Olivia Dachtler and Maddy Luegering: University of Iowa

West Side Story: How long have you been friends?

Maddy Luegering: “We started being friends this year, so it was pretty recent. We had a Kirkwood class in the morning together and we had math class together. I’m in BPA and Olivia joined BPA so our paths just crossed more. I think we actually met in English 10 Honors.”

Olivia Dachtler: “I don’t remember that at all.”

ML: “We literally went to your house and watched a movie; you’re the worst.”

WSS: What about your personalities works well together?

OD: “I think we balance each other out. Maddy’s a lot more outgoing than I am so she’s gonna get me out of my shell. She’s a lot calmer so she helps keep me grounded, and I think we have a lot of the same morals and values. We both really want to do well in school and we’re rooming in the honors dorm so that we take school seriously. I think we have the same balance between wanting to have fun and take advantage of the opportunities we’re given in college.”

WSS: What made you two choose to be roommates?

ML: “Oh this is a funny story. There was this honors ceremony that Oliva went to and I didn’t go to. So I was just texting her afterward like, ‘How was it?’ and she was like ‘It was good. People weren’t weird, really.’ So we just got to talking about roommates and what we wanted for like maybe an hour, and we said the exact same thing. Olivia was like, ‘Oh I get really stressed out when my room is messy’ and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, me too’ and we just kept saying the same things, but neither of us wanted to take the step of saying we should room together. After like an hour and a half, I was finally like, ‘It’s totally fine if you don’t want to but I have a proposition. Maybe we should room together,’ and she was like, ‘Yes yes I was so stressed out about it.’”

OD: “I think we talked for two hours about it and went back and forth thinking, ‘Oh my gosh, I don’t know what to do. I don’t want someone who doesn’t want to have fun or is too focused on school or something like that.’ We obviously both wanted to ask to room together but neither of us wanted to actually ask the question. If she said no, we have to see each other all the time so it would be so weird. That’s why it took a while to make it official.”

ML: “Yeah until I grew some balls.”

WSS: Do you know what you’re planning on studying next year?

ML: “We’re both direct-admits into Tippie [College of Business], but I don’t know if I’m going to stay in it. I want to explore my options in there because I do like business but I also really like biology, or maybe there’s something out there I don’t know. So I’m super open, I’d just rather be in Tippie and move out if I don’t want [to be there] than to apply in my sophomore year.”

OD: “I’m kind of the same way because there are a lot of things that I’m interested in but I just thought it would be easiest to go straight into Tippie. Right now I’m thinking [about studying] business management and business analytics as a double major, but obviously when I get there I’m sure it will change.”

WSS: Do you think you’ll do very many of the same activities?

ML: “I feel like we will because we both want to rush and do that together so we have somebody to be outgoing with. I feel like we’re both kind of nervous about making new friends. We want to, but we’re nervous so having someone with you to go up and talk to new people will be really nice. I’m sure there will be activities that one of us does and the other doesn’t.”

OD: “I feel like we have a lot of the same interests so it’s not like I’m doing something because Maddy wants to do it or Maddy’s doing something because I want to do it. We just have a lot of the same values and morals so they converge.”

ML: “Yeah, they just overlap.”

WSS: What is one thing you admire about the other person and why?

OD: “Maddy is honestly the nicest person I’ve ever met. Even when I can tell from watching her that she’s pissed off at someone, she’s still so nice about it and I don’t understand. And it’s impossible to be mad at Maddy because she’s so nice and she’s just like a little bundle of joy.”

ML: “I love how driven Olivia is and there’s a lot of great things about Olivia. I’m sad that we didn’t meet earlier because I feel like we would have been really good friends throughout our entire high school career because we do just have a lot of the same things in common. But she’s super driven. She’s motivated to get work done and won’t just not do something because she doesn’t want to. Even if she doesn’t want to, she’ll still do it and make me do it which is good. She’s very bubbly and happy. I know she doesn’t think she is but I think she is. I love seeing her face every day.”

WSS: Are you planning to room together after this year?

OD: “I think we both want to be, as of now, in the same sorority. So if we are, then we’ll both probably live in the sorority house if that’s an option. I feel like they mix you up in there, but in the future, I don’t know, it depends on if Maddy snores and I can’t sleep I feel like I’ll never want to room with her again.”

ML: “I don’t snore!”

OD: “But yeah I’m super open to it.”

ML: “Yeah, same.”

WSS: Do you have anything else to add?

ML: “Our dorm is going to be Earth-toned.”

OD: “I think that’s what we’ve had the most fun with, is like talking about how we’re going to decorate our dorm and looking up pictures for it.”

ML: “We have a PowerPoint slideshow for it.”

OD: “Yeah we went a little over the top but it’s fine, we’re getting ready early.”

Allie Harvey and Lexi Moore: Iowa State University

WSS: How long have you been friends?

Lexi Moore: “We met each other a long time, I think in seventh grade.

Allie Harvey: “Through Top Dog Volleyball Club.”

LM: “Yeah, we weren’t super close at the time but last year we became friends again even though we weren’t super close and this year we just became super good friends.”

WSS: What about your personalities works well together?

AH: “We’re pretty good at reading each other. I feel like I’m good at noticing when you want to be left alone and I know when you’re annoyed.”

LM: “We kind of balance each other out a bit. Her mom, Liz, even said that we bring out the best in each other. We’re similar but also different.”

WSS: What made you two choose to be roommates?

AH: “Honestly, I was scared to find a random roommate because my mom was telling me about how she had a crappy roommate and she did random [assignment].”

LM: “My brother did too, he like stole a bunch of things from him and I was like ‘I’m not about to do that.’ I was also debating between a lot of schools so I told Allie that if I go to Iowa State then we should room together just because we always got along.”

AH: “And since we haven’t been close for a long time, we won’t hate each other. Probably.”

LM: “Fingers crossed.”

WSS: Do you know what you’re planning on studying next year?

LM: “I’m doing dietetics, which is just like the study of nutrition and the science behind foods.”

AH: “And I’m going into software engineering.”

WSS: Do you think you’ll do very many of the same activities?

LM: “Well we both want to join sororities because they’ve got a big Greek system [at Iowa State].”

AH: “Yeah we’re both planning on rushing.”

LM: “And I know I want to join a ton of clubs, maybe not first semester so I can get acclimated and whatnot, but I do think we’ll join a lot of clubs together.”

AH: “I’m really shy. Like I’m not shy when I’m with [Lexi] or someone but when I’m by myself it can just be hard to meet new people. So I probably will join a lot of the same clubs as [Lexi] but I don’t know if we’re going to be in the same sorority.”

WSS: What is one thing you admire about the other person and why?

LM: “Allie overall has a really easy-going personality and she’s easy to talk to. I feel like we can relate a lot and she’s just cool. We just get along really well.”

AH: “I really admire that you’re loyal. You include me and always make me feel like you want to be friends with me.”

LM: “Of course I do.”

WSS: Are you planning to room together after this year?

LM: “We already have plans for that. When Allie was visiting Iowa State on her own—wait you tell it.”

AH: “We found this really nice apartment and my mom was like ‘Oh you and Lexi could totally live there junior year; it’s so nice with a great price!’ And I know after freshman year I might want to live in the [sorority] house for at least a year so I guess it depends if we end up in the same [sorority].”

WSS: Do you have anything else to add?

LM: “I wanted to add on that she’s really good at dealing with me. Whenever I’m being crazy she’s just like ‘Lex, let’s calm down now,’ and it’s really been helpful.”

AH: “Aw, thank you.”

Diego Rivera and Jake Greenlee: University of Iowa

WSS: How long have you been friends?

Diego Rivera: “Was it [Mrs.] Gardner’s class?”

Jake Greenlee: “I think that we knew each other since pre-school since your mom taught me Spanish at Montessori [Preschool], but the first time we ever talked as friends was probably third grade.”

DR: “Yeah so a long time.”

JG: “Yeah I remember making fun of you in like first and second grade with everyone else. They’d always say like, ‘Go, Diego, go,’ and then you switched your name to Omar.”

WSS: What about your personalities works well together?

DR: “I think we’re close enough friends that in the back of our minds we know we can always have genuine interactions but we can hang with other people and be alright with that. One thing that I’ve always heard about people rooming with their best friends is that they’re the only people they hang out with and that limits their social interactions in college. But I don’t think that’s gonna be a huge issue because we’re our own independent people.”

JG: “Our personalities aren’t identical which is good because I feel like you’d definitely get burnt out of yourself and the other person if it was like that. He’s a lot more outgoing than I am and we both understand our differences and can play it by ear no matter what.”

WSS: What made you two choose to be roommates?

DR: “I just think that we bond in a really stupid way. Just that living environment of being simultaneously so comfortable in your own skin and being around another person is just so nice, especially in college when you’re transitioning into caring less and less about everything but also I care more about everything. So it’s just nice to have someone, even if you’re literally just, at three in the morning, like, ‘Hey, you wanna go get some Taco Bell?’ like having a person to do that with is nice.”

JG: “I think you just asked me and I was like, ‘Ok.’ It wasn’t really so big, but it’s probably just because we’ve known each other so long.”

WSS: Do you know what you’re planning on studying next year?

JG: “I am planning on double-majoring in music and engineering. I’m undecided on what engineering and my music is just a Bachelor of Arts because I found a lot more passion in music this year than I have any other time and it’s something I want to continue.”

DR: “So it’s still changing, like always, but the main things I’m kind of set on are a BBA [Bachelor of Business Administration] in business analytics and a BS [Bachelor of Science] in mathematics. Then, I’m considering adding a third major in either international relations or anthropology, just purely because I’m really into studying the movement of people and the way they think and why they think the way they do.”

WSS: Do you think you’ll do very many of the same activities?

DR: “The way I see it is when you’re living with someone, in particular, your friend, it’s like you’re living together but ultimately you’re still going to college. You’re your own independent person and you’re there to find your own pursuits because in a short amount of time you’re going to be doing your own stuff. For the most part, I’m gonna do what I want and whatever I reside at, I’m there. If we end up crossing paths it’s cool, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned in the past year is never do something because another person you want to be with is also there.”

JG: “I agree with that because I realized that a lot of the things I do, I do it because I want to and not because I think that it would be a fun way to hang out with my friends. There’s a lot of time for that anyway because it’s not like I’m going to strictly be some nerd that sits in my room all day and needs a friend to accompany me while I study. I’ll join whatever activities I feel like doing and I want to get involved with everything, so if we end up doing the same things so be it, but I’m not going to go out with the intention of being ‘Mr. Omar’s best friend’ 24/7.”

WSS: What is one thing you admire about the other person and why?

JG: “I definitely can say that throughout my experience with him since third grade, he’s been a driven individual, whether it be at Guitar Hero or mathematics in the Bizhub [business library at the University of Iowa] until seven in the morning. If he puts his mind to something, he can definitely get it done. He always has the ability to take energy from nowhere and use it to do what he wants to do.”

DR: “Similarly with you, I think you have this really cool … quantitative ability I admire a lot. With you, I’ve just always admired how talented you are within different fields, whether it be music or math or just trying out different sports. I think you’ve explored a lot, extracurricular-wise. I think that’s really cool because I feel like that’s one thing I lacked in high school and you can continue that in college.”

WSS: Are you planning to room together after this year?

DR: “I don’t know.”

JG: “Yeah, I don’t know. We’ll still be friends no matter what, but rooming together I don’t know.”

DR: “That’s a good question because ultimately, college is a changing thing. I don’t know what I’m gonna want to do or financially what I’m going to be about to do. My own living space would be cool outside of the dorms, but you don’t know where you’re gonna be a year from today.”

JG: “If we had a crystal ball to see everything, I don’t know if I’d even want to know. I’d rather just go with the flow and see what happens, and not have it be a determined future. It adds some spice to life.”

WSS: Do you have anything else to add?

JG: “I hope we don’t die.”

DR: “Or if we do die I hope it’s something cool because I don’t want to die in a lame way. I just think it’s going to be a fun experience, ultimately, just having our own living space and hang and do whatever and be able to meet new people with it. That’s just one of the key things.”