Great EC Opportunity: Students for Organ Donation

[SanDiegoSOD]

I know that many of you are looking for an outstanding EC to really help your application stand out from the rest of the crowd, so I thought that I would let you know about an organization that I have been involved with, Students for Organ Donation. Students for Organ Donation is a student-run, non-profit organization that is dedicated to educating students and campus communities about the growing need for organ donation in the United States and Canada. Chapters of Students for Organ Donation promote organ donation education by running awareness campaigns on their college campus, by participating in health fairs and volunteer fairs, and by a variety of other means.

Students for Organ Donation is looking for students to start chapters of the organization at their college campus. These students would serve as President and Founders of their chapter, and would be responsible for leading the chapter at their school. If you are at all interested in the organization, please check it out at www.StudentDonor.org , and click on the "Get Involved" page to send a message to Students for Organ Donation indicating your interest. I will also post more information on the organization below. Thanks!

Note: If you have questions about the organization, please ask it in this thread instead of through PM. That way everyone can benefit from the answer.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[SanDiegoSOD]

Students for Organ Donation is a nonprofit organization founded by college students in the summer of 2003 dedicated to promoting organ donation awareness and registration on college campuses and the nearby communities.

Why is organ and tissue donation important?
There are currently over 87,000 Americans that are awaiting a life saving organ donation. Many of those waiting are endemically sick until they receive an organ transplant, and over 6,000 individuals die every year due to the lack of available organs. This problem could be largely eliminated if the public was more informed of the need for organ donation; nearly 90% of Americans approve of donation, while less than one in four people have taken the necessary steps to assure that their organs are donated when they die. Students for Organ Donation can help alleviate this problem.

How do I start a chapter of Students for Organ Donation?
First get in touch with Students for Organ Donation to get approval to start a chapter at your school. If several students from one university are interested, there will be an application process in which we will select a president and vice president to head-up the chapter. On the application, please state which position (President or Vice-President) you desire.
Once you have received approval from the national offices, you will need to contact the Student Affairs office of your university to see what steps you need to take to become an officially registered undergraduate organization. The president and vice-president need to work together to build a team of students to assist in running the chapter and its events. The president and vice-president of each chapter will receive detailed instructions and suggestions on how to build and run a successful chapter of Students for Organ Donation in the official chapter handbook.

What are the expectations and dues of each chapter?
Students for Organ Donation never collects chapter or member dues. We expect each chapter to hold at least one major awareness campaign each year, preferably in synchronization with all other chapters of Students for Organ Donation during National Student Donate Life Week, held annually in April.

What resources are provided for chapters?
Chapters receive donor cards, brochures, pins, and informational videos shipped to them free of charge. Templates for posters, flyers, and PowerPoint presentations will be available for the use of each chapter. Chapters also have access to contacts through a network of students and professors at universities across the country, as well as various private and governmental organizations that promote public health causes. Local Organ Procurement Organizations are generally able to provide chapters with additional materials for donor-awareness activities.

What do chapters do?
Chapters work to promote organ donation awareness and registration, focusing on registering as many individuals as possible. Chapters have some freedom in determining the exact methods they will use, allowing them to find the best way to run campaigns on their individual campus. At the minimum, we expect each chapter to host one major on-campus campaign. Guidelines and suggestions for campaigns are available in the chapter handbook given to chapter presidents. Additionally, established chapters are planning to participate in donor awareness campaigns for the community and make presentations in local high schools during the 2004-2005 school year.

 

[brats800]

so does the group make a push for tissue donation, as well? i saw that you mentioned tissue donation once in the above post, but does the group push for more awareness for tissue donation, as well? as a tissue recovery technician, it seems that many people do not know about the possibility of donating tissues (bones/ skin/ tendons/ veins) as well as they know about donating organs. both are important. this is a neat group and i hope it raises awareness on the subject.

 

[SanDiegoSOD]

so does the group make a push for tissue donation, as well? i saw that you mentioned tissue donation once in the above post, but does the group push for more awareness for tissue donation, as well? as a tissue recovery technician, it seems that many people do not know about the possibility of donating tissues (bones/ skin/ tendons/ veins) as well as they know about donating organs. both are important. this is a neat group and i hope it raises awareness on the subject.

Yes, Students for Organ Donation seeks to raise awareness on Organ, tissue, and eye donation. Tissue and eye donation are not given as high a priority as organ donation because there is not currently a shortage of many tissues, as tissue can be stored for long periods of time and many more people are eligible to be donors. But yes, to tissue donation.