AU’s inaugural Week of Kindness, November 10–16, celebrated small acts of civility, empathy, gratitude, and connection—and the ripple effects they can create on campus, across the city, and around the world.
The Eagle community came together for nearly 20 events, making cards for Ronald McDonald House Charities; collecting donations for the Market, AU’s student food pantry; and gifting free coffee to someone in need of a pick-me-up. Eagles also enjoyed hot chocolate and cookies on the quad with President Jon Alger.
“The idea behind the Week of Kindness is that we must be proactive about building community with those around us,” Alger says. “We’re not talking about random acts of kindness, but rather intentional acts of kindness. This is an effort in which all of us can take part—and even perhaps start a new tradition.”
It’s cool to be kind with these not so random acts:
- Loan a book to a friend
- Bring a meal to new parents
- Tell someone what they mean to you
- Support a nonprofit
- Chaperone a field trip
- Pay for the order of the person behind you
- Call your mother
- Ask how you can help
- Mow an elderly neighbor’s lawn
- Hold open a door for someone else
- Plant a tree
- Feed a stranger’s parking meter
- Say “please” and “thank you”
- Send a card—just because
- Return your shopping cart
- Text a long-lost friend
- Let another driver merge
- Talk less and listen more
- Shop local
- Sing a coworker’s praises
- Laugh heartily
- Give the gift of time