College of New Jersey-2009 Annual Report

Page history last edited by pdonohue@tcnj.edu 3 mos ago

2009 ANNUAL REPORT OF PROGRAM ACTIVITIES

Please add narrative text that responds to the questions in the four categories below.

  1. Implementation of Student Development
  2. Implementation of Community Partnerships
  3. Campus-Wide Culture and Infrastructure 
  4. Serve 2.0 
  5. Campus Issue Profiles

 

Implementation of Student Development

What was the structure and content for the implementation of the developmental model this year?  In particular, please share (no more than one page text needed):

  • The Structure for training, courses, & meetings
  • Cornerstone Activities including First Year Trip, Second Year Exchange, Third Year (and beyond) Leadership Roles, and Senior Capstone & Presentation of Learning
  • Roles of Student Leaders in integration of the Serve 2.0 initiative (e.g., developing and using web-based tools for service)

 

Our season or structure for training begins prior to the start of the academic year, when Bonners and others (e.g. athletes) are allowed to move on  campus early.  This is a four day event.  When classes begin, the Bonners are enrolled in the same First Year Seminar Course (Social Justice and Student Leadership); in addition, they are all housed together for the year.  In addition, all Bonners meet on a weekly basis for 90 minutes.  In a typical month, one meeting will focus on corps-wide issues and needs (organizing or training); one will have different sessions for each class (based on their student development level); and two will create the space for teams to work on their site-specific service projects.

 

Bonners also participate in a range of cornerstone activities.   On an annual basis, First Year Bonners participate in a Hurricane Katrina trip.  This trip is loaded with educational sessions and reflection opportunities (nightly conversations as well as a blog so the campus community can learn about the trip).   Upper level Bonners, Senior Bonner Interns and Democracy Project fellows lead the trip.  Each year, this inspires Bonners and other TCNJ students to return and organize at least two additional trips during the school year.    Students almost always provide a large campus-wide presentation on their trip.

 

For the most part, TCNJ Bonners have not traditionally engaged in Second Year Exchanges—except for their participation in a number of conferences that provide them with the opportunity to interact with their peers (as well as present).  TCNJ consistently sends a largest contingent to Bonner Congress and the Summer Leadership Institute.    However, starting this past summer, TCNJ Bonners now participate in a “capstone” international educational/service trip.  This year the team collaborated with Witness for Peace and also met with some non profit organizations that could be service partners in the future.

 

In terms of presentations (beyond Katrina), the staff has made an effort to consider how we could integrate Bonners into the campus-wide Student Achievement Day.  On this day, seniors deliver presentations on their capstone research or other projects to faculty and staff in classrooms throughout the campus.

 

Finally, our Serve 2.0 initiative provided a number of leadership opportunities for our students.   First, the students helped us develop an internal and external wiki.  The internal wiki is used to help us plan specific events (e.g. CEL Days) as well as focus our Bonner Teams (e.g. via Site Plans).    Second, they have used Facebook and other tools to organize and recruit non Bonners to participate in Critical Issue Forums.   Third, students have created and utilized blogs during their New Orleans and Nicaragua trips. Fourth, one of our Site Leaders used Twitter to help us more effectively inform Bonners about meetings and changes to our schedule.  Finally, student leaders have created 4 flip camera videos that are posted on our wiki site.

 

In addition, Center staff created a wiki called Sustainable TCNJ for a community of faculty, staff and students who are working on a series of ongoing projects focused on a range of issues—including global warming and environmental justice.

 

 

 

Implementation of Community Partnerships

Please share a summary of your work with community partners, highlighting your work regarding  (no more than one page text needed):

  •  Arrangement and management of community partnerships and placements (orientation, site visits, meetings, strategic planning)
  •  How partners were engaged as co-educators, including academic linkages, courses, and student advising
  • Partnerships managed through site-based or issue-oriented teams, as well as other issue-based organizing undertaken
  • Capacity building initiatives for community partners (such as workshops, policy research, or resource development)

 

When choosing community partners for our Bonner program, we consider a variety of factors, including: if the non-profit is working on a critical issue or area of need; if the non-profit has the right leadership to take advantage of the capacity-building opportunities available via the partnership (e.g. direct service, community based research, issue briefs etc…); if the non-profit expands the range of issues our program is working on; and, if the non-profit has an interest in working together on resource development projects.

 

Our management system has evolved and is still a work in progress.  It begins in August, when partners meet with their teams for a full day of Site Planning and training.   Each team has a Student Site Leader, a Community Partner Leader, and now a staff Site Manager; each member of our staff is responsible for two teams.  In general, their role is to ensure that each team completes a solid Site Plan and stays on track during the year.  Teams meet at least twice a month.  All parties reconvene during Winter break for a second planning and adjustment session.  During the summer the staff and student interns assess the partners—and make changes.  

 

In addition to delivering training sessions, partners have also played a co-educator role during CEL Days—when they meet with first year students to educate them before the start of their day.  They have also participated in on-campus Critical Issue Forums and appeared in a handful of classes during the year.  To compensate them for their time, each partner is usually offered an honorarium.  Beyond this, there is often a substantial amount of advising that takes place at the service site.

  

In terms of capacity building, we utilize a team based model in an effort to maximize our impact at each site.  In addition, CEL Days are designed to recruit other volunteers for our partner sites.  Also, the Youth Development Institute and other similar projects with FSP CEL courses has also allowed us to expand the amount of training opportunities our partners can deliver on their own.  In addition, each team worked on issue briefs this year--a practice that we will further refine and continue each year.   Finally, we have worked on several joint grant-writing projects with partners, receiving support from both corporations and government agencies.

 

http://tcnjserves.pbworks.com/Community-Partners 

Campus-Wide Culture and Infrastructure 

Please describe key activities and structures related to the development of campus-wide infrastructure and the role of the Bonner Program in enhancing (or being enhanced by) campus-wide culture and participation in service.  In particular, share  (no more than one page text needed):

  • Key activities for faculty engagement and academic connections.  In particular, note any connections to curricular offerings that are linked to the Bonner Program.
  • Key relationships and activities involving other departments or divisions on campus (for example for recruitment, student wellness or retention, financial aid, and so on).
  • Unique initiatives (such as events, assessment, or strategic planning) that have enhanced institutionalization of service and civic engagement on campus.

 

As noted in other sections and reports, we have integrated the Bonner Scholars Program with the First Year Community Engaged Learning graduation requirement three years ago.  As a result, Bonner students organize and mobilize all 1300 first year students via a curricular or co-curricular track.   This has had a dramatic impact on the visibility of the program as well as the culture of the institution.  It has also further institutionalized the Bonner program at TCNJ.

 

A key component of this organizing strategy is the placement of Bonner students on every other floor in the first year dorms.   These CEL Advisors live on these floors, organize the students, and create pre and post CEL Day enrichment activities.  They are also there to make it easier for students to learn about volunteer opportunities and sustain their involvement.

 

The most dramatic change, perhaps, has been the growth of FSP professors working with Bonner Scholars and the Center (from 9 a few years ago to nearly 40).  It has led to the creation of a new annual event—when professors present their work to the rest of the community (at the end of the fall semester).  Since FSP professors teach other courses, we have also seen an increased number of upper level CEL classes coming on line with our assistance.  To view the current plans and the organizational tool for the FSP classes please visit http://tcnjbonner.pbworks.com/CEL-+FSP+Organizers+Wiki+Page.

 

In terms of key relationships (that have not been reported on in previous years), the most important one during the last year pertains to the faculty in general—and not one individual department.   The Center has reached a new level in terms of faculty recognition and respect.   While much work needs to be done—this is not a source of strength for the program.   Recently, for example, the Bonner Center was approached by the faculty union.  All faculty members must take a few furlough days due to the budget situation—and a movement has started to spend one day working on a service project.  The Bonner Center was asked by the faculty to help shape and organize.

 

Serve 2.0 

 

The Bonner Center is the main campus service center and its web page has a link to our Community Engaged Learning Wiki: http://tcnjserves.pbworks.com/.   While this site has not yet reached its potential—we have begun to use it in a few useful ways: to inform the larger campus community about our programs; to provide contact information for each team, so potential Volunteers can reach the correct person; to provide information about our community partners to other interested faculty and students, who may wish to develop their own projects; and to provide snapshots or summaries of CEL projects in relatively “real” time.  (This last feature makes it easier for new partners to envision what is possible as well as to generate some excitement among actual participants.    In an effort to make improvements in this area next year, we will organize a small Social Media Team with Bonners and potentially a Graduate Assistant.)

 

We have more effectively used wiki pages to foster collaboration and communication amongst students and staff who are working together on service projects.  Our internal wiki (http://tcnjbonner.pbworks.com/) includes working sections and pages for the following initiatives, including:  the development of FSP CEL courses; CEL I Day Planning; the Summer 2009 Servathon; Policy Options; Summer Interns/Projects; and Site Plans (for each team).  It also has a section that teaches students how to edit flip camera films.

 

In addition, we are also using the internal wiki to improve our efficiency on a daily or weekly basis during the academic year.   It now includes a section that includes an Operations Manual (this is one of the Summer Intern projects) which covers a range of topics, including: how to reserve a room; how to reserve a van; how to use the Center’s Purchasing Card.  It also contains a section for major processes and events.  For example, it details all of the steps that are taken to successfully recruit an incoming class of Bonners—and provides all of the outreach materials.  It does the same for major events—such as the annual service trips to New Orleans and Nicaragua.  This will save students and staff a considerable amount of time. 

 

http://tcnjserves.pbworks.com/Bonner-Video-Project 

Campus Issue Profiles

Add links to your completed or draft campus issue profiles here:

 

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