-Emily

What challenges did you face as you were starting your ONE group?

Since Hofstra is such a big campus, the hardest part of starting our ONE chapter was getting the word out to all of the students and getting them interested in coming out to our meetings. Also, our school was very activism-oriented already so a lot of the people who were interested in our group already had meetings at the same time for clubs like Progressive Students Union. It was difficult to tailor to everyone’s schedule.

How did you use your individual strengths/demographic to reach out to others, form your group or complete a particular action?

I found that the best way to get people interested in our club when we were facing these challenges was through personal interaction. I would walk up to a table in the student center and tell students what our group was all about and ask them to sign up for the OCC. People are more likely to listen to a person than take the time to read a flier.

What advice do you have for someone who is just getting started leading a group on their campus?

My best advice would be to always keep it fun. We have to remember that we are trying to change the world in a positive way, and focusing on that positive change is so important. We need to know the facts about global poverty in order to fight it, and sometimes the facts can be depressing, and people try to avoid things that are upsetting. So if you keep your focus on how their help will do GOOD in this world, people will become more engaged and excited about your cause.

How did you deal with bureaucracy at your school?

This was one of our toughest challenges once we became an established group on campus. Unfortunately our school can be quite unorganized when it comes to events management, so for most events we held there would be some last minute complication like Events Management giving the same space at the same time to two different clubs. We were also limited in what we could actually do in terms of creativity because there is a lot of red tape at Hofstra. If your school gives you a lot of freedom, I would recommend getting as creative as possible and putting up large displays that will attract students. If your school is similar to mine where there are a lot of borders you must stay within, do your best to get the administration on your side and get as creative as you are allowed.

Why do you think it is important for students to start these groups?

College students should recognize what a powerful voice they have when they come together to accomplish something. Campuses are a great setting to educate a large group of people who will potentially go on to make big changes in the world. There are numerous opportunities for activism on a college campus so it is a great place to start a group like ONE.

Did you have any school funds to work with? If yes, how did you face any challenges with restrictions on those funds? In not, how did you deal with not having funds?

We had to go through Student Government to get funds for our club. It was a difficult process because you had to have your exact outline for what you needed the money for in order to get it, and this made things like OCC weekly challenges difficult. By the time we know what the weekly challenge was, it was too late to request the money from SGA. Also, when we would raise money at events we would always donate all of it to organizations like Keep a Child Alive and a school in Kenya that we have been working with and we would never keep any of the money for our own club. This made it more difficult to hold events in the future. My advice would be to hold some small fundraising events that are specifically for your club funding so that when you hold an event for a charity you can give them all of the money you raised at that event.

How did you balance OCC activities with other commitments?

Between running a club, working two jobs and a full course load, it was sometimes difficult to micromanage everything. I was able to balance everything because I had a very strong e-board that made it easy to delegate tasks. It’s important to make sure that everyone is contributing to setting up events and getting people to join the OCC.

How did you market your club? Did you have any issues competing with organizations with similar missions?

Besides word of mouth we utilized fliers, advertisements, radio interviews and tabling in the student center to market our club. We tried our best to work with clubs with similar missions rather than compete with them. Holding events where clubs with similar goals co-sponsor is a great way to get everyone involved, have more help, and get more people to come to the event. The only difficulty was finding a meeting time that didn’t interfere with any of these similar clubs.

What kept you going when you were really busy or really frustrated?

The cause itself is enough to keep you going through the hard times. When you start getting frustrated about little things when you are coordinating events, you have to stop and think about why you are doing all of this in the first place. Doing this will refocus and inspire you to stay positive and focus on the end goal rather than the obstacles you face along the way.

Did you find any shortcuts?

Unfortunately Hofstra doesn’t really have any shortcuts, you really have to run back and forth from office to office to get anything accomplished. There is a lot of paperwork to get through. There are no shortcuts with advertising either. The more you work to get the word out, the better your chances of having a good turnout.

What was your group’s most creative idea?

My chapter once held a table in the student center where we had free food and water. Students who walked up to our table had to pick the name of an impoverished country out of a hat, and however much an average family had in that country to spend on food for the whole family was how much food the student could take from the table. We used the ploy of free food to attract people to our table and then they learned something important from the experience. A lot of people signed up for the One Campus Challenge that day.

In five steps, what do you think leaders need to do to get started?

First, find at least one person who wants to start the club with you. This will make getting started a lot easier. Second, set up a time for weekly meetings and tell anyone you can about it (in person, through facebook, fliers, etc.) Third, spend the first meeting telling people what ONE is all about, what it means to you, and what you want to accomplish through your group and ask everyone to come back next week with some creative ideas for spreading your message on campus. Fourth, focus on new recruits as much as you can for the first couple of months. The more people you have in your group, the more you will be able to accomplish. These will also be people that can take over for your when you graduate. Lastly, take advantage of the OCC website, the people at ONE like Maisie, and your COA to come up with innovative ideas and get the tools you need to be successful. ONE is about millions of people coming together, it’s about using teamwork to get things accomplished, and you should do the same in your club.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-u88Vr375Y

All of the schools put together some amazing final projects, but after counting all the legitimate votes, and calculating the judges’ scores, Western Kentucky emerged as our winner.The final vote total was:

Each of the judges ranked the projects from 1-10 (1 being the best), so a smaller sum total correlates to a better ranking. Their cumulative scores were:

Additionally, here is what the judges had to say about the projects (in no particular order):

Hofstra did a good job showing the struggles 1 billion people face on a daily basis around the world. Oftentimes it is easier for people to be impacted by a visual rather than a statistic – Great job showing everything from living conditions to limited food resources.

Western Kentucky showed hustle and energy and engaged the entire community which was impressive. Western Kentucky was savvy and the fact that they were able to get, for example, 160 people to send letters in support of the Education For All Act, showed a lot of tangible advocacy.

Kansas State did a great job reaching out to local media to spread more awareness.

The vigil was very powerful visual.

Campbellsville did a great job participating in a variety events that would reach different audiences. It is amazing how many activities you were able to host and be a part of. I hope the ONE group will continue to be involved in the campus and Campbellsville communities.

The fact that the UNLV students understood it was important both to praise a Senator supporting them and to push a Senator who was not was good, smart lobbying. Also, we can’t beat poverty on our own, and you did the best job of pulling other groups into the fight against poverty and got them to use their specific skills and interests to further the cause.

Brandeis – I loved the theme. The catchy theme was a great way to get people’s attention.

GWU did a great job demonstrating how cheap medications are for treatable diseases, it is important for people to understand something tangible like the cost of a pill. The petition delivery was the type of stunt that gets attention and sticks in people’s memories. Grade A advocacy right there.

Princeton did an amazing job inundating the campus with ONE materials the night before your campus event. I am glad you were able to make students comfortable enough to call their congressional members.

Wilmington – Engaging the local community is crucial. Hopefully you can start to build a sustainable group that bridges the campus and the community.

SHU did a great job with the playground and it was inspiring how they all were able to connect the local community to the greater global problem.

Those involved with ONE stand for eliminating extreme poverty and disease worldwide. Why don’t we all look and see what POSITIVE things we can say about the schools in the top ten? Try not to compliment your own school – we already know that YOU love their project.

For one, I LOVED George Washington’s use of the “Fresh African Water” in their final video submission. It was awesome – definitly got the message across. Western Kentucky’s breakdown of all the Millennium Development Goals was incredible as well – super effective. Hofstra is helping to educate children in Kenya – I’d say that’s a worthy cause. Campellsville, Kansas State, and Brandeis all had incredible awareness events as well. Wilmington College’s aspects of planning for their project in itself is daunting.

Post something here so long as you’ve got a positive thing to say. Anyone think of a project that no one did? Anything super creative? Let’s keep it going with some positive reinforcement here…

1. Sacred Heart University
2. University of Nevada, Las Vegas
3. Brandeis University
4. Western Kentucky University
5. Princeton University
6. Wilmington College, Wilmington, Ohio
7. Kansas State University
8. George Washington University
9. Hofstra University
10. Campbellsville University

Each school will receive a $1,000 grant to create their own poverty advocacy program.

Thank you all for waiting patiently while we processed points. We know that the leader board might shift around a little, but at the point that we cut off the competition (Monday) these were the schools that made the cut for the final 10.

This doesn’t mean that the competition is over for everyone else. If you didn’t make the top ten, you can still create you very own advocacy project and submit it for a chance at a “wild card” spot. In late March when we all vote for the final winner, we’ll include the wild card entry in with the top 10 schools for voting.

Though the competition of the Campus Challenge is narrowing, the larger competition against extreme poverty is far from over. We’ve got lots of work to do, and it is crucial that we all continue to do the work we have done during the campus challenge, even if the fun and games are coming to a close.

Hey guys, my name is Kaytee Lozier and I’m the new ROA for Maryland, West Virginia, and D.C. I’m a junior Print Journalism major at Hofstra University and I am co-president of the ONE Hofstra Chapter. I’m originally from New Milford CT, and before that I lived in Fontana CA.

Until I began college I never really paid attention to politics. I didn’t feel personally attached to it in any way because I didn’t feel that I played much of a role in our political process. I have always been interested in international affairs and the state of third world countries, and I had done some volunteering for Invisible Children, but I have always felt there wasn’t much I could do about the state of the world in general.  That was before I happened to find the ONE Campaign last summer. I realized that this could be the perfect opportunity to make a difference with a stronger voice, the voice of 2 million others who feel as passionate about these issues as I do.

Once I became involved with the ONE Campaign, the Campus Challenge was the perfect way to rev my engine. Finally I had a way to reach out to people and make this movement grow! After the Power 100 summit, I feel more prepared than ever to unite Hofstra students under this cause. If you go to school in any of my regions and you want to start a chapter at your school, please contact me and I’ll help you get started!

Aside from battling extreme poverty, I like to play tennis, play video games, and.. actually battling extreme poverty is pretty much my favorite thing to do nowadays, with Guitar Hero as a close second!

What you’re looking at is the student section at a Hofstra basketball game.  It is a pretty impressive stunt, but we felt that it didn’t quite illustrate extreme poverty as clearly as Winthrop’s flag display.  Still, it’s good for 2,500 points.

Campbellsville University jumped 30,000 points, while Hofstra and College of Charleston only made 5,000 and 8,000 points respectively, making the race for the top that much closer.

But more importantly, these phone calls really are one of the best ways to help push crucial pieces of poverty-fighting legislation through Congress. Campbellsville’s 30,000 points shows that they are not just organized, but that they are actually effective anti-poverty advocates. Way to go guys!

We made the regular weekly photo contest the weekly challenge this last week, and when we couldn’t decide which photo deserved the grand prize we opened it up voting. Due in part to massive get out the vote operation by Hofstra, Dylan was able to walk away with a solid 42% of the vote.

Next week’s challenge: create the best ONE video!