HuskyTHON’s Commitment to Inclusive Action

Throughout the course of many years, HuskyTHON has strived to promote Diversity,

• Providing access to discounted registration to members experiencing financial hardship. 
• Providing monthly open forums for the community to voice their concerns, opinions, and ideas for advancing HuskyTHON. 
• Providing on campus events and engagement free of charge for students to help engage in our organization.
• Reviewing responses to HuskyTHON’s Anonymous Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion google form at each Committee meeting. 
• Improving access and education of Connecticut Children’s services and providing more financial transparency about where our donations go. 
• Ensuring accommodations are available to all HuskyTHON participants for our 18-hour dance marathon
• Ensuring access to in-person fundraising support on fundraising push days, Child Health Day, Unite as One, and Day of Strength.
• Creating a space for Miracle Children and HuskyTHON participants alike to 
• Building relationships with UConn administration to bridge the gap between students opinions and faculty decisions
• Working with UConn’s regional campus students and faculty to include them in our fundraising efforts in Storrs and promote fundraising at the Storrs campus.
• Increasing the inclusivity of social media through the inclusion of alternative text descriptions on posts and closed captioning on videos.
• Providing alternative food options for HuskyTHON participants who did not reach their fundraising minimum.
• Providing participants with brief training on inclusion and working with children with disabilities prior to HuskyTHON’s Night-Of.
• Expanding outreach beyond our typical contacts to recruit and engage more internal leadership and participant involvement to be more representative of our campus.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee

The DEI Committee is a subdivision of HuskyTHON’s internal team that is working to improve the diversity, equity, and inclusion of HuskyTHON on UConn’s campus. Members involved in different branches of our Dance Marathon make up the committee. The committee meets consistently to work towards our goals, address current issues, and determine where improvements can be made to benefit HuskyTHON and ensure a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for all participants.

The committee is led by the Director of Diversity Equity & Inclusion, Sarah Barta, with guidance from the Vice President of External Relations, Aayush Chopra.

Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Sarah Barta

1 HuskyTHON Captain (2024):

• Osir Adu-Maafo

1 HuskyTHON Dancer Representative (2024):

• Kyle Grenier

 1 HuskyTHON Rising Leader (2024):

• Brianna McCalla

 4 HuskyTHON Dancers (2024):

• Olivia Eslava
• Romir Raj
• Om Ghetia
• Nina Passaro

HuskyTHON DEI Captains (2024):

• Shawn Casey
• Sumedha Sabbani
• Eunice Kim