit stories. Each story is reviewed before it is officially posted.

“We’re not changing stories or removing things,” Wisley said. “We’re moderating it but not editing content.”

She said students should be respectful, not use bad language or reference any illegal activity.

Freeman said students usually use good judgment, and in instances when site management has had to speak with students, the students have been cooperative.
In addition to writing, students can add photos and video to the site, either as a regular or intermittent poster.

She said one recurring theme is that students often write “if only I had known” stories.
“The great thing about the content is that it applies to any college freshman,” Wisley said.

One of Freeman’s stories, “Ten Things I Wished I Had Realized In College,” is one of the top-five most-viewed stories.

Steele pointed out the website is not under an indiana.edu subdomain. He said students sometimes don’t believe the stories told by students if they are on an institution’s website.

“We want to build it so prospective students don’t have to be concerned with that,” Steele said.

Wisley said she hopes the site will receive contributions from staff, faculty, parents and alumni in the future.   

Freshman Lindsay Stone said part of the reason she decided to contribute to We Are IU was to keep track of her experiences. She said she has written about the IU Cinema, the opera, a leadership program she has been involved in and the reason she came to IU.

“I really enjoyed posting about tips for freshman year,” she said. “I like sharing that kind of helpful information.”

She said her mom sends her stories to colleagues who have children who are seniors in high school.

“You really get a broad perspective because all of our experiences are different,” she said. “I have a lot of things I’m interested in. I just wanted to try to have the best experience I could. There’s really no excuse to be bored on campus.”

Echoing Stone’s sentiments, Freeman said she wished she would have joined more clubs and organizations on campus.

She said her friends who are alumni miss many things about Bloomington and IU and that after graduating last semester, she was not ready to leave IU.

“My Hoosier pride this year is as strong as ever,” she said. “It’s been a really fun experience for me so far. It’s been a neat opportunity to reflect and put down in stone what I love about IU and Bloomington.”