2009 ANNUAL REPORT OF PROGRAM ACTIVITIES

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

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)

The developmental model is being implemented at UC, and we have made important strides in the last year.  Of particular note is our effort to match new Bonners with current Bonners at a community partner, who help to familiarize the new Bonner with the community partner and the role Ursinus has played in the partnership.    

Last year, the UC Bonners met every Friday afternoon for our Bonner Leader Class.  The class focused on the Bonner Common Commitments.  We read several books and articles as a group, and we discussed them, such as Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed.  The students were also required to write three reflection papers throughout the semester, in which the student is to take a step back from his or her service and ponder the underlying causes of the human needs addressed at their service sites.  Moreover, students were periodically assigned to respond to their fellow Bonners on our new UC Bonner Blog.  We would often see a play or read an article, and their assignment for the next week would be to blog their reactions. This was particularly successful.  The eloquence of the writing by some students was astounding, and it was very interesting to see them build off the thoughts of each other, facilitated by the social networking tool.  Students received one academic credit for being enrolled in the Bonner Leader Class.  Our class time also was a time for the students to advertise the needs of their community partners and/or projects to each other.

All of the Bonners were invited to participate in our Spring Break service trip to Biloxi, MS.  With the exception of two, all the Bonners attended.  It was a very rewarding experience.  I noticed a new commitment to Bonner at UC upon the conclusion of that trip.  We bonded as a group and the trip did much to solidify our identity.  With our group larger next year, first-year Bonners will likely take the service trip, and the second-years will participate in a campus exchange.

We have started to integrate Serve 2.0 at Ursinus, with students taking on leadership roles.  Bonner Leader Geovanni Velez, who headed up our UC Community Day efforts, started a wiki page for that event.  This was helpful because such an event requires a lot of communication and collaboration.  The students also were very excited about the Bonner Video Project.  They were thrilled to be selected for a BVP award at SLI!  There is still much good work to be done, and we are currently working on the development of a virtual community service center at Ursinus, which will link to community partners.   

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

Last year, UC Bonners had relationships with 9 community partners.  The community partners were the following:  ACLAMO After-School Program, Head Start, America Reads, Philadelphia Public Library, Perkiomen Valley High School, Fellowship Farm, Catholic Social Services, Manna on Main Street, and St. Christopher's Children's Hospital.  Some of these sites were pre-existing, when Christian Rice was hired as the full-time coordinator last August.  Christian had direct communication at some point with nearly all of these sites, and he arranged a site visit with several of them.  

We have not yet utilized partners as co-educators to the extent that we hope, but we will be using a community partner during this fall's orientation.  One of our new community partners, Fellowship Farm, is a "training center for human relations."  Christian has attended their annual board meeting and several of their events and lectures in the past year.  Since they have expertise in the field of leadership training and diversity education, we are seeking an ongoing relationship with them as co-educators.  We believe that the UC Bonners can benefit greatly from their expertise.

Our next step is to push for the implementation of community-based research at Ursinus.  Currently, we are developing curricular architecture for a major and minor in Social Justice Studies, which will contain an internship requirement and require students to develop a research project in conjunction with a community partner.  

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.

The Bonner Program at Ursinus is a centerpiece of Ursinus's overall commitment to a campus-wide culture of service.  The College encourages students to develop their own passion for service work.  Last year, there were many service initiatives that were student-initiated and student-led.  Bonner students took the lead on several of these service initiatives. 

Without question, there has been intentional emphasis placed on the greater institutionalization of service and civic engagement at Ursinus this past year.  The hiring of Christian Rice as the Bonner Director has been an important step.  Christian also serves on the faculty, and this has given the Bonner Program new credibility in the eyes of faculty.  Christian chairs two committees, both of which contain a mix of faculty, staff, and students.  One committee--the Community Service Task Force--focuses on ways that a commitment to community service at UC can be enhanced.  The goal of this committee has been to build service connections across the campus and make service a more visible component at UC.  To that end, the committee proposed the development of a Community Service Center to the President this past April, and our proposal was approved.  This is an exciting breakthrough, as we believe the presence of a community service center (wherein the Bonner office will be located) will serve as the central location for students interested in service and civic engagement at UC.  Another exciting development is the projected creation of a website dedicated to all things service at UC.  We hope to unveil the website around the same time that we have our grand opening for our Interim Community Service Center at UC this fall.         

These recent developments have received excellent administrative support from the President's Office.  In addition to giving us a free-standing building for the Fall of '10 for our Community Service Center, funding has been increased for transportation to and from service sites and for there to be community service interns.  With respect to the Bonner Program specifically, the President has agreed to give an annual scholarship to all students enrolled in the UC Bonner Program. 

Ursinus has taken several steps this past year that demonstrate well our efforts for greater institutionalization of a commitment to Bonner and its ideals. 

Serve 2.0 

Please highlight your key activities related to the integration of web-based tools as they are connected to the design, management, and outreach for service.  In particular, share  (no more than one page text needed):

• Link to your campus-wide service center or Bonner Program wiki ,web-site, or Ning site. Please explain how it’s most used and by whom.
• Your integration with other social media tools (such as the Bonner Network Forum/Ning, Twitter, YouTube, the Bonner Video Project, PolicyOptions Wiki, or others)

We are currently in the process of developing a virtual community service center, which should be up and running by the end of summer '09.  On this site, students will be able to view the campus organizations that participate in service, including a page for the UC Bonners.  We believe this site will function as a virtual hub for those students with interests in service and civic engagement at UC. 

This past year we used social media tools in the following ways:

1. Bonner Leader Geovanni Velez created a wiki page for UC Community Days.  This enabled all of the Bonners to communicate with each other to plan the event.

2.  The new Ursinus Bonner Blog--http://bonnerursinus.wordpress.com/--has been a very effective tool that the Bonners are using to share their reflections on readings and artistic performances related to the Bonner mission.  

3.  Finally, UC participated in the Bonner Video Project this past year.  We made and submitted four new videos with our FlipCam, and the UC Bonners even took home a prize at SLI for their campus profile video! 

Campus Issue Profiles

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

•   http://bonnernetwork.pbworks.com/Education+%3E+Elementary+-+Ursinus+College