The UNL Dance Marathon is a philanthropic project that was started in 2003 at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln by Patrick McAtee and Nadia Dahab. The UNL Dance Marathon donates all proceeds to the Omaha Children's Hospital. Each year, a chunk of the donation is donated to the Child Life Program while the rest is used for a special project at the hospital. The 2005 funds were used to purchase laptops for the hospital so families could use them in order to research diseases and stay up to date with schoolwork during their stay.

The idea of Dance Marathon (DM) originated at Penn State University in 1973 and has been growing nationwide over the last 3 decades. Dancers must raise a certain amount of money and participate by staying awake and on their feet for the duration of the event. In 2004, the combined effort of the Children's Miracle Network Dance Marathons raised over $3.1 million!

This part of the effort is for the kids, as in most cases, they have little understanding of how important the money aspect is. For them, this event is one of the most memorable of their lifetime, an experience shared with college kids that truly care for them. The event includes hours of games, food, prizes, music, and, of course, some dancing. Families and children from the hospital attend and participate throughout the entire event.

Children's Miracle Network, the alliance of premier hospitals for children, is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping kids by raising funds for 170 Children's Hospitals across North America. Each year these non-profit hospitals provide the finest care, research and community outreach to help millions of children with diseases and injuries of every kind.

The UNL Dance Marathon will be held from Friday, February 20 at 8 PM to Saturday, February 21 at 8 AM in the Ballroom at the City Campus Union.

Dance Marathon planning involves the work of three teams. The exec team is responsible for the majority of the logistic planning of the event. The morale team is the first line of contact for dancers and creates the fun and energetic atmosphere that surrounds Dance Marathon. The family relations committee plans events throughout the year for families at the hospital and acts as a representative for each family at the event.

In order to participate in this exciting event you need to register as a dancer online. To register online, click on the "Register" button in the Dancer Login pane. Once you submit all of your information, you will receive a confirmation e-mail. After you have registered and logged in, you are able to pay your registration fee via credit card or bank transfer. There is a slightly higher charge for fees paid via PayPal and Google Checkout because of the transaction fees charged to us. If you wish to pay your registration fee via cash or check, you can stop by our booth at the City Campus Union or stop by our office at 330 Nebraska Union. There is also the option of paying the registration fee with your NCard. To do this, go to the Student Organization Financial Services (SOFS) on the 2nd floor of the City Union. This registration fee includes meals throughout the night and an event T-shirt that will be distributed the night of the event.

It is actually very easy! You can send letters to friends and family members and request them to sponsor you. On this website, you can submit addresses of your friends and family and our committee will send them for you! Other options to raise the money include finding businesses to sponsor you, attending fundraising events (such as weekend canning events during Husker football games), or getting your club, fraternity, sorority, or employer to help you raise the money. When collecting donations with our website, make sure that your friends and family input your name as the sponsored dancer so the exec team knows who the donation counts toward.

Yes. You can submit a request for a tax receipt on our website and we will send you one via mail if the donation is over $75. Donations under $75 will receive receipts via e-mail if requested. Donations over $250 will receive a receipt automatically as this is the minimum amount the IRS requires written documentation.