At the involvement fair Aug. 18, OSU CHAARG kicked off the recruitment promotion and social media campaign designed to gather runners across the country in an effort to run 1,000 miles

At the involvement fair Aug. 18, OSU CHAARG kicked off the recruitment promotion and social media campaign designed to gather runners across the country in an effort to run 1,000 miles. Courtesy: Molly Tavoletti

The student organization Changing Health Attitudes and Actions to Recreate Girls brought together more than 800 women recently for a nationwide running campaign to spread awareness of the organization, which got its start at Ohio State in 2012. Together, the women ran 1,140 miles in two weeks and kept track of their progress through posts on social media.

At the involvement fair Aug. 18, Ohio State CHAARG kicked off the recruitment promotion, runCHAARG — a social media campaign designed to gather runners across the country in an effort to run 1,000 miles. Women were encouraged to document their runs via watches or running applications and then post them to Instagram using the hashtag #runCHAARG.

CHAARG founder and OSU graduate, Elisabeth Tavierne, explained the idea for the campaign.

“It was play off of sorority recruitment known as “rush,” but instead of “rushing,” we wanted girls running. The 1,000 miles represents 1,000 CHAARG girls we hope to gain this year.”

In an effort to encourage girls, Under Armour-sponsored athlete Shauna Harrison donated apparel and other prizes. CHAARG chose 14 daily winners as well as one grand prize winner at the end of the campaign.

Since the all-female health and fitness organization began in 2012, it has since expanded to four other universities: University of Cincinnati, University of Dayton, University of Pittsburgh and the University of Michigan. The universities all kicked off the #runCHAARG campaign with a one mile run following their involvement fairs in an effort to welcome its new and returning members back to campus.

For OSU CHAARG, the involvement fair attracted more than 900 girls to sign up for more information. The OSU chapter currently has more than 370 girls registered for Fall Semester, the most in the organization’s history.

As advertised on their website, the organization’s mission is to “liberate girls from the elliptical” and encourage them to venture out of their “workout comfort zones.”

CHAARG meets every Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the RPAC. Events this semester include aerial dance, boot camps, belly dancing, boxing and self-defense.

If you’re interested in signing up, visit the organization’s website or email [email protected].

 

Molly Tavoletti is the vice president media chairman for CHAARG.