Connecting Service and Politics

Example (Third-Year) Stage

Goals/Objectives | Skill Development | Training & Enrichment | Cornerstones | Academic Connections

Goals/Objectives 

With two years of exploration and experience behind you, you have the opportunity to guide underclassmen through their first few years using what you learned. The third year offers you a unique opportunity to amplify your service by helping underclassmen realize their potential as you continue to pursue your own. In addition to these leadership opportunities, you will gain the skills to do public policy research in connection with your service site as well as the ability to articulate a range of solutions for the issues facing your service site. This research could be propelled by Community-Based Research training and education in preparation for developing a site- and issues- team action plan as well as your senior year capstone project. This way, you will be able to help underclassmen determine their role in the process as well as expanding your own role as truly understanding the policy behind the issues. This year will also give you the chance to draw connections between these issues and policies on the national and international level.

Skill Development

The third stage of this model will help you develop the following skills, knowledge, and values: 

     • ability to make thoughtful decisions about how you elect to participate in the political process, such as through voting, working for specific campaigns or issues, being involved in public education, participating in civic associations, doing policy research, formulating policy solutions, and so on.  

     • ability to research and interpret public policies connected to your service, as well as forming policy or other structural responses; policy-based knowledge give you the ability to articulate other courses of action and expand the impact of their work

     • more fully participating in a variety of civic engagement strategies to work for change on an issue (in a place); developing more complex service projects and responses to yield greater impact

Training, Enrichment & Reflection

As a Bonner, you'll be able to supplement your service work with meaningful reflection and activities. Through specific skill trainings, educational and spiritual enrichment activities, and personal and group reflection, you will be able to think about leading others in lots of new ways. These activities will help you develop the skills listed above that emphasize developing your understanding of the public policy that surrounds the issues your service site addresses as well as these same policies/issues in national and international contexts. The following sequence of events could be useful as a model for a year long commitment to exploring this level of civic agency. 

Cornerstone Activities

Connecting service and politics can also be accomplished through preexisting Bonner Program activities such as Junior Leadership roles, monthly and class-based meetings, site-based teams, and more. Click here for how to utilize these program features to achieve the goals and acquire the skills laid out in this model.

Academic Connections

Here's some ideas for how service and politics can connect in the classroom and complement service work to create a well-rounded developmental experience toward civic engagement. 

• Public Policy Course: have juniors enroll in a course based on legislative history and process, the role of an active citizen, and a history of social movements. It is highly recommended that this course explores and applies Community-Based Research techniques. This course should also include real-time analysis of policy on Capitol Hill.

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