LEXINGTON, Ky.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The results are in and as Villanova won “March Madness,” the University of Windsor has become your first 2018 “March Goodness” champion. Students, fans, and alumni of all ages from the Canadian school completed 406 acts of kindness to their community, winning a $2,000 school donation.
Participants from almost two dozen universities and colleges across the United States and Canada helped to launch the first annual “March Goodness” campaign in the past month. The competition encouraged students to do a “random act of kindness” for others and compete with other schools for more than $14,500 in scholarship money.
Students and their teams performed 1,455 random acts of kindness – they donated blood, volunteered, hosted a happiness dinner, called distant family members, along with a myriad of other activities to put a smile on someone’s face. Contestants also used March Goodness to advocate for issues that were important to them, such as the #neveragain movement and the opioid epidemic.
In addition, top individual performers will be awarded scholarship money for their amazing actions. This year’s individual winner is Emma Hamilton from McMaster University, who made tremendous impact on her community and has earned a $2,500 scholarship.
The “competition” was sponsored by xocial, an online community that supports Competitive Kindness and inspires the next generation of social responsibility. “Our first March Goodness campaign was a great success. Students averaged almost 10 challenges per do-gooder and completed about 1,500 acts of kindness,” said Colin Duetta, Chief Executive Optimist. “Watching the leaderboard in real-time was really exciting, with teams submitting social good challenges up to the last minute. Only a few challenge submissions separated 1st and 2nd place. These kids were truly inspiring and they, and their schools, should be very proud.”
Xocial partnered with former NBA pro Derek Anderson and his A.O.K. Foundation on March Goodness. Derek is a huge believer in teaching children to do “deliberate acts of kindness.” He personally mentors 106 kids.
Here are the results of the 2018 March Goodness competition:
| 1. Windsor University | |||||
| 2. McMaster University | |||||
| 3. Loyola Marymount University | |||||
| 4. University of South Alabama | |||||
| 5. Brock University | |||||
| 6. Ohio State University | |||||
| 7. Texas Tech University | |||||
| 8. University of Maryland | |||||
| 9. Carleton University | |||||
| 10. University of Michigan | |||||
| 11. Fanshawe College | |||||
| 12. Bryant University | |||||
| 13. American University | |||||
| 14. Mohawk College | |||||
| 15. University of Kentucky | |||||
| 16. University of Guelph | |||||
| 17. Memorial University of Newfoundland | |||||
| 18. Alabama State University | |||||
| 19. University of Western Michigan | |||||
| 20. Oregon State University | |||||
Duetta says there will definitely be a second annual “March Goodness” competition. See how simple acts can inspire, uplift, and make a difference today. If you want to learn more, just check out www.marchgoodness.net or www.xocial.com and see how you can get involved.
