Berea College Bonner Scholars Program Handbook Bonner Scholars Program Access to Education. Opportunity to Serve. 2010 - 2011 BEREA COLLEGE Bonner Scholars Program Handbook Table of Contents TOPIC PAGE Berea College Bonner Scholars 2 The Bonner Foundation and the Bonner Scholars Program 3 Bonner Foundation Mission Statement Bonner Foundation Values and Beliefs Bonner Foundation History Overview of Bonner Scholars and Bonner Leaders Programs Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 6 About Berea College The Great Commitments of Berea College Service at Berea College Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS) The Bonner Scholars Program at Berea College Bonner Scholars Program Common Commitments and Leadership Development 11 Six Common Commitments 5 E’s of Leadership Development Bonner Scholars Program Student Roles, Procedures and Policies 13 Student Leadership Recruitment and Selection Replacement Policy Transfer Bonner Scholars Bonner Scholar Code of Conduct Bonner Scholars Program Requirements 16 Community Service Orientation Class Meetings Reflection First Year Week of Service Trip Sophomore Service Exchange Junior Recommitment Ceremony Senior Bonner Presentation of Learning and Senior Exit Interview Summer Service Bonner Web-Based Reporting System (BWBRS) Evaluations Student Impact Surveys Bonner Scholars Program Resources 21 Bonner Scholars Community Fund Bonner Congress Retention Campus-Wide Collaboration Service Opportunities at Berea College 22 Service Opportunities through CELTS Other Service Opportunities at Berea College Service Opportunities in the Berea Community Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 2 Berea College Bonner Scholars Class of 2011 Ehidiamhen Akhetuamhen Patrick Kluesener Tony Choi Chanel Meadows Katie Frensley PhiYen Nguyen James Hamblin Brittany Stowers Taryn Henning Juan Torres Sabrine Ishimwe Jose Victoria Karuva Kaseke Class of 2012 Kevonia Adamson Seth Hutchins Jessica Brown Kurstin Jones Matthew Callo Ana Megrelishvili Jonathan Davis Shaina Theis Sonja Escamilla Justin Thomas Joao Ferreira Filho Raven Weaver Michelle Gardner Gary Zornes Marah Holz Class of 2013 Sarai Bailey Rosemary Meloney Seth Bailey Grace Par Ryan Fortenberry Lydia Patton Hannah Franklin Gloria Reina Kyle Horn Bianca Scott Sarah Kozel Nichole Stetten Corey Lewis Ivan Titaley Class of 2014 Katie Boyd Son Nghiem Joel Cecil Megan Osborne Chan Choi Matthew Ribar Katie Downey Taylor Rutherford Ethan Hamblin Erica Scott David Kretzman Olivia Spooner Corey Lowery Matthew Walker Joan Maninang Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 3 The Bonner Foundation and the Bonner Scholars Program Bonner Foundation Mission Statement Through sustained partnerships with colleges and congregations, the Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation seeks to improve the lives of individuals and communities by helping meet the basic needs of nutrition and educational opportunity. Bonner Foundation Values and Beliefs  The Bonner Foundation is committed to working with all people and institutions regardless of age, race, belief, or nationality.  The Bonner Foundation believes that colleges and congregations have vital roles to play in society in nurturing and mobilizing thoughtful, caring, and diverse leadership dedicated to community service.  The Bonner Foundation recognizes that often the best way to help someone is to give them the opportunity to help themselves, and that the people best able to address a problem are the people whom it most directly affects.  The Bonner Foundation recognizes that effective community service programs involve all stakeholders in their leadership.  The Bonner Foundation recognizes that long-lasting partnerships are based on mutual respect and common commitments.  The Bonner Foundation supports innovative programs that have the potential to serve as models for the field. Bonner Foundation History The Founders - Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Bertram Bonner was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1899. He was born into poverty and worked his way through college by taking night classes. At the age of 22 he was named Head Treasurer for Heda Green Banks in New York City. Eventually, he became involved in real estate in New Jersey, New York and Florida, and had a career that spanned six decades, including building over 30,000 homes and apartments. Corella Allen Bonner was born in Eagan, Tennessee. She spent her young life growing up in coal mining towns in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. At the age of fourteen, she and her mother moved to Detroit where she found work as a cashier. She attended Wayne State University at night and made sure that her younger siblings also went to school, although she never earned a college degree. She Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 4 later transferred to the Statler Hotel in New York City, where she met Bertram Bonner. They were married, four years later, in 1942. In 1956 the Bonners moved to Princeton, New Jersey and began a crisis ministry/emergency food program. Their generosity continued with the founding of the Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation, Inc. in 1987. This foundation led to the establishment of the Bonner Scholars Program in 1990. Mr. Bonner passed away in 1993, and Mrs. Bonner passed away in July 2002, at the age of 92. Berea College, Home of the First Bonner Scholars Program In the fall of 1990, the Bonner Foundation began recognizing college students who demonstrated commitments to academic success and community service. With the assistance of Dr. John B. Stephenson (former President of Berea College) the first Bonner Scholars Program was established at Berea College. Berea College was an obvious choice to pioneer the Bonner Scholars Program, given the College’s history and mission, its already established commitment to service, and the prior relationship between Mr. & Mrs. Bonner, then Berea College President John B. Stephenson, and former Bonner Foundation President Wayne Meisel. Overview of Bonner Scholars and Bonner Leaders Programs The Program was designed to provide access to higher education and an opportunity for students to serve. In 1992, the Foundation decided to expand, and 12 more schools were invited to participate in the Bonner Scholars Program. Six years later, Union College became the site of the second Bonner Scholars Program in Kentucky. In 2005, Centre College became the third. Two other Kentucky schools - Lindsey Wilson College and the University of Louisville - are part of the Bonner Network, as Bonner Leader Schools. The Bonner Scholars Program is based on the premise that young people care about others and given the opportunity, will become active and involved in their communities. It is also based on the understanding that college students have a unique and important contribution to make to our society and future. To be eligible for the Bonner Scholars Program, students are required to meet three basic requirements: an above average academic record, financial need, and demonstration “that he or she has held a role or roles in service with significant responsibility at home, in church, at school, or in the Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 5 community.” Currently active in 24 colleges, most of which lie in the southern Appalachia and Piedmont regions, the Bonner Scholars Program assists students who prefer to spend their out-of-class time addressing social issues and engaging in community-based learning. In the summer months, through Summer of Service, Bonner Scholars continue their efforts and turn Foundation assistance into the type of sustained community action not possible during the school year and not feasible without financial assistance. Nationwide, there are approximately 1500 Bonner Scholars annually. In 1997, the Bonner Foundation began an effort to expand its original model of service-based scholarships. Today, the Foundation works with more than 60 institutions nation-wide which have begun chapters of the Bonner Leaders Program. Each of these campuses has a core group of 5-30 students who work on issues such as improving educational opportunities and fighting hunger through community programs that focus on literacy issues, mentoring, and nutrition/anti-hunger initiatives. Bonner Foundation Staff and Contact Information President, Bobby Hackett Bonner website: www.bonner.org Senior Program Officer, Ariane Hoy Bonner wiki: http://bonnernetwork.pbworks.com/ (See website for full listing of staff) Bonner Foundation contact information: Bonner Foundation 10 Mercer Street Princeton, NJ 08540 609-924-6663 609-683-4626 FAX Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 6 BEREA COLLEGE BONNER SCHOLARS PROGRAM About Berea College Berea College is distinctive among institutions of higher learning. Founded in 1855 as the first interracial and coeducational college in the South, Berea charges no tuition and admits only academically promising students, primarily from Appalachia, who have limited economic resources. Berea offers rigorous undergraduate academic programs leading to Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees in 28 fields. All students work at least 10 hours per week in campus and service jobs in more than 130 departments. The College has an inclusive Christian character, expressed in its motto "God has made of one blood all peoples of the Earth." Guided by this inclusive Christian message of impartial love, Berea's founders held fast to their radical vision of a college and a community committed to interracial education, to the Appalachian region, and to the equality of all women and men from all "nations and climes." This scriptural heritage compelled Berea College to serve all persons regardless of race, creed, color, gender, or class, and led the College to draw its students from two immediate constituencies: African-American slaves freed by the American Civil War and white mountaineers. Today, Berea's primary service region is the Southern Appalachian region, but students come from all states in the U.S. and in a typical year, from more than 60 other countries representing a rich diversity of cultures and faiths. About one in three students represents a racial or ethnic minority. Berea continues to build upon a distinctive history of 150 years of learning, labor and service, and find new ways to apply our mission (called the Great Commitments) to contemporary times by promoting kinship among all people, serving communities in Appalachia and beyond and living sustainably to conserve limited natural resources. The Great Commitments of Berea College Berea College commits itself:  To provide an educational opportunity primarily for students from Appalachia, black and white, who have great promise and limited economic resources.  To provide an education of high quality with a liberal arts foundation and outlook.  To stimulate understanding of the Christian faith and its many expressions and to emphasize the Christian ethic and the motive of service to others.  To provide for all students through the labor program experiences for learning and serving in community, and to demonstrate that labor, mental and manual, has dignity as well as utility.  To assert the kinship of all people and to provide interracial education with a particular emphasis on understanding and equality among blacks and whites.  To create a democratic community dedicated to education and equality for women and men.  To maintain a residential campus and to encourage in all members of the community a way of life characterized by plain living, pride in labor well done, zest for learning, high personal standards, and concern for the welfare of others.  To serve the Appalachian region primarily through education but also by other appropriate services. Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 7 Service at Berea College Berea College has a long history of service, reflected in the phrase, “Learning, Labor and Service.” There is a long history of successful outreach programs, of service to the region, of commitment to equality and human dignity, and of community members engaged in compassionate acts towards others in and beyond the College itself. In 2000, the Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS) was created to house all of the student-led service programs, and to lead an initiative to integrate service-learning into the academic curriculum. This Center, in collaboration with the Appalachian Center and other already existing service programs at the College, has expanded and deepened the commitment to excellence in learning through service at Berea College. Today, CELTS is the primary student-based service center at Berea College and is home to The Bonner Scholars Program, CELTS Student-led Programs, and the College’s Academic Service-Learning Program. Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS) at Berea College CELTS provides a network of support and resources as well as a common meeting place for students, faculty, staff and community partners involved with Berea’s service-related activities. The opportunities for service and service-learning facilitated by CELTS take place in the immediate Berea/Madison County community, in the larger Appalachian region, and at sites throughout the United States and the world. Every Berea College student, who must be low-income, receives a full- tuition scholarship and holds a ten to fifteen hour per week labor position either on campus or in the community. Over 80 students each year hold their labor position through CELTS, where they coordinate student-led volunteer programs, help facilitate academic service-learning courses, or work in local non-profit organizations. CELTS and Berea College have been recognized nationally for the service and service-learning programs. Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 8 CELTS Vision We envision an educational system that successfully combines community service with academic learning to create an environment that challenges and prepares students to be critical thinkers, reflective learners and active members of just communities, near and far. CELTS Mission The Center for Excellence in Learning Through Service (CELTS) educates students for leadership in service and social justice through promotion and coordination of academic service-learning and student-led community service. CELTS Administration & Program Staff Chad Berry is the Director of CELTS and the Appalachian Center, and Professor of Appalachian Studies. Ashley Cochrane is the Associate Director of CELTS and the Director of the Bonner Scholars Program. She is also the Coordinator of the Service-Learning Program. Heather McNew Schill , ‘99 is the Assistant Director of Community Service and the Coordinator of the Bonner Scholars Program. Katie Basham, ’02, is the Coordinator of the First Year Bonner Scholars Program. She also works in the Berea College Campus Christian Center, as the Assistant Director and the Coordinator of Interfaith Programming. Sheila Lyons, ’86, CELTS Program Associate, provides administrative support to the Bonner Scholars Program, including the administration of student payroll. CELTS Programming Student-Led Service Programs CELTS is home to ten student-led service programs which are based on a model of leadership development that provides students with opportunities to design and manage programs themselves. Their responsibilities include recruiting and training volunteers, planning and executing weekly program activities, facilitating team meetings and reflections, and mentoring team members. These programs include mentoring and tutoring programs, Habitat for Humanity, an environmental advocacy program, and a program that serves the Spanish-speaking community, among others. Bonner Scholars Program CELTS is also home to a Bonner Scholars Program, which includes sixty Berea College students who focus on service activities throughout their undergraduate career. They serve through their labor positions, and they participate in and lead other service activities such as Summers of Service. As first- year students, Bonners embark on a journey of personal growth and exploration augmented by a structured program of training, teambuilding, guided reflection, enrichment activities, and experiences that remain with them long after their time at Berea has ended. Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 9 Service-Learning Program The service-learning program at Berea College provides support for faculty, staff, students, and community partners who are involved in service-learning activities. Today, service-learning courses are taught in over twenty disciplines across campus. Community partners include non-profit agencies, community organizations, and schools. Service-learning experiences and structured reflection provide students with the opportunity to make connections between academic course content and community issues, in the broader context of civic engagement. Service-learning also facilitates the exchange of ideas, knowledge and resources between Berea College and the local community, the Appalachian region, and beyond. CELTS Focus on Hunger Bonner Scholars have the opportunity to participate in a series of student-led service events that CELTS sponsors each year to help address hunger in our community. Hunger Hurts Community Food Drive: Students conduct this event during the fall term to collect non-perishable food donations from homes throughout the city of Berea. These foods are delivered to - and then sorted and stored at - the Berea Community Food Bank. Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week: In November, students coordinate a series of educational events during National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. These events include an Oxfam Hunger Banquet and tabling about current legislation related to hunger and homelessness. Empty Bowls: Held during the spring term, students organize the Empty Bowls event, in partnership with the Berea College Ceramic Apprenticeship Program, to draw awareness to hunger issues and raise money for several local food banks through the sale of tickets for a handmade bowl and a simple mea of soup and bread. Berea College Bonner Scholars Program 2010-2011 Handbook Updated 8.10 Page 10