Alumni Profile
Robert Hackett
Spelman College Bonner Alum, Dr. Maranda C. ...

Maranda C. Ward, Ed.D., MPH, Spelman College Bonner Scholar ‘02 Alum has been awarded Campus Compact’s Ernest A. Lynton Award for the Scholarship of Engagement. Dr. Ward is the assistant professor and director of the Equity Department of Clinical Research and Leadership at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

Spelman College Bonner Alum, Dr. Maranda C. Ward, Awarded The Ernest A. Lynton Award for the Scholarship of Engagement
Campus Profile
Robert Hackett
A Banner Year for Bonners: TCNJ Bonner Program ...

TCNJ’s Bonner Community Scholars Program launched 20 years ago, it started with just 12 Bonner Scholars — students who commit to 300 hours of community service annually in exchange for needs-based scholarships. Now, with close to 100 participants each year, the TCNJ program is one of the largest and most successful in a nationwide network of Bonner college programs.

A Banner Year for Bonners: TCNJ Bonner Program Celebrates 20th Anniversary
Staff Profile
Robert Hackett
From the Heart of The Bonner Foundation: Elaine ...

In celebration of Elaine Wheeler's retirement, we honor her invaluable contribution to the Bonner Foundation. Her commitment and mentorship have been instrumental in our growth as a Foundation and the Network we have today. As she embarks on her retirement, we celebrate her legacy of dedication and look forward to the path she has paved for us.

From the Heart of The Bonner Foundation: Elaine Wheeler's Retirement Celebration
Robert Hackett
Announcing the Refreshed Bonner Wiki

With over three decades sharing campus examples, guides, and documents to download, the Bonner Foundation is excited to announce a recently updated Bonner Resources Wiki.

This summer, the five National Bonner Summer Interns at the Foundation — Anu Baskar (George Mason ‘24), Camila Guayasamin (The College of New Jersey ‘24), Dominique Dore (University of Houston ‘22), Mikaela Chin (High Point University ‘24) and Selah Ndouta (Capital University ‘22) — worked with the Foundation staff to refresh the look of the wiki’s homepage and, more importantly, update campus examples and other documents.

They devoted particularly attention to the Bonner Program Management and Community-Engaged Learning sections. In addition, Mikaela and Dominique also created a short video on how to navigate this wealth of knowledge.

Announcing the Refreshed Bonner Wiki

Student Profile

Bonner Scholar Athletes Contribute To Oberlin, Both On And Off The Field

Bonner Scholar Athletes Contribute To Oberlin, Both On And Off The Field

When imagining the typical college experience, volunteering for night shifts in churches to help care for individuals in need is not the first thing that comes to mind for most. But for College fourth-year Nae McClain, this was part of a normal day during her first two years as a Bonner Scholar at Oberlin. She balanced not only her academic and athletic responsibilities, but also dedicated 140 hours per semester to community service. Working in the church until 6:30 a.m., she would return to her room and sleep until 8 a.m., attend classes, and then head to athletic practice later that afternoon.

The Bonner Scholars program is a four-year community service scholarship program that was created to annually provide 15 first-year students with the opportunity to “develop as leaders and change agents in the local community,” according to the Oberlin Bonner Scholars website. The program aims not only to provide selected students with leadership and volunteering opportunities, but also to nurture a support network for students to utilize throughout their Oberlin experience. Students complete 140 hours of community service per semester, and are required to spend two summers participating in at least 280 hours of service.

Like McClain, College fourth-year Maya English is a thrower on the seven-time NCAC Champion Women’s Track and Field Team; both have balanced commitment to their sport and community service throughout their time at Oberlin. When not in class or at practice, English mentors students from Oberlin High School and is part of the Bonner Leadership Team. Being an athlete has allowed her to connect with her mentees, who also play sports.

“Having that element of our relationship lets us talk about how we balance going to school, being an athlete, extracurricular activities, and still having a social life,” English said.

Leading by Example: Exel Valle Estrada, '21 Guilford College Bonner Scholar

Leading by Example: Exel Valle Estrada, '21 Guilford College Bonner Scholar

By Karen Alley, Guilford College website

Walking along the tree-lined sidewalks of Guilford College, Exel Estrada looks like any other college student. But the story of how he arrived at this place is a phenomenal tale of hard work and dedication. Just six years ago, Exel was working as a carpenter’s assistant and going to classes at night. “I told my classmates I wanted to be in school forever because I really enjoy learning, and they thought I was crazy,” Exel says. “In Guatemala, if you’re a carpenter you stay a carpenter all your life, or if you’re a farmer you stay a farmer. I wanted more.” He knew school was a way to make something different with his life.

Community Connections Inspire TJ Tann, University of Richmond '21 Bonner Scholar

from University of Richmond website

From professors to internship supervisors to community members, it is often the leaders we encounter and the conversations we share that shape our lives.

engage-for-change-web-poster.png

As a sophomore Bonner Scholar, TJ Tann, ’21, attended a dinner with Kirsten Lodal, CEO and co-founder of LIFT, who was in Richmond for the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement’s 2018 Engage for Change! awards gathering.

By the end of the dinner, Tann knew that he wanted to apply for an internship with the organization, and nine months later, he headed to D.C. to work as a LIFT coach.

"Working with the leaders who ran LIFT-DC was a highlight of my entire summer," Tann said. "I [will] thank them always for the work they do and the impact they had on me."

LIFT operates in Chicago, D.C., Los Angeles, and New York to partner with high-quality community and early childcare organizations and engage and support parents.

"I worked with about 15 families helping them set, plan, and achieve educational, career, and personal goals," Tann said. "I also collaborated with the LIFT-DC and national teams on a number of projects, including developing a program for families with entrepreneurial aspirations and the foundation of a possible policy arm of LIFT."

Tann enjoys opportunities to connect deeply with individuals while finding ways to advocate on their behalf.

"If people need that voice to speak out for various communities, I have no problem being that," Tann said. "Everybody can always be of help to someone, and that should be our shared goal."

During his sophomore year, he also served as a development intern with The Commonwealth Institute, assisting in organizing their Policy Summit, and was co-president of the Multicultural Student Solidarity Network (MSSN) on campus.

Tann is currently studying abroad at Queen Mary University of London taking courses in politics and international relations, but the people he worked with this summer are never far from his mind.

"The people that I had the opportunity to work with impacted me just as much as I hoped I impacted them," Tann said. "I will always remember the families I worked with and never forget that the fight for economic justice and equality is ongoing."

When he returns to Richmond this spring, he will continue his Bonner Scholars Program placement at the Legal Aid Justice Center (LAJC) in their new offices located in the UR Downtown building at 7th and Broad.

He credits his reading of Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness with his pursuit of the LAJC internship.

"I had always thought about the possibility of law school, and reading that book led me to think about how I could take real action of my own," Tann said. "I started thinking about the option of helping underrepresented communities through pro bono, advocacy, or policy work."

During his first semester with the organization, he worked as a client intake coordinator and aided two LAJC attorneys with research on immigration customs enforcement and evictions.

"The work that LAJC does providing legal representation for those who may not otherwise afford it perfectly aligns with my interest in combating inequalities," Tann said. "Whatever I do going forward, I will always be looking for ways to make a positive impact on people in whatever capacity I may be operating in."

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Summer Freedom Holds Different Meaning for Davidson Students

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Summer Freedom Holds Different Meaning for Davidson Students

Three Bonner Scholars from Davidson engaged with the Freedom School this summer, as profiled in this Davidson.edu article.

TJ Elliott, linebacker and sociology major, has developed a new appreciation for teachers.

He’d worked with kids as a summer camp counselor, a tutor, and football coach for his little brother’s Pop Warner team. Teaching as a Freedom Schools servant leader intern this summer opened a new view.

Leading a classroom of energetic six to eight-year-olds every day – with a mission to improve their literacy skills – kept the Davidson College class of ’21 football player and Bonner Scholar from Charlotte playing a nimble mix of defense and offense.

President Carol Quillen participates in Freedom Schools' Harambee.

“I always thought it was about managing the class and helping kids redirect their behavior when they need that,” said Elliott, of Charlotte. “I wasn’t thinking about making lesson plans and all the preparation involved. It made me realize that we don’t pay teachers nearly enough.”

The Human Side of Immigration

The Human Side of Immigration

It’s 8 a.m. in Nogales, Arizona, as 19-year-old Maryvillian Kirksey Dalen Croft [Bonner Scholar from Maryville College] loads the back of a vehicle with supplies for an all-day mission.

She and some others head out for the scorching desert to make water drops for migrants who might be trying to make their way from Mexico and into the United States. On some nights, they camp in the desert. She doesn’t meet any travelers on this trek, but evidence of their presence is starkly evident. As they walk along one of the trails used by the migrants, crosses and memorials come into plain view.

“We’re walking in the middle of nowhere in the desert and all of a sudden, there are six crosses right there,” she said by phone Thursday. “Seeing them became normal even though this is so not normal.”

Read full story here in the Blount County newspaper The Daily Times, by Melanie Tucker Jul 11, 2019

Richmond Bonner Explores Mentoring in Art Exhibition

Richmond Bonner Explores Mentoring in Art Exhibition

A new art exhibition, envisioned by University of Richmond senior Nicole Benites, will open at UR Downtown this Friday, April 5.

The Faces of Mentoring explores the meaningful relationships formed between mentors and mentees. Curated by Benites, a Bonner Scholar who has interned with Virginia Mentoring Partnership since her first year at the University, the exhibition is an open invitation to the community to learn more about mentoring programs in Richmond.

“I have mentored and been mentored throughout my college career, and I truly believe it can change someone’s life,” said Benites. “I wanted to combine my passion for art and civic engagement in a way that would connect our community in a unique way, while providing a platform that would inspire others to become engaged as well.”

Sewanee Bonner Making Haste with Waste

Sewanee Bonner Making Haste with Waste

While you might get squeamish at the thought of maggots working their way through a mountain of discarded food waste, Chris Hornsby, C’19, has spent four years studying the process, and he’s here to tell you that it’s more appealing than abhorrent, more captivating than creepy, more engrossing than gross.

With a background in engineering and environmental studies, Hornsby has been working with the University Farm to develop an innovative composting prototype that has the potential to change the landscape of waste-management systems far beyond the Mountain. And he hopes to make the work of his maggots—specifically black soldier fly larvae—as approachable and actionable as recycling currently is.

“I know I have a bias because of my work, but I think they’re one of the cutest bugs I’ve ever come across,” Hornsby says. “They’re really intriguing creatures.”

Black soldier fly larvae have been at the forefront of Hornsby’s work since he arrived on campus. As a freshman, he applied to the Bonner Leader program, a four-year leadership and community service internship program. In addition to taking a series of skill-building workshops, “Bonners,” as the student program participants are known on campus, are partnered with community service organizations to increase the organizations’ capacity to do their work. Having recently developed an interest in agriculture, Hornsby chose to work with the University Farm, part of the Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability.

Morehouse Bonner Scholar River Lewis benefited from ‘mentors who looked like me’

Morehouse Bonner Scholar River Lewis benefited from ‘mentors who looked like me’

Excerpt from Salisbury Post, January 20, 2010

By Maggie Blackwell

“Morehouse gave me what I’d subconsciously craved from childhood: positive relationships with mentors who looked like me,” says River Lewis, a 22-year old recent graduate of the Atlanta college.

River is tall and lanky, and moves with ease and grace. Although he’s inclined to hug someone he meets, his handshake is strong and he has a direct gaze. His braided hair is carefully coifed atop his head like a crown.

He’s working now to provide the same mentorship he received to young men who also look like him. Through his non-profit he is matching minority business leaders with at-risk boys from Salisbury and Atlanta.

Senior Bonner Raises Awareness for Youth Justice Reforms

Senior Bonner Raises Awareness for Youth Justice Reforms

Benedict Roemer, ’19, is passionate about affecting social change. So when the opportunity to raise awareness for issues like mass incarceration and the racial wealth gap as an intern at Campaign for Youth Justice opened up, Roemer went for it.

Roemer, a double major in leadership studies and philosophy, politics, economics, and law, first encountered Campaign for Youth Justice at the Active Citizens Conference, which he attended as part of the Bonner Scholars Sophomore Exchange Program. After the conference, he stayed in touch with the organization through weekly emails and continued to engage with youth justice through the nonprofit ART 180, which provides arts programming for Richmond youth in juvenile detention.

Centre College Partners in Service at Grace Café

Centre College Partners in Service at Grace Café

Since its inception in 2015, Centre College students have been actively involved in the local “pay-as-you-can,” non-profit organization Grace Café. Today, Bonner Scholar Anna Bushong ‘21 stands as the youngest member to be inducted to the café’s board of directors.

She joins efforts with recent Centre graduate Margaux Crider ‘18, who servers as the café’s community outreach coordinator.

In her first year at the College, Bushong began working with Grace Café as her primary service site to fulfill her Bonner service hours. Committed to the mission of the café, she extended her work there through a summer internship, which led to the opportunity to serve as the Centre representative on the organization’s board of directors.  

“Anna brings a bright energy and presence to the café,” said Crider. “She has been a reliable and dedicated worker since the beginning. She is a humble leader, likely unaware of how much she inspires others.”

Once Homeless Bonner Beating the Odds

Once Homeless Bonner Beating the Odds

PINE HILLS, Fla. - Evans High School graduate Julien Serrano-O'Neil, 19, told News 6 he hopes his story of triumph and hardship will motivate and inspire other homeless and troubled youth that they can do whatever they put their minds to. 

O'Neil is a sophomore at Morehouse College, majoring in political science with a minor in philosophy.

Siena Bonner Student Research Unveils Pessimism, Opportunity

Siena Bonner Student Research Unveils Pessimism, Opportunity

Ivory Moore ’20 is feeling pretty good about her life chances these days. Moore grew up in the Capital Region and spent many hours at the Boys and Girls Club of Albany as a child. The formative experiences she enjoyed there provided direction and purpose.

This drive helped lead her to Siena College where she now develops curriculum for the Club as a Bonner Service Leader through the College’s Center for Academic and Community Engagement (ACE). Moore hopes this work will one day lead to a career – perhaps as a high school superintendent or maybe something even bigger: “I want to create my own high school!” 

Bonner Scholar Helps Support Grassroots Efforts in Kentucky

Bonner Scholar Helps Support Grassroots Efforts in Kentucky

Part of the prestigious Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty (SHECP) internship program, Shelby Boyd ’18, a Bonner Scholar, worked with a statewide organization called Kentuckians for the Commonwealth (KFTC) this summer.

The grassroots organization, with 10,000 members across Kentucky, aims to empower individuals to affect change, focusing on tax justice, environmental issues, healthcare and affordable housing, among other challenges.

As a community organizing intern, Boyd spent her time coordinating member meetings, training in tax justice and communication and planning events, specifically the fourth annual Smoketown Getdown for Democracy to celebrate Louisville’s Smoketown neighborhood.

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Lynchburg College Bonner Named Sommerville Scholar

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Lynchburg College Bonner Named Sommerville Scholar

Emily Horton ’18 said she “cried a little” when she found out that she’d been selected the 2017 Sommerville Scholar. The annual award, given since 1965 in memory of former professor Richard Clarke Sommerville, is the most prestigious academic accolade presented at Lynchburg.

A Bonner Leader,  Horton has volunteered with area nonprofits, among them Lynchburg Grows, Lynchburg Daily Bread, and the local humane society. This year, as a senior intern, she’s helping facilitate the program and run meetings.

Brown University Bonner Community Fellow Bilal Lafta '20 Excited to Work with Beat the Streets

Brown University Bonner Community Fellow Bilal Lafta '20 Excited to Work with Beat the Streets

This year, Swearer Center students are working in partnership with more than 90 community organizations. Some of these organizations have been community partners of the Swearer Center for years, others for just weeks. Bonner Community Fellow Bilal Lafta '20 is working on building a relationship between Swearer and Beat the Streets, an organization that works to bring after-school wrestling programs into middle schools across the state. He talks here about why Beat the Streets' work is so important and some of the exciting possibilities of the new partnership.

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Three DePauw Bonners Win Prestigious Gilman International Scholarships

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Three DePauw Bonners Win Prestigious Gilman International Scholarships

Five DePauw University students will spend the Fall 2017 semester studying abroad after winning Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships. Three of the five are Bonner Scholars at DePauw.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the Gilman International Scholarship Program offers grants for U.S. citizen undergraduate students of limited financial means to pursue academic studies or credit-bearing, career-oriented internships abroad. Such international exchange is intended to better prepare U.S. students to assume significant roles in an increasingly global economy and interdependent world.

Lynchburg Bonner Summer Internships through Shepherd Higher Education Consortium

Lynchburg Bonner Summer Internships through Shepherd Higher Education Consortium

For eight weeks, Marissa Bucklew ’18 worked with the Atlanta Community Food Bank and its many community gardens, while Elise Togbe ’18 spent her summer in Louisville, teaching refugees and immigrants at Americana Community Center. Both internships were sponsored by the Shepherd Higher Education Consortium on Poverty.

The internships connected well with the mission of Lynchburg College’s Bonner Leader Program, in which students spend two or three years working in the community on issues like education, hunger, homelessness, or sustainability. “This is an extension of what Bonner is about, understanding and becoming more involved in poverty,” Anne Gibbons, director of LC’s Bonner Leader Program. “SHECP has sent interns all over the country to organizations and nonprofits, working to address poverty.”

Showing Up: Jonathan Sheperd-Smith ’18, Davidson Bonner, Leads In Service

Showing Up: Jonathan Sheperd-Smith ’18, Davidson Bonner, Leads In Service

Jonathan Sheperd-Smith, an economics and anthropology double major, doesn't believe in service for the sake of service. The Bonner Scholar, Brown Scholar, Terry Fellow and football captain from Atlanta, Georgia, uses his service requirements at Davidson to engage more deeply with the community.

As part of his work with the Bonner Scholars Program, Sheperd-Smith created the DuBoisian World Scholars Society. The group, with a name inspired by W.E.B. DuBois, focuses on closing the information gap for low income minority kids in the hope of inspiring them to become stakeholders in their educational experiences.

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Christopher Newport Bonner Wins Social Work Student of the Year Award

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Christopher Newport Bonner Wins Social Work Student of the Year Award

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Virginia Chapter has awarded Christopher Newport University senior Abbey Yoder the 2017 Bachelor’s in Social Work Student of the Year Award. Yoder was recognized for her outstanding academic work, leadership qualities and accomplishments in field work.

Yoder, a Bonner Service Scholar, works with a local refugee resettlement agency to improve the lives of Bhutanese refugees in Newport News.