WAVERLY - Almost 1,000 Wartburg College students marched across campus early Wednesday to protest concerns ranging from the quality of services offered at the 'W' recreation center to the rising price tag of an education at the private institution.

The group gathered outside the on-campus home of Interim President William Hamm at 6:30 a.m., and planted small flags listing their complaints in the grass outside Luther Hall.

"Student Senate has been trying for several years to get the administration to talk about these issues, but they're just not listening," said sophomore Lacey Stonehocker. "People are upset and we just want to be heard."

Hamm issued the following statement: " As you know by now, many of our students respectfully gathered on my lawn today at 6:30 a.m. to demand/announce a spring 'Outfly for a Cause.' We always brag about our students' college spirit, and this was a pretty impressive demonstration of it.

"We will address the issues outlined in the memo from Student Body President Travis Bockenstedt and his senate colleagues. Some of the issues we've been working on with students; others are new to me. Many of the issues are complex and not unique to Wartburg College. Administrators nationwide are grappling with the need to limit tuition increases, while upgrading facilities; cutting costs, while maintaining the integrity of academic programs."

Other complaints outlined by the student group include the condition of residence halls, the college's environmental practices, faculty workloads, services for international students and the effectiveness of professor evaluations. Over the past week, 1,377 of the college's roughly 1,800 students signed a petition asking school administrators to address the students' issues.

The protest came on a day - dubbed "Outfly" - that has been set aside at Wartburg in previous years for service work. The holiday was not included in this year's spring semester academic calendar, and Hamm told students that classes would still be held Wednesday.

Stonehocker, a music major, said she was impressed by the turnout.

"It was amazing," she said. "I know some people were there for the wrong reasons, but there were a lot of people who were there for the right reasons.

"We just really want to be noticed. You don't crawl out of bed that early in the morning for no reason."

Contact Mary Stegmeir at (319) 291-1482 or at mary.stegmeir@wcfcourier.com