Jeans Give Back

Dress casual, be comfortable and support local charities!

Jeans Give Back (formerly known as Denim Spirit Days) is a way UND staff can wear denim and/or spirit colors, and donate to a good cause.

• Staff Senate’s mission for Jeans Give Back is to give everyone the opportunity to donate $1 or more each week to show compassion for non-profit organizations in the Greater Grand Forks community.
• Designated for every Friday, with the first Friday of every month set up for a special nonprofit. We encourage the whole campus to wear denim and/or spirit colors of green, pink or other UND gear on Fridays.
• Jeans Give Back days and Spirit Days were separate. However, a recent proposal was approved by the Community Relations committee of Staff Senate, approving the merger.

UND Staff Participation

If you participate in Jeans Give Back, we ask that you pay $1 towards a worthy area nonprofit organization that can use the support. Your $1 may be given to your Jeans Give Back site coordinator or may be deducted from each paycheck.

Jeans Give Back Deduction

UND Staff Senate, in conjunction with UND Work Well, encourages you to wear tennis shoes on Jeans Give Back days and take walks on your breaks for your health and wellness.

While we support and encourage wearing tennis shoes on Jeans Give Back days, and to take a walk during breaks, the deans, department heads, and administrators determine what degree of casual dress is appropriate within their unit.

Nonprofit Organizations

Local nonprofit organizations are encouraged to apply to receive profits from the UND Jeans Give Back Program.

Regular Jeans Give Back Application

Special Jeans Give Back Application

Jeans Give Back Policies 

• Jeans Give Back days support local nonprofit charities/organizations. Local is defined as Grand Forks and immediate area surrounding our main UND campus. Jeans Give Back days are held twice a month.
• In October, notices are placed in the Grand Forks Herald City Brief and the U-Letter announcing that Jeans Give Back Nonprofit Applications are available for the upcoming year.
• In December, applications are reviewed by the Jeans Give Back Committee and the committee determines who will be the recipients of donations for the upcoming year.
• Depending on the number of applications received, some applicants may not receive funding. Priority is given to those organizations that provide basic needs, such as food, shelter, and clothing. Funds are collected during the course of the year and are disbursed twice a year.

*Since the UND community represents a wide variety of beliefs and convictions, we cannot entertain requests from political, religious, or reproductive rights organizations.

Event History

Historically, Denim Days around the world originally started as a way to bring awareness to sexual assault and then was adopted locally to bring awareness and raise funds for other charities. On March 23, 1994 UND members of Council of State Employees (COSE) held an open forum in the Memorial Union to discuss the possibility of UND adopting a jeans day to support local non-profit charities. In May 1994 a proposal was submitted by representatives of COSE to the President’s Cabinet requesting the establishment of a UND Denim Day. This proposal followed similar guidelines as “Jeans Day in North Dakota” implemented by the Bismarck Tribune.

This proposal was accepted and UND’s first Denim Day was May 25, 1994. A six-member charity selection committee made up of staff representatives was appointed by the President to manage and oversee this endeavor. In February 2010, in order to increase its visibility and support across campus, and to oversee the general operations of the committee, President Robert O. Kelley requested that the Denim Day Committee become a standing committee of Staff Senate.