Resource:How to hold a 20,000 Passions event on campus to raise innovation awareness

Introduction

The idea of “finding your passion” or “tapping into your personal calling” is a scary enough notion for just about anyone who has spent even a second of their lives pondering the meaning of life. So the mere thought of finding not one passion, but twenty thousandpassions is nothing short of revolutionary, and it’s exactly what Zachary Jones and Matt Criscuolo did at the University of Delaware.

Zach and Matt's 20K Passions Event was born out of a simple question: how do we connect with students, and inspire them to innovate? Typical buzzwords will cause most students to tune out, so this event is an easy way to connect without requiring follow-up. Its purpose is to encourage students to express share what they are passionate about, and facilitate conversation about innovation.

1. Identify the theme and goals clearly.

To run any successful event, short and long term goals should be identified.

• Take the first step of identifying what our school community is passionate about
• Raise awareness of UIF on campus
• Connect interested students to further resources
• Involve like-minded groups and network

2. Make a call for people who might be interested.

• A Facebook post about what you are going to do will work great. Spot who is willing to help, who might become a volunteer and what is the overall reaction of people.
• Validate your event.
• Build a team with people who directly contacted you and told that they can help.

3. Meet them for planning and bring post-it notes.

Since this event is relatively flexible, it’s important to organize as much as possible beforehand so the actual day goes smoothly.

• State the overall vision and make sure that everyone is on the same page.
• Identify the needs, logistics.

Plan the funding

• This event requires under $100 in funding.

Time and Date

• Choose a day and time that works with your school’s academic calendar. Ideally something during a busy time, when most students are on campus
• Reserve two locations on campus: one inside, one outside

Materials

• two foam boards, black, 48’’x 96’’
• 200 packs of 100/per sticky notes
• sharpies (at least 4)
• bluetooth speakers and an upbeat playlist 2 tables (optional)
• UIF signage (optional)

Design the protoype event

• Single space, few people, no budget
• Look for validation

4. Prototype the event.

• Pick a day to go workshop this activity. Spend 30 minutes interacting with students, with sticky notes, to practice what tactics work best for you and for the people at your school.
• Record the protoype event to use in the marketing phase.

5. Prepare a hype teaser video and spread the word.

• A hype video will let you reach the people in your community.

6. Prepare a guide for volunteers who will work in your event.

• Non-prescriptive, flexible but keeping people in the track.
• Volunteers need to know exactly what they are going to do.
• Prepare a simple guide and send them before the event day.

7. Run the event with energy and fun!

To have this be the most fun and successful project it can be, the logistics will be organized so our enthusiastic volunteers can hear about the passions of as many students as possible.

1)Volunteers

• UIF team members (of course!)
• Any partnering school groups, like members of the Entrepreneur Club or Volunteer Services. Make sure they are as passionate as you are.

2)Documentation

• Make sure one of your Fellows/Volunteers is taking pictures and video. This will come in handy later for your Hype Video!

3)Fun!

• Your energy sets the tone for this event. Music, dancing, no matter what you do: make sure it is a good time!

8. Follow up for the next big thing.

What happens when it’s over? Ideally we’ve had several participants not only share their passions, but talk to us further about innovation.

1) Hold a debriefing meeting with students involved in the event and supervisors.

• Measure how the real event went in comparison to your prototyping
• Consider what you think went well versus what you could improve on next time.

2) Further Documention

• Transcribe your sticky notes into a google sheet. Keep this list for future projects. You now have a valuable resource: knowing the passions of your school!
• Edit your hype video by adding music, text, and more! This is a sneak preview for future collaborators.

3) Proudly display your foam boards!

Written by:

Brooke Schroeder and Orhun Canca andMichelle Ma and Songyun Gu