The Bonner Foundation has selected five exceptional interns for the 2024 National Bonner Summer Internship program. These interns, from various universities and diverse academic backgrounds, will contribute to the Bonner network by developing resources, assisting in event planning, and working on strategic initiatives. The Bonner Foundation looks forward to the unique contributions these young leaders will make to the network.
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.
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.
Stephen Omukoko Okoth, Oberlin Bonner Scholar Class of 2025, was selected as one of three Earth Prize Mentors of the Year. The Earth Prize recognizes the students and schools with the best solutions to accelerate positive change towards environmental sustainability, as judged by The Earth Prize Adjudicating Panel. The Earth Prize 2023 will now recognize three Mentors with The Earth Prize Mentor of the Year award, as voted by the competition’s Participants.
Lloyd was recently named to GLAAD’s prestigious “20 Under 20” list of changemakers: a group of outstanding young people who are accelerating acceptance through their work in entertainment and media.
Madi Goetzke ’21 will spend a year traveling the world as a Watson fellow to analyze the role of communally-based cultural heritage sites which double as UNESCO-designated World Heritage Sites. Her project, Reimagining Access to Communal Cultural Heritage Sites, will take Goetzke through the Global South, including Panama, Malaysia, Nigeria, and Brazil.
Dr. Elvis Francois, Oberlin Bonner Scholar Class of 2008 and surgeon at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, has gone viral during the coronavirus pandemic singing such hopeful anthems as “Imagine.”
Article on NBC News Today Show
Click here to watch more video news stories below.
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.
Elvis Francois, Bonner grad from Oberlin College, and William Robinson are resident doctors at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, and they recently gained attention after a video of them singing in the hospital lobby went viral. Ellen chatted with them about their kind gesture, and the duo performed a cover of Mike Yung's "Alright."
This winter term, three first-years and one second-year student will have the opportunity to pursue independent study and creative projects as recipients of the Oberlin Shansi In-Asia Grant.
The award provides $1,500 to support individual initiatives east Asia, southeast Asia, or south Asia, including internships with non-governmental organizations, art explorations, environmental research, or other projects during winter term or summer. The award is open to first- through third-year students.
As in life, business often comes down to just a few moments. For a small throng of budding Oberlin student and alumni entrepreneurs, or “Oberlineurs,” one such moment happened in the Bertram and Judith Kohl Building on January 31.
The entrepreneurs participated in the third annual LaunchU venture accelerator and pitch competition. Evolved out of Oberlin’s signature Creativity & Leadership Program, LaunchU provides resources, training, advisors, connections, and investment capital to help start, accelerate, and grow Oberlin student, alumni, and faculty ventures.
