Making Moves with Utah Dance Marathon Programs
This year was a record year for Children’s Miracle Network Hospital (CMNH) Dance Marathon programs in the state of Utah. Prior to 2018, there had not been an established Dance Marathon program housed at any University in the state. This was a year of growth for the Dance Marathon programs that benefit Primary Children’s Hospital.
Weber State University was the first to establish and execute a program. Their inaugural event was held on Saturday, April 7th. This program required each participant to fundraise $50 before attending their event. They also creatively rewarded the largest team participation with funding from their Student Government. The program ran for six hours and resulted in their students raising over $11,000 for the kids. This groundbreaking success laid the pathway for other universities in the state to flourish.
.@WeberStudents are incredible! They partnered with @CMNHospitals for a six-hour #DanceMarathon, raising more than $11,000 for @PrimaryChildren’s Hospital. #JustWeber #WeberState (Photos by @GUALA17UTAH and @BooBoo_Bell) pic.twitter.com/T5fp0IY21Q
— Weber State Univ. (@WeberStateU) April 8, 2018
Next came Utah State University. Utah State hosted their inaugural program on Saturday, November 17th. Students were hard at work raising awareness, dollars, and enthusiasm for this newly established program on their campus. They participated in the CMNH registration challenge on Child Health Day (a challenge aimed to register the most individuals in one day for a first-year program) – and they won! You can check their video here. Their program ran for 8 hours and brought in over $15,000.
We raised a grand total of $15,025.85!! Thank you to all the fundraisers, donors, sponsors, volunteers, and guests for making this debut USU event possible! #ForTheKids ?
— USU Aggiethon (@USUAggiethon) November 18, 2018
This year was also the first time Utah had attended the Dance Marathon Leadership conference. Delegates from Primary Children’s Hospital, Weber State University, and Utah State University attended and left with inspiration and best practices to implement from other programs across the country.
Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals also selected the University of Utah to pilot their Acquisition Team program. CMNH staff visited the campus hosting informational sessions for interested students, they set up social media accounts and content to spread awareness, and eventually interviews for candidates for the Executive Board. CMNH staff supported the students as they stepped into these new roles providing them materials and guidance every step of the way. The University of Utah is on track to produce their first event in Spring of 2019 with their eyes set on the goal of being the largest Dance Marathon program in the state.