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Jagathon takes national honors at Dance Marathon Leadership Conference

For Immediate Release Jul 23, 2018
A large group of students with trophies.
Jagathon received the national Partnership Award for building relationships between the IUPUI Office of Undergraduate Admissions and local high schools.Photo courtesy of Jagathon

INDIANAPOLIS – Jagathon, IUPUI’s dance marathon, received a pair of national awards at the Children’s Miracle Network Hospital’s Dance Marathon Leadership Conference. The student organization, which raises money for Riley Hospital for Children at Indiana University Health, earned the Partnership and Organization Management awards.

“It is an honor for Jagathon to be recognized with a national award at the Dance Marathon Leadership Conference,” said Shelbie Walker, president of Jagathon and senior chemistry major. “To be the selected recipient of two national awards out of more than 300 universities shows that Jagathon is growing and continues to make strides in doing all that we can to fund pediatric research and benefit the kids at Riley Hospital for Children.”

The Partnership Award recognizes the CMNH dance marathon organization that demonstrated the most collaborative and mutually beneficial relationship. Jagathon was honored for its work with the IUPUI Office of Undergraduate Admissions and area high schools.

Jagathon developed a program to mentor high school dance marathons. As part of that relationship last year, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions sponsored each high school dance marathon with a monetary gift, designed a Snapchat filter for each school and provided a fee waiver to any participating student applying to IUPUI. In turn, the prospective students were able to meet with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions while showing what they could accomplish academically and philanthropically at IUPUI.

“The partnership between high schools and the admissions office ensures the longevity of Jagathon and of the high school programs. By providing monetary support, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions is not only supporting financial goals but also saying it cares about what we are doing and wants to be a part of it,” Walker said. “The partnership encourages high school students to attend IUPUI, providing a pipeline of dance marathon experience that will continue to foster the growth of Jagathon for years to come.”

The Organization Management Award recognizes the CMNH dance marathon organization that demonstrated success in the following areas: effective executive board and committee structure, defined organizational values, balanced organizational calendar, systems for member accountability, education and training opportunities for the committee, effective office transition processes, and organized budget and fundraising tracking processes.

To earn this award, Jagathon developed a membership division within its structure, created detailed transition plans for each executive board position and created an operational plan outlining the strategic goals for each executive board role.

It was the second consecutive year the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals recognized Jagathon for its success. Jagathon received the 2017 Miracle Maker Award at last year’s conference as the university with the highest combined monetary and percentage increases in its division’s overall funding over the previous year.

Jagathon raised a record $501,371.24 at its dance marathon in March, topping the half-million mark for the first time in program history. It was the seventh consecutive year Jagathon had set a fundraising record.

The largest student-run philanthropic organization on campus, Jagathon is part of the IUPUI Student Foundation. It encourages students to serve their community by gaining experience in planning and executing campuswide events. The next Jagathon dance marathon is scheduled for March 2-3, 2019.

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Becky Hart

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