K-State PROUD Campaign
An example of why parents can be confident their student will be valued and cared for as a part of the K-State family.
In February 2008, Student Foundation and more than 200 student volunteers coordinated the second annual K-State PROUD campaign. The PROUD T-shirt for 2008 was the official T-shirt of the Big Monday basketball game against Texas. Frank Martin, head coach of the men’s basketball team and honorary chair of the 2008 K-State Proud student campaign, revealed the final campaign total to the student section before the basketball game on Feb. 25, 2008. The goal of the campaign in its second year was to raise $75,000. Martin revealed the final campaign total of $93,500 to a packed student crowd whose donations helped surpass the goal by more than $13,000.
“It was really great to see how students responded in the second year of the campaign,” said Taylor Symons, junior at K-State and member of the PROUD Campaign Advisory Board. “Since the inaugural campaign, students are really grasping the concept of philanthropy and the campaign’s purpose of helping fellow students. This year it wasn’t as much about the T-shirt as it was about giving back and helping fellow students, which is one of the most important messages this campaign strives to convey.”
K-State Student Foundation developed K-State PROUD: Students Helping Students in 2005. The campaign was the first-ever student-led philanthropic campaign in Kansas. It was also one of the first student-driven campaigns of its kind in the country. The campaign is true to its name; it gave students, alumni, and friends the ability to help students achieve their college dreams.
The first K-State RPOUD campaign week premiered in February 2006. In its inaugural year, the total fund-raising goal was set at $35,000. K-State students showed their pride and commitment to the university by contributing more than $62,000 by the end of the first campaign week. More than 6,124 K-State Proud t-shirts were distributed to students, alumni, friends and fans during the 2006 campaign week leading up to the basketball game. At the close of the campaign, students wore their official PROUD T-shirt to Black-Out Bramlage against the University of Kansas.
HOW IT CAN HELP YOUR STUDENT
The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of philanthropy while helping students realize their ability to help one another. With a minimum donation of $10, students receive an official t-shirt and all donations go toward Student Opportunity Awards.
Student Opportunity Awards are distributed in two different ways. K-State Hero awards recognize students who have shown an outstanding commitment to K-State through campus leadership, community service or other areas of student life. Awards are based on nomination by fellow students.
K-State Proud awards provide financial assistance for students who have demonstrated extreme financial hardship or those who need temporary financial assistance. Special consideration is given to students who have exhausted all other forms of financial assistance and those whose future at K-State may be in jeopardy. Allocation of this award is also based on nomination by students or faculty.
A volunteer student allocation committee meets monthly to review recent applications and make funding proposals.
Members of Student Foundation find the success of the campaign encouraging, and look forward to seeing the campaign evolve even more in future years.
“With the overwhelmingly positive response we’ve had from the students who donate and the students helped by the support of this campaign, the PROUD campaign will exist for many years to come,” Wes Sylvester, co-event chair of the 2008 PROUD campaign said. “It’s not about increasing the amount of donations next year or in future years. It’s about helping students discover the benefits of philanthropy and taking pride in our university and what we stand for.”
For more information about the campaign, Click Here
-Rachel Dorsey
New Student Services Intern