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Spreading love on campus

If you’ve noticed more doors being held open for you or more compliments showered upon you, Bradley’s new initiative may be the cause.

Stated as an initiative to “spread kindness on the Hilltop,” the Love Bradley digital campaign, launched Jan. 28, aims to foster a loving campus community.

After tragedy struck campus last semester, Bradley social media manager Liz Gunty wanted to find a way to bring more love and kindness to Bradley students, faculty and staff. Inspired by the Dream Center Peoria’s Love Peoria 60-day kindness challenge, Gunty put a Bradley twist on the concept.

Every Monday for four weeks, Bradley University social media accounts are posting a new challenge. Each week’s challenge suggests five different acts of kindness for individual students, faculty and staff members to try to complete.

“They’re not hard things to do,” Gunty said. “Give 10 people a high-five? That doesn’t take any money. That just takes a little bit of time and energy.”

The acts of kindness may be tailored to the week, like the first week’s push to donate blood for the Challenge on 74 blood drive.

Upon completing a task, participants are encouraged to share their experience of completing one or multiple challenges throughout the weeks on social media using #LoveBradley. Submissions are welcome on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Although the warm and fuzzy feeling generated from acts of kindness typically serves as reward enough, the #LoveBradley initiative offers an incentive; anyone who shares their #LoveBradley experience on social media is automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a prize. Each act of kindness shared will count as its own entry and previous entries will stay in the drawing each week following.

Gunty is hoping for a ripple effect.

“Really the hope is that when you see someone else do something kind and you see the effect that it has on someone through social media, that will raise awareness of Love Bradley and get more students, faculty and staff completing those acts of kindness.”

In its second week, the campaign has gained some traction.

Mohammad (Imran) Hossain, assistant professor of engineering, hoped to brighten his students’ day by bringing them donuts. Bradley Dining Services adapted the efforts by providing a student with free coffee to fuel her day. Joshua Jones printed an ad in this newspaper last week thanking the students and co-workers for their daily dedications.

“If [Love Bradley] gains a lot of traction, we’ll continue it because it’s something really simple we can do that just adds positivity to campus,” Gunty said.

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