William Peace University Hosts Fashion Show For National Eating Disorder Awareness Week

RALEIGH, NC, March 07, 2013 (Press-News.org) William Peace University (http://www.peace.edu), a private four-year university located in downtown Raleigh, has announced that the university hosted a fashion show titled "EveryBODY" in conjunction with and support of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week, which ran from Feb. 24 through March 2 and is an extension of the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA). The university's fashion show featured students and staff as models, each representing various body shapes, sizes, colors, nationalities and genders. Participants came together to promote the importance of a positive body image and encourage the appreciation of natural beauty. In addition to the fashion show, representatives with Veritas Collaborative, a center for excellence in the treatment of eating disorders, were on-site to provide education and medical insight into body imaging to attendees, as well as Sherrill's University of Barbering and Cosmetology, whose students provided free hair and make-up services for participating models. Cofre Consignment Store of Raleigh also participated through the donation of clothing for models. Performance choreography was led by Melissa Daniels, a former model who struggled with eating disorders and has created Bitter Rebellion, a website developed for helping raise awareness of individuals facing similar challenges in their lives.

The NEDA is committed to ultimately preventing eating disorders and overall body image issues, while reducing the stigma associated with eating disorders and improving access to medical treatment and support. According to the NEDA, 20 million women and nearly 10 million men across the United States will suffer from an eating disorder sometime in their lifetime, a number that has continued to increase since the 1950s. For more information on NEDA, visit http://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/.

QUOTES:
"Eating disorders go beyond an individual's personal choice or thoughts and are serious medical concerns that if left untreated have the potential to be a life-threatening matter," said Debra M. Townsley, Ph.D., president of William Peace University. "In a society that is driven by beauty and imaging, it is important that we set a realistic example for our students to follow. The 'EveryBODY' fashion show was a wonderful event that demonstrated first-hand the university's commitment to addressing a healthy lifestyle and self image for our students and the greater Raleigh community to follow."

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ABOUT WILLIAM PEACE UNIVERSITY:
William Peace University is located in the heart of Raleigh, North Carolina. It was founded in 1857 as Peace Institute, offering education for boys and girls in primary grades and to women from high school to college. Peace, an all-women's college, became a four-year baccalaureate college and graduated its first bachelor's students in August of 1996. Exclusively an all-women's institution for its first 152 years, Peace began offering coeducational evening courses through the William Peace School of Professional Studies in 2009. In 2011, Peace College transitioned to William Peace University and welcomed its first coeducational class to its day program in fall 2012. Its mission is to prepare students for careers in the organizations of tomorrow. On average, more than 90 percent of the university's graduates are placed in jobs or graduate school within one year of graduation. For more information, please visit http://www.peace.edu.

Jennifer Fair
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