5k Run/Walk

Beta Rho - Frosty 5K

Contributors: Beta Rho Chapter

Location: James Madison University campus

Planning required:

Resources required:

Materials required:

Event Summary: Beta Rho incorporated four different ways to collect money; collecting a cover charge at the semiformal, asking friends and family, asked for donations from local businesses, and sold event tshirts. Part of the PR for the 5k involved sending informational letters that promoted their run for the local Multiple Sclerosis Research Foundation to family members and friends. In doing so they not only promoted their event and raised awareness for the cause they also were able introduce Phi Sigma Pi. Further, the chapter used this process to reach out to its Alumni to share the work they were doing, and coupled it with a simple ask to give what they found appropriate. Beta Rho was able to raise about $700.00 which will be donated directly to multiple Sclerosis research.

Beta Rho was recognized for these events as the 2009 Outstanding Fundraiser Award winner.

Beta Sigma - Pi Mile

Contributors: Beta Sigma Chapter (Spring 2007 Form 110)

Location: Michigan State University campus

Planning required: The PR/Recruitment committee was integral in the promotion of our event by flyering throughout campus. The Risk Management committee was essential for the race day, making sure that crossing guards were strategically placed to guarantee the runners were safely guided through the 5K course. Risk Management also provided first aid equipment, which thankfully was not used. Furthermore, we received support from the roughly 50 Brothers, 6 Initiates, 10 Alumni who registered for Pi Mile

Resources required: Utilizing the many resources that the greater Lansing area provided, we took advantage of being a Capital City school and partnered with some key state agencies.

Chipotle Mexican Grill provided 500 free meal cards for Pi Mile participants and also provided snacks on race day. Also, Potbelly held a fundraiser for Pi Mile in which half of the commission made on an allotted night was donated to our cause. This alone yielded nearly $800 for Pi Mile.

Materials required:

Event Summary: Three hundred runners pre-registered for Pi Mile, breaking the totals from previous years. Despite the cold and rainy weather, we totaled over 325 registrations, with 210 coming out the day of the race to participate. Brothers participated in Pi Mile through many ways. In order to receive their attendance point for the event, we provided many race day and non-race day tasks for them to complete. These included: running in Pi Mile, being a crossing guard, working the registration table or finish line, participating in setup and cleanup, getting people to register, getting donations, flyering, and speaking in front of their classes.

Over $5000 was raised and donated to Teach For America.

Beta Upsilon

Contributors: Beta Upsilon Chapter

Location: Umass Amherst Fine Arts Center, the race taking place through the campus

Planning required: Planning this race had to start the semester before. First we had to get the race cleared by the University. This involved getting all the details, including date, time, and route planned very early in the semester. Getting sponsors was our biggest focus and this started in the Fall. We had a letter to give all the companies thats invited them to a Teach for America info session taking place around that time. Other than that we just had to design promotional materials and book a spot in the campus center to promote. We also sent letters to all the parents of current brothers and some alumni to see if they would be willing to donate.

Resources required: Some of the things we needed for the race included EMT's at the race and permission from the police department on campus and in the town. We also took advantage of the campus radio station to come dj and mc the event. The Office of Fraternities and Sororities was a big help in getting all the final details sorted out. Local businesses were also the most helpful although some of our seniors were able to get huge donations from the companies they will be working for when they graduate.

Materials required: For promotional materials we used a laser printer and printed hundreds of flyers and chop chops. We made a trifold with all the information to display in the campus center along with the flyers. We had an accordion folder with receipts, registrations forms, extra flyers, a tabling schedule and a FAQ's guide sheet. For the race, we needed simple things like numbers for the runners, t-shirts, stop watches, tables, and refreshments (which were donated) We will be setting up water tables with cups for the runners throughout the route. Another big thing is prizes. We got a lot of gift certificates and money donated from various places and these will serve as our prizes. Other than this, we had bikers to front and tail the race.

Event Summary: The race benefits Teach for America. The chapter sets up a table on the campus for people to register. Early registration is $10 and same day race registration is $12. Free t-shirt are given out with each registration. There is music, refreshments and prizes. Gift baskets will be for the top male and female as well as one raffled to everyone else who participated.

Delta Alpha: Karen's Walk

Contributors: Delta Alpha Chapter

Location: Rochester Institute of Technology campus

Planning required:

• Date / Time of event - Try and pick a date that will coincide with a popular on-campus event that brings outside guests including parents and alumni to the campus. Also, if you have important partners outside the fraternity who help with the event, be sure to ensure they are on-board with that date / time.
  • 9 AM – 9.45 AM registration, 10 AM start walk/race are timings that have worked very well for Karen's walk/5K in the past.

• Working with external parties:
  • University of Rochester Medical Center - Work with the doctors, researchers and publicity staff to spread the word about the cause and the event via news releases and possibly via the news channels.
  • Cross Country Team / Running club - Clarify involvement, roles and expectations - are they running the entire 5K including registration, etc? are they simply providing the timing equipment and/or resources to work that equipment?
  • RIT Event Registration - Register your event, provided all the requested data in a timely fashion and reserve all the necessarily facilities and equipment you need from the university - grounds for registration, campus safety for cordoning off the 5K route, campus ambulance on stand by, facilities management for tent, tables, trash cans and other items and Interpreting services for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.
  • RIT Field Reservation - Reserve the field where you want to set up the registration and entertainment stage ahead of time. At least 4-6 months before the event.
  • RIT Facilities Management - Talk to them about the details of tent size, tables, chairs, trash cans, sign posts, golf carts and tent permit, etc that you might need for the event.
  • RIT Campus Safety - Share with them event details such as course map, event date/time, start and finish times, areas to be blocked and number of volunteers who might be helping out. Also, ensure they will monitor the campus bus services especially during start and finish of race.
  • RIT Tech Crew - Microphones, amplifiers, stage, etc.
  • RIT Food Service - Through the food service organization on campus, work to get water for all participants. Usually provided for free.

• Publicity:
  • Karen's Walk Website - Updated with latest information including registration forms, flyers, etc.
  • Campus events - Hold campus events to raise awareness about the cause and/or the event - tabling, presentations, conferences, competitions, free give-aways, etc.
  • Day of the event - Flyers, posters and signs for participants.

• Financial: Look at your expected expenditure for the event and then go to all of your financial sponsors with a budget and a specific amount that you would like to request from them. In the past, the major contributors were Student Government, College Activities Board, Residence Hall Association, other MSOs (major student organizations) on campus and also chapter alumni.

Resources required:

• A committee chair responsible for strategy, delegation and oversight.
• A committee of 4-6 people where every individual focused on a specific aspects (such as PR, Logistics, Funding, Volunteer logistics, etc) of the planning and execution of the event.
• A special team or external help to provide equipment and coordinate the 5K run. At RIT, the cross country team and the Running Club have been Delta Alpha's partners in the past.

Materials required:

• RIT Facilities Management items such as tent, tables, chairs, trash cans, sign posts and golf carts.
• PR materials – for flyers and other publicity activities that the chapter chooses to do.
• Prizes/medals/awards for participants
• Bibs for runners / walkers
• Small items like safety pins, pens, paper weights, tape, scissors, decorative materials, information about the cause, etc. Essentially items needed on the day of the event.
• Copies of the course map for your volunteers.
• Possibly food - bagels, bananas, apples, sandwiches, etc.
• Possibly T-shirts or bottles - if you want to give away trinkets.
• Possibly balloons and helium tank from FMS - if you plan on decorating the course.

Event Summary: Karen's Walk is a 5K Run/Walk that sponsors heart failure research in memory of Karen Decker. Delta Alpha established the Karen Decker Cardiomyopathy Fund at the University of Rochester Medical Center after a friend of the fraternity passed away from postpartum cardiomyopathy, a form of heart failure. The walk was started in 2003 and to date has raised over $25,000.

Alpha Omega - Run for America 5k

Contributors: Alpha Omega Chapter

Location: University of Pittsburgh campus

Planning required:

Resources required: Alpha Omega used Active.com to handle the online registration and race information.

Materials required:

Event Summary: Proceeds benefit Teach For America. $15 early registration, $20 race day registration.

Gamma Mu: Easy as Pi 5K

Contributors: Gamma Mu Chapter

Location: Central Michigan University campus, nearby park with paved paths

Planning required:

Resources required:

Materials required:

Event Summary: 30 runners participated. Gamma Mu donated an estimated $600 to Teach For America through a silent auction and registration fees for runners.

Alpha Beta

Contributors: Alpha Beta Chapter

Location: University of Maryland campus

Planning required:

Resources required:

Materials required:

Event Summary:

Alpha Rho: Mike Perry 5K

Contributors: Alpha Rho Chapter

Location: Virginia Tech campus

Planning required:

Resources required:

Materials required:

Event Summary: 83 runners participated. The 2008 run raised over $1,200. The money was donated to the Montgomery County Educational Foundation for DARE and Drunk Driving Awareness Programs.

Disclaimer

All content submitted to the Phi Sigma Pi Wiki-based Resource Guides is considered the shared property of Phi Sigma Pi and its members. Please do not submit content unless you are comfortable that it may be edited, amended, altered or removed by other contributors. Malevolent destruction of content and/or posting of blatantly inappropriate content may be considered conduct unbecoming a brother.

Content that is likely to be considered unacceptable and inappropriate includes, but is not limited to: content relating to illegal activities of any kind, or activities prohibited by Phi Sigma Pi or University Rules or Regulations, references to (legal or illegal) use of alcohol or drugs, sexually explicit material or references and/or content describing or promoting hazing, discrimination, or harassment of any kind.

The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by Phi Sigma Pi of the linked web sites, or the information contained therein. Phi Sigma Pi does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. Any external hyperlinks should conform to the rules as outlined in Editing FAQs otherwise they may be removed. Inappropriate adding of external hyperlinks may be considered conduct unbecoming a brother.

All content in the Resource Guides should be considered as advice only, and no content or advice should be followed if in conflict with the Phi Sigma Pi National Constitution, University Regulations, or state, local, or federal law.