Dance Marathon Research Paper

Summer Slininger When one is accepted to the University of Iowa, they become a part of a special community with a plethora of opportunity. One would not be fulfilling their duty as a Hawkeye if they never attended university events or joined at least one organization. The University of Iowa is a place to grow and the way to do this is through attending university and community events, or joining an organization. Attending campus and community events benefits not only the people running the events, but also the community itself and the person who is attending. I learned these things from attending a dancer meeting for Dance Marathon and an event in my dorm called “Floats for Votes” where I ran for the position of senator. The University of
Iowa Dance Marathon is a huge organization that aims to provide emotional and financial support for patients of the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital. Before even coming to campus, I knew that I wanted to get involved in this organization that clearly states their values and has done so many great things for children who are facing something worse than their worst nightmare, cancer. Knowing that I wanted to be involved in this organization, I signed up and attended the first dancer meeting on September 12th. This meeting was to get every member involved and educated on Dance Marathon! Attending this meeting really set up the vide for Dance Marathon and basically, everything is a party with a good cause in mind. At the meeting, we learned how to set up our giving pages, where the money we make goes, etc. We also learned of unique ways to raise money for the cause, such as hosting a garage sale or even posting embarrassing pictures in exchange for donations. When I first moved into my dorm, I heard a lot of people talking about the different positions one could hold within office at their dorms. Wanting to get involved, I decided to run for a position within my dorm and decided on the position of a senator. With running, I got to attend what was called “Floats for Votes.” At this event, Hillcrest supplied root beer floats in a lobby and allowed for all of the people who were running for a position in the dorm to create posters to advertise their campaign, get to know the other candidates and to also get to know the people who lived at Hillcrest and to let the residents know who they would be voting for. This event was a lot of fun and really allowed for me to connect with the people in my dorm. It was also nice to be with all of the different candidates, as a lot of our values and goals aligned, which is another reason that becoming a part of something is so great. Becoming a part of an organization allows for one to meet with people whose values are similar and who have common goals. Through attending events at the University of Iowa, I have learned firsthand that this university has everything one could possibly think of and if by chance they do not have what you are looking for, you can create your own club!
There are so many opportunities here to join amazing organizations and become part of something that is bigger than oneself. Next semester, I have quite a few organizations and events that I am planning to be a part of. First of all, the big event for Dance Marathon is on February 3rd and 4th. The big event is when students all come together for 24 hours to celebrate all of the fundraising and the hard work they have done all year, and besides that, they come together to celebrate the children who have survived cancer and to mourn the ones who have not. Within this 24-hour event, dancers are not allowed to sit or have any caffeine. Dancers are there to dance for those who cannot. The second organized that I am going to be a part of next semester is the University of Iowa’s Mobile Clinic. The Mobile Clinic is a year round clinic that travels around the surrounding areas of Iowa City to provide free health care to those who otherwise may just go without. I will be a volunteer at the clinic and will be there to help take vitals and check people into the clinic. This opportunity is amazing as I will be helping those who truly need it and cherish what we are doing. The third thing that I plan to do next semester is to volunteer at the University of
Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. I have begun the application process and plan to work within the psych tutoring unit. I am extremely excited about this opportunity to help out at the hospital that makes such an impact on the Iowa City community.