Have you ever wanted to bring a motivational speaker to campus, host a Confidence Week or campus-wide confidence-building event? With a Confidence U Grant, you could make that happen! Each year, the Kappa Delta Foundation provides grants of up to $5,000 each to 10 colleges and universities to help them address the many issues that affect women on campus, such as eating disorders, unhealthy relationships, alcohol abuse, body image and more. These grants allow campus leaders to make an impact in the lives of women and influence their campus culture.

Since the Confidence U Grant was created in 2010, 52 grants have been awarded to campuses across the country to further the movement to build confidence in women and girls. Although a campus does not need to have a Kappa Delta chapter to receive a grant, our Gamma Sigma chapter at East Carolina University is a great example of the impact you could make.

This chapter hosted a Confidence Week on its campus with three events focused on encouraging positive body image and dating violence awareness.

The week’s activities kicked off with the You Make Me Smile campaign. Chapter members handed out balloons with positive messages written on them. They also included buttons and candy with handwritten notes.

Miss North Carolina Outstanding Teen joined the chapter to raise awareness about dating violence. In association with loveisrepsect.org, they handed out keychains with facts about dating violence attached. The ECU counseling center provided pamphlets and a representative who was available to talk to students and provide more information about dating violence support.

For the last Confidence Week event, students were encouraged to write what they want to be or what they want others to be on posters in the shape of a B and E. The day ended with a keynote, “From Body Hater to Body Celebrator,” by Amber Krzys from CampuSpeak, which focused on promoting positive body image and ideals in college students.

More than 600 students and faculty participated in the Confidence Week, which created a positive platform to start the conversation about these topics. Kappa Deltas were an integral part of marketing the Confidence Week to all students on campus. They made banners to hang on campus, items to hand out and a video to spread awareness. Check it out here.

You can develop similar confidence-building programming and awareness initiatives for women on your campus. The Kappa Delta Foundation is accepting Confidence U Grant applications until April 30, 2016.