March 8, 2010 | Student Activities

Dance Marathon raises more than $850,000

Dancers' efforts benefit StandUp For Kids and Evanston Community Foundation

By Judy Moore

Watch highlights from the 2010 Dance Marathon event, which raised more than $850,000 for StandUp For Kids and the Evanston Community Foundation. Video produced by Matt Paolelli

More than 1,000 Northwestern University students danced for 30 straight hours at Norris University Center in the 36th annual Dance Marathon (March 5 to 7), netting $854,396 in total gifts and in-kind donations.

The student group presented checks for $461,546 to StandUp for Kids and $51,282 to Evanston Community Foundation, this year's secondary beneficiary and the beneficiary for the 13th consecutive year.

Dance Marathon has raised more than $11 million for charities since its founding in 1975.

StandUp for Kids, a national organization of volunteers that works with homeless and "at-risk" youth, will use the money raised to expand programs in Chicago and the Midwest.

The Evanston Community Foundation (ECF) will use its share to support Evanston-based organizations and ECF's own community programs.

Northwestern's Dance Marathon is one of the world's largest student-run philanthropies. In addition to 30 hours of dancing, fundraising events at Norris included a silent auction, a 5-K run along Lake Michigan's shore, carnival games, a spa and an a cappella show. In past years, Dance Marathon weekend has attracted as many as 3,000 visitors.

This year, the Illinois House of Representatives passed a resolution to recognize Northwestern University Dance Marathon weekend (March 5 to 7) for its mission of uniting Northwestern University and nearby communities through education and philanthropic fundraising.