Once a student is selected and enrolls in the Bonner Program, he or she commits to a series of expectations.

Each Bonner Leader is expected to:

• Attend orientation designed specifically for Bonner Leaders
• Serve an average of ten hours a week at a community service site during the school year
• Complete at least one full-time summer service internship
• Develop a community learning agreement with identified agency supervisors and Bonner coordinators that both outlines service and learning goals and describes the activities through which to achieve them
• Attend group reflection, enrichment, and leadership development activities
• Participate in a student developmental model that challenges and supports each Bonner Leader to develop his or her own skills, knowledge, commitments, and responsibilities
• Commit to working with a group of diverse but similarly engaged students
• Recommit to the program at the end of each year in the program

Five Stages of the Student Development Model

Expectation: Students apply and prepare for participation in the program.

Explore: First-year students are involved in a variety of service sites and activities including short-term service trips.

Experience: Second-year students are encouraged to focus on a particular issue within a single organization that enables them as Bonner Leaders to fully experience the operations and mission of a particular agency and to develop a better understanding of community issues. This approach also offers agencies consistent and reliable support to help run and manage their programs.

Example: By the third year, Bonner students are expected to take on expanded roles and responsibilities both on campus and in their communities. For many, this initiative translates into leadership positions with a campus service organization and/or a community agency.

Expertise: The Bonner Program works to identify interests and skills on the part of students and match them with community opportunities and needs. Students who have been involved in the Bonner Program are encouraged to integrate their academic pursuits and career interests with their service activities. As a result, sociology majors have become involved in research projects, English majors write annual reports, and communication majors assist with agencies’ public relations.