Student Profile

Student Explores Identity Theory Through Community Work

Student Explores Identity Theory Through Community Work

Kelsey Ensign, ’15, remembers the exact moment she decided to transfer to University of Richmond. Following a conversation with Bonner Scholar Emily Blevins, ’13, who attended Ensign’s Chattanooga, Tenn., high school, Ensign logged into her computer to learn more about the work Blevins was doing through the University of Richmond’s Bonner Center for Civic Engagement (CCE).

“I vividly remember sitting in my dorm room exploring the CCE home page,” Ensign says. “I looked at all the community partners and thought I could learn a lot about civic engagement and myself at University of Richmond.”

Scholar Connects the South's Racially Charged History with Service and Coursework

Scholar Connects the South's Racially Charged History with Service and Coursework

When I applied to the University of Richmond, I asked Gil Villanueva in the Office of Admissions what one piece of advice he would offer an incoming Spider. What hadn’t students taken advantage of that they should have? He replied without hesitation: “Take advantage of the city.”

It didn’t take much convincing. Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy, has historic truths in its veins; provocative stories echo through the halls of museums and on battlefields where the North and South fought, brother against brother. As a lover of American history and political science, I was hooked.

Bonner Scholar Reflects on the Power and Importance of Listening to Others' Stories

Bonner Scholar Reflects on the Power and Importance of Listening to Others' Stories

In a written reflection from the beginning of my senior year, I began describing a person whom I know through service by using an excerpt from the first chapter of Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben’s “Remnants of Auschwitz,” which I read for a French class the year before.

The chapter is entitled “The Witness,” and in this excerpt, Agamben quotes an interview with Primo Levi – a Jewish Italian chemist, writer, and Holocaust survivor. In the excerpt, Levi talks about himself in direct comparison to the classic trope of the sailor who must tell everyone his tale:

"Human Strength" is Motivating Factor for Bonner Scholar and Lacrosse Player

"Human Strength" is Motivating Factor for Bonner Scholar and Lacrosse Player

In nearly four years as a Spider, Russell Gong, ’11, has never looked back on his decision to pass up offers to play Division I lacrosse and instead attend the University of Richmond. With his record of leadership and civic engagement on campus — plus a consulting job waiting for him after graduation — why would he?

Gong, who grew up in Singapore and Fairfax, Va., was a regional lacrosse standout and was captain of his high school’s varsity lacrosse and football teams. But athletics captured only part of his attention; ever since a summer restaurant job washing dishes, he has wanted to work with refugees and immigrants.

“In the kitchen, I witnessed traumatic abuses against Mexican immigrant workers,” he says. “From there, I focused my college efforts toward social justice and community inclusion issues.”

Deconstructing Service: Bonner Reflects on his Four Years of Community Service

Deconstructing Service: Bonner Reflects on his Four Years of Community Service

Good afternoon.

For those of you who don't know me very well, I'm Sean Hickey, a senior intern for the Bonner Scholars Program. Before becoming a senior intern, I volunteered at Henderson Middle School as an after-school program leader with the Middle School Renaissance (MSR) program.

My time there caused me to ask many questions of myself, of the public school system, and of volunteering/service writ large. These questions were almost always stimulated by theoretical concepts I studied in courses taken here at UR.

The most grandiose of these questions was, if what we do today is later found to have a bad result, even though we think of our actions and service as good, than have we been doing bad things all along? Does this then mean we should always assume that our service is inherently bad or wrong in order to critically and constantly question our service and ourselves?

Davidson Bonner's Selfless Embrace of Community Causes Garners Statewide Recognition

Davidson Bonner's Selfless Embrace of Community Causes Garners Statewide Recognition

Davidson Senior Melodie Mendez is among 17 North Carolina student winners of the 2012 "Community Impact Award" from Campus Compact, a national coalition that promotes civic engagement in higher education. The award was announced just days before she was also named as senior class recipient of the college's Goodwin-Exxon award for high standards of character, friendliness and consideration for others.

Davidson Bonner Receives Algernon Sydney Sullivan Student Award

Davidson Bonner Receives Algernon Sydney Sullivan Student Award

Our student  recipient of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award goes to a young woman from Davidson, North Carolina.  She is an English major and ethnic studies concentrator. She has spent four years as a Bonner Scholar, and according to one, is the leader within the group, organizing the ideas and initiatives of her peers to bring to action. Her primary focus is on youth advocacy, whether tutoring at a local elementary school, The LEARNWORKS afterschool program at Ada Jenkins, or as a Servant Leader for the Freedom Schools in the summer.

Maryville Bonner Makes a Difference Among Special-Needs Adults

Maryville Bonner Makes a Difference Among Special-Needs Adults

At first, Elizabeth Dunn wondered how in the world she could fit community service into her college schedule.

Now she wonders how in the world she could have ignored her volunteer spirit.

Dunn, a first-year student at Maryville College, is a Bonner Scholar. In exchange for scholarship dollars, she volunteers at least 40 hours monthly at the Gateway to Independence, a local non-profit agency whose mission is to help young adults with disabilities to achieve independence by providing them with vocational training and social activities.

Dustin Bruner Find His Calling at Centre as a First Generation Graduate

Dustin Bruner Find His Calling at Centre as a First Generation Graduate

When first-generation college graduate Dustin Bruner ’16 started his career at Centre College, he had a concrete idea of where his life was headed. But by the time he received his Centre diploma after graduating in May, his life—and his interests—had changed drastically.

Bruner had every intention of pursuing pre-med studies to become a doctor when he enrolled at Centre. But the variety of classes he took began to change his mind.

Maryville Bonner Starts Food Recovery Network Chapter

Maryville Bonner Starts Food Recovery Network Chapter

When Maryville College senior Brandon Denney ’16 began volunteering at local service sites, food became his focus.

As a Bonner Scholar, Denney spends 10 hours a week volunteering at local non-profits. Through his volunteer work, he witnessed food waste firsthand at various jobs and volunteer sites.

While volunteering at a local afterschool program, he also noticed that students in the program had access to healthy and nutritious food that many similar programs were unable to provide.

Mamta Gurung Named Public Health Fellow

Mamta Gurung Named Public Health Fellow

Mamta Gurung ’18, who is majoring in accounting, has been named the first Bonner Center Public Health Fellow in recognition of her work, including tutoring, mentoring and educating, members of international and immigrant communities.

The purpose of this new fellowship is to draw attention to significant health issues that can no longer be classed as local or international but must be regarded in an ever-shrinking world as both. Therefore, the Public Health Fellow is charged with exploring mentored, real-world experiences located here in the region and internationally.

Sewanee Bonner is "Opening the Scope of Masculinity" for High Schoolers

Sewanee Bonner is "Opening the Scope of Masculinity" for High Schoolers

For the last two years, Davis and his fellow Sewanee student leaders have gathered groups of boys at Grundy County High twice a week for this program, which they named “Man Up.” Davis is a Bonner Leader, a participant in a service internship and leadership program that sends students into Sewanee and neighboring communities to serve in a variety of ways. Davis and other Bonner Leaders founded the Man Up program in 2014 after talking to another Bonner Leader who had started a regular women’s empowerment luncheon at GCHS and thought the boys in the school could use a program made just for them.

Richmond Student Exemplifies Servant Leadership Through Her Work with Children and Education

Richmond Student Exemplifies Servant Leadership Through Her Work with Children and Education

The Bonner Scholars Program and the Jepson School of Leadership Studies sold Colleen Connolly, '14, on the University of Richmond when she visited campus as a high school student. Now Connolly is combining a double major in leadership studies and political science with her Bonner Scholars service in order to study children in educational settings from many different perspectives. In the process, she has learned not only how to serve, but how to lead.

Richmond Student Works with City Government on Poverty Issues

Richmond Student Works with City Government on Poverty Issues

Kevin Wilson, ’13, embraces political and government service as a means of working for the betterment of society.

During his senior year in high school, the Franklinville, N.J., native served as an advisor to President Barack Obama’s election campaign and as a member of Obama’s transition team. Following his high school graduation, he worked as a summer consultant for the Domestic Policy Council, which oversees the development and implementation of the president’s domestic-policy agenda.

 

Berea Student Launches "Cans for a Cause"

Berea Student Launches "Cans for a Cause"

Never accuse Aaron Hannah of not being ambitious and failing to set high goals for himself.

Later this month, Hannah, a 19-year-old 2012 graduate of Raceland-Worthington High School, will launch what is essentially a one-man food drive. His goal: to collect at least 10,000 pounds of canned food for River Cities Harvest to distribute to local nonprofits and churches that help feed the hungry.

Centre Bonner Student Recognized for Outstanding Community Service

Centre Bonner Student Recognized for Outstanding Community Service

As a member of Centre College’s Bonner program, Megan Radenhausen ’14 is no stranger to community service; however, she took the College’s culture of service to a new level this past fall semester, logging 1,300 hours at Bluegrass Rape Crisis Center (BRCC), a feat which earned her BRCC’s volunteerism commitment award.

BRCC is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide refuge for victims of sexual assault, to advocate for victims and to educate the community about sexual assault and human trafficking. BRCC provides crisis intervention, therapy, advocacy and education services to 17 counties in the Bluegrass Region. All services offered are free of charge, including a 24-hour hotline.

Summer Student Work: Tracey '15 Explains Men's Work in Combatting Domestic Violence

Summer Student Work: Tracey '15 Explains Men's Work in Combatting Domestic Violence

Cody Tracey ’15 of Baltimore received a 2013 Harward Summer Student Fellowship to work at the Boston-based Jane Doe Inc., a coalition of 60 local member programs working together with allies to find lasting solutions that promote the safety, liberty, and dignity for victims and survivors of sexual and domestic violence.

Internships Benefit United Way, Local Latino Community, and Maryville Students

Internships Benefit United Way, Local Latino Community, and Maryville Students

Maryville College juniors Jose Perez ‘15 and Owen Shelnutt ‘15 completed summer internships at the United Way of Blount County that provided valuable work for the non-profit while providing relevant, real-world experience for the students.

Both Perez and Shelnutt completed the internship as a part of their Bonner Scholarship summer service requirements.

Perez, a psychology major with minors in sociology and Spanish, was able to provide the United Way of Blount County with important information that will help with future outreach efforts for the local Latino community.

During his internship, Perez worked on translating the United Way's needs assessment survey into Spanish, delivering it to many local businesses. He also hosted several community conversations to get a deeper understanding of the aspirations and needs of the Latino population of Blount County.

Voice of America Internship Helps Shape Student's Future in Human Rights Law

Voice of America Internship Helps Shape Student's Future in Human Rights Law


It took exactly two weeks for Voice of America to hook Diane Gremillion. She interned for a short stint just before her first year at Richmond.

Her time at the country’s official external broadcast institution was typically hectic: She helped plan journalist training for coverage of an H1N1 outbreak in Hong Kong. There was famine in Somalia. And she was also asked to interview the second lady, Dr. Jill Biden.

"I immediately wanted to go back to that experience," Gremillion says. "International journalism and human rights fascinated me."

First-Gen

First-Gen

Every summer of her college career, Jocelyne Cardona ’14 (San Jose, Calif.) wondered if this would be the year she couldn’t afford to return to campus. “It was always a struggle to know if I could financially work it out,” she says. Melissa Larson ’14 (Round Lake, Ill.) spent her college summers not traveling in Europe or racking up impressive internships but working as many hours as she could get at the nearby Six Flags amusement park. Jinath Tasnim ’16 (Dallas) regularly declines invitations from classmates to visit their East or West Coast homes. “There’s no way I could justify that expense to my parents,” she says.