Well hey! I’m Kelly Wynveen, the COA for good ‘ol New England. Technically I get to help out with the schools in Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire! I’m a student at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts where we’ve been ONE ing it up on campus.
I have been interning with ONE since this summer and loving every minute of it. I also love candy, hot weather, and lakes. I’m thinking someday I can combine all of my loves and make poverty history. It’s not just a slogan…it can be done and we have the power to help make it happen.
Thirty electrified students at Andrew P. Hill High School in San Jose, CA are determined to see an end to extreme poverty and disease in their lifetime. Ms. Parker’s English class joined the ONE family this year as they decided to look outside themselves for their senior class project and adopt The ONE Campaign as their focal point. When I visited their school to help them get started, I was pleasantly surprised to hear about their progress and plan.
Teens Working as ONE, or Club TWO as they refer to themselves, presented a slide-show they’d prepared for an informational pot-luck. With family and friends as their audience, a fifteen minute presentation introduced members of their community to issues surrounding extreme poverty, HIV/AIDS, TB, and Malaria. During our time together, we built on these conversations and brainstormed ideas to include their peers and surrounding community. Since my visit, I’ve learned Teens Working as ONE has organized themselves into smaller committees, ranging from events to public relations; they’ve set their own timetable of activities to accomplish through the remainder of the school year; and they have already started weekly tabling events in their community.
Equally as exciting is how the ONE Campus Challenge allows these graduating seniors to keep tabs on activities of the university or college they will attend. It also lays a path for them to continue their work with ONE next year. In the meantime, AWESOME job Club TWO! We look forward to hearing about your work in San Jose in the weeks ahead.
Hey guys! I’m Melissa, the Campus Outreach Ambassador for Idaho and Montana. I’m a junior at Washington State University – Vancouver, majoring in Social Sciences and getting a certificate in Social and Environmental Justice. This is my first year as a COA, as well as my first year as a campus leader for WSU-V. Last year I took Clark College (also located in Vancouver, Washington) into the Top 100 with just a few days to spare before the Power 100 Summit announcement. The Summit was a great experience and I’m really looking forward to getting to meet with the Top 100 leaders again in February.
I originally got involved with the ONE Campaign at a Coldplay Concert in 2005, though I’d heard of the campaign before that. I signed up, wore my bracelet until it broke, and spent a lot of time on the website, trying to find a way I could do something. After graduating from high school and spending six months in cold Cheney, Washington, I came back to Vancouver and joined the ranks of other Penguins at Clark College. I learned about the Campus Challenge a few weeks into my second official year of school, and signed up. The Washington COA contacted me to be the campus leader, and I was on my way to the Power 100!
The ONE Campaign, for me, is one of the greatest things I’ve ever been involved in. The fact that all of these students, all across the country, can get together like we can and change so much (just look at the stats from last year!) is really impressive. I’m excited to see everything that we do this year. Keep up the great work, OCC-ers!
-Melissa Boles, Washington State University – Vancouver, ID & MT COA
Sometimes we in the DC Office forget what an amazing city we live in. Watch Emily, Chris, and me play DC tourists and check out our favorite monuments and memorials for the day.
Before the US presidential election, On Day One asked ONE’s CEO and President David Lane to submit a video about what ONE hopes the next president will accomplish during his term(s) in office. Today we’re happy to announce that his video is one of nine videos selected as one of the favorite poverty ‘ideas’ of the year.
You can watch the video below, and cast your vote for favorite video here. The winner will have their ideas presented to President-elect Barack Obama, and voting ends in 12 days.
Thank you to members of ONE for making a difference! ONE supporters have teamed up with hundreds of other U.S. Global Leadership Campaign members to urge Members of Congress to sign letters to the President-Elect in support of a robust FY10 International Affairs Budget request. The tens of thousands of calls, letters and e-mails are making a significant difference. In just three weeks, 189 Members of Congress (48 Senators and 141 Representatives) have agreed to sign these critically important letters.
The deadline for Members of Congress to sign the letters is December 12 and we are in the home stretch! We urge ONE supporters to continue your outstanding efforts to let your Senators and Representatives know that you care about U.S. international affairs programs critical to alleviating global poverty, combating infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria, providing hope to millions of less fortunate people and restoring America’s image abroad. It is important that Congress demonstrates strong bipartisan support for these essential programs.
ONE supporters in key states – Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia – can make a real difference by contacting your Senators and Representatives and urge them to sign the letters. Don’t delay, the deadline is approaching fast!
Hey everyone! Well, my name is Tomas Moreno and I am the COA for North and South Carolina! I am a sophomore Sociology and Economics double major with a minor in Government and a Concentration in African/African-American Studies here at Wofford College. I am originally from Modesto, CA so I’m a LONG way from home!
I first heard about the ONE Campaign as a Junior in High School when a girl (who I may have had a crush on) gave me my ONE Bracelet and told me to get involved. So, I looked it up and figured out that it was something I wanted to get involved with.
Then last year, my college declared itself a ONE Campus and said that they needed somebody to head up the campaign. I worked with one of my friends, eventually taking the help of our ONE organization last year.
This year though, I wanted to step it up! So, I jumped when Maisie asked last year’s Power 100 attendees if any of them wanted to be COAs. AND I GOT IT!
Outside of ONE I am a crazy involved person, I work with Oxfam America as a CHANGE Leader (taking apps starting Jan!), I am an RA on a freshman hall, I am head of our spirit group The Dog Pack, I am part of Alpha Phi Omega, and I give tours and tele-market for the college. So, I do a lot but i love it all and wouldn’t have it any other way!
If you would like to talk about how you can get further involved, expand your campaign, or anything at all, please contact me! I LOVE to help!
P.S. Wofford is a school of about 1350 students and we’re in the Top 10. If we can do it, so can you!
This is it. We’re officially announcing the top schools invited to attend the Power 100 Summit this February in Washington, D.C. See if your school made the list.
The Power 100 Summit is an amazing experience. Campus Leaders from the 100 top schools will get transportation and most expenses paid for three days in our nation’s capitol. They’ll hear from top members of the global poverty movement, influential members of the Democratic and Republican parties, and ONE staff. And new this year, we’ll be visiting Congressional offices for a full day of hands-on advocacy training.
Last year’s Power 100 Summit speakers included global poverty experts Steve Radelet and Gene Sperling, Former Senator Majority leader Bill Frist, Democratic strategist Paul Begala, First Daughter Jenna Bush, and of course Doug and Graham Walker, the founders of “The Official Rock Paper Scissors Strategy Guide.” We can’t announce all of this year’s speakers just yet, but we know it’s going to be a pretty impressive list. Find out if your school made the cut.
Congratulations to the top 100 qualifying schools! From here on in, everything changes.
World AIDS Day will be your last weekly challenge for the semester, so get your reports in before this Sunday at midnight. After that, OCC is going low-key for a while—to coincide with your holiday break. We’ll be back in January with action alerts and updates about the Power 100.
In the meantime, the points still count, and you’re going to want to rack them up through submitting actions because we’ll still be looking for the top 10 to advance to the final phase of OCC. The top 10 schools in March will get $1,000 each to fund anti-poverty projects on their campuses. Last year, the school with the best project got an exclusive Grand Prize concert with free admission, and ONE gear, (RED) iPods, Converse shoes and gift certificates as extra prizes. This year’s grand prize is going to be even better, and it’s still anybody’s game. So keep those point submissions coming.
Hey all! I’m Jessica Beckner and I’m a junior at Indiana University in Bloomington, IN and the COA for Illinois. I’ve been studying Anthropology and History so far, but who knows what the future holds or where I’ll be in a few years! I was born in Atlanta, moved to Johnson City, Tennessee at the ripe old age of 4 months, then moved back to Atlanta after 7 years before finally settling in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
I first heard about the ONE Campaign about four years ago after seeing a commercial on TV. It sparked my interested at the time, and when I got to college, my freshman year found me ready to take on the new opportunities I had in front of me! Towards the end of the year I contacted the Student Coordinator at the time, Erin Eagan, who told me they were in the process of creating something just for college campuses. The OCC was created the next school year, which I was totally unaware of until I stumbled across it one day in mid-December.
I asked Erin about it and she told me that Indiana University was actually in the Power 100 so far, and asked me if I would like to take on the role of the student leader. I agreed, and her reply in the next email left me stunned, telling me that I’d basically won a free trip to DC just for my commitment! A moment of “wait…is this actually real??” flashed through my mind, but sure enough I was on a plane to DC two weeks later! IU was only #98 in the Power 100, but attending the Summit and meeting people who have worked for eradicating poverty through the government as well as talking to other leaders gave me tons of ideas on how to get going on campus. So I can back energized, and sent out a mass email asking for recruits. I had a great response, and we’ve now formed a close bond and really enjoy working together to spread the word about poverty!
Outside of ONE, I really enjoy singing, being crazy, road trips, learning new music, being on or by the water (basically just being
outside) drawing, deep talks, music of all kinds, art & photography, learning people’s passions, food, CFC, Arizona, basketball, soccer, tennis, waterskiing, people from cool places, anything to do with Africa and/or saving the world, Camp Birch Trail, and dreaming of the day i get the guts to drop out of school and become a rock star
I’m really looking forward to meeting the Power 100’s in a few months, and I hope everyone keeps up the hard work they’ve been putting in to the OCC so far! Perseverance does pay off, and just because you may not actually SEE firsthand the effect you’re having, that doesn’t mean it’s not happening! My cousin Austin was killed in the Virginia Tech shootings, but she had a favorite quote she felt applied to how we should all view humanity. I’ve now applied to myself as my “life quote” and I’d like to leave you with it: “No one can do everything, but everyone can do something. And if everyone does something, then together we can change the world.”
Tomorrow we’ll be announcing the Power 100 — the top 100 schools on our leaderboard whose Campus Leaders will be invited to attend an elite 3-day conference in Washington, DC beginning on February 7, 2009.
The Power 100 Summit is an amazing experience. 100 Campus Leaders will get transportation and most expenses paid for three days in our nation’s capitol. They’ll hear from top members of the global poverty movement, influential members of the Democratic and Republican parties, and ONE staff. Oh, and new this year, we’ll be visiting Congressional offices for a full day of hands-on advocacy training.
Last year’s Power 100 Summit speakers included global poverty experts Steve Radelet and Gene Sperling, Former Senator Majority leader Bill Frist, Democratic strategist Paul Begala, First Daughter Jenna Bush, and of course Doug and Graham Walker, the founders of “The Official Rock Paper Scissors Strategy Guide.” We can’t announce all of this year’s speakers just yet, but we know it’s going to be a pretty impressive list.
Tonight is your last chance to rack up points to make the Power 100. See where your school stands on our leaderboard, and if your school doesn’t have a leader, contact us to secure your spot at the Summit by becoming a Campus Leader.
The OCC Blog is a daily log of the ONE Campus Challenge, a friendly competition to determine which university's student body has the most effective global poverty-fighting campaign. The site is operated by ONE staff, Campus Outreach Ambassadors (COAs), and Campus Leaders.
The content of each post represents the views of that post's author and does not necessarily reflect the views of ONE. ONE does not support or oppose any candidate for elected office, and any post expressing support or opposition for a candidate is not endorsed by ONE.
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