FSU Dance Marathon donations to College of Medicine surpass $11.5 million
Florida – Student fundraising through Dance Marathon at FSU has brought total support for the Florida State University College of Medicine to more than $11.5 million since the college became a beneficiary in 2003.
The organization donated $697,380.85 to the college this year after raising a little over $1.5 million during its 31st annual event. It marked the 12th year that fundraising exceeded $1 million.
Proceeds are divided between the college’s pediatric outreach programs and UF Health’s Shands Children’s Hospital in Gainesville, the region’s Children’s Miracle Network hospital.
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Hundreds of students participate in the effort, which is FSU’s largest student-run philanthropy. Fundraising and planning continue throughout the year before concluding with a three-day event whose closing ceremonies take place on the first Sunday in March.
“The mission of Dance Marathon is greater than the dollars raised,” said Emmanuella Essien, the organization’s 2027 executive director. “It’s about bringing people together around something that matters, while helping ensure kids have access to the care they need and families don’t have to face difficult moments alone.”
The college’s pediatric outreach partners use the funding to expand and improve access to healthcare. Many attend the annual fall check ceremony, where they explain how the donations support their work.
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At an October 5 celebration in the College of Medicine atrium, Dean Dr. Alma B. Littles noted that FSU consistently places among the five highest-raising dance marathons supporting the network. The organization is also one of the network’s five founding dance marathons.
Dr. Rashmin Savani, chair of the University of Florida College of Medicine’s Department of Pediatrics and physician-in-chief at Shands, leads a UF Health delegation each year to thank participating students.
“It’s all about making meaningful change for families and children that have diseases that end them up in hospitals, that put their future in doubt,” he said. “And it’s the things that you do that alter the outcome. Just think about that. I couldn’t be more grateful for all the things that you do. Thank you again.”
Since the organization’s creation in 1995 and its first marathon in 1996, Dance Marathon at FSU has raised almost $25 million for children’s healthcare.
