Name of Your Proposal
Background
The College of Charleston was founded in 1770 and charted in 1785. The College is the oldest institution of higher learning in South Carolina and the 13th oldest in the United States. Three of our founders signed the Declaration of Independence, and three of our founders worked on the U.S. Constitution. The City of Charleston is unique in many aspects, allowing for our Bonner Leaders to immerse themselves in many aspects of our unique community.
The Bonner Leader Program was founded at the College in 2008 by two students who worked dilligently within the community for their entire college career. They learned about the program at the 2008 IMPACT Conference, and believed it would be an excellent opportunity for growth at our institution and community.
Big Idea
Our Bonner Leader Program would like to facilitate four sessions on HIV/AIDS awareness with the College of Charleston Upward Bound students. The curriculum was designed by Dr. Nghana Lewis of Tulane University. "The goal of this curriculum is to introduce youth between the ages of 11 and 18 to clinical, social, and cultural definitions of HIV and AIDS; modes of transmitting the HIV virus; and best practices for preventing the spread of HIV and AIDS through the use of instrucitonal tools and resources derived from hip hop culture."
Plan of Action
Our Big Idea will include College of Charleston Bonner Leaders, College of Charleston student volunteers, Upward Bound students with parental consent, and Upward Bound faculty. The idea for this program stemmed from networking at the 2009 IMPACT Conference; therefore, by attending the Bonner Congress, College of Charleston Representatives will have the opportunity to attend sessions and network with other students with ideas and experience in HIV/AIDS awareness and education. In the United States, of all diagnosed cases of HIV/AIDS, minorities are approximately 65% (Avert) of the total number. Considering statistitics and the population of students the program will include, the curriculum is working to bring awareness to an appropriate audience.
Upward Bound students attend academic enrichment sessions each Saturday of the academic school year. The awareness course would be held Saturday afternoons, including all students that have returned their consent forms. Our Bonner Leaders, volunteers, and a College of Charleston Health Educator will work directly with the Upward Bound students to implement the curriculum.
Post Bonner Congress
The Bonner Leaders have been divided into four teaching teams according to their interests. Each teaching team is required to create a lesson that meets the objective of their session topic. Topics include the following: Basic Facts and Fictions, Prevention and Treatment, Communities of Color/Stigmatizing and Stereotyping, and Promiscuous Girl(s and Boys).
Conclusion
College of Charleston Bonner Leaders are working to implement our Big Idea in order to improve the awareness and knowledge of disadvantaged youth in our area.
Review the guidelines on the project before getting started: Bonner Congress Project Proposal Guidelines.pdf
For a written proposal example click here: Mock Congress Proposal .pdf
For a video example click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yz7Nbw7XFTI
Update - Report to Share in the 20th Anniversary Congress Booklet
We intend to create a beautifully designed book to be distributed at the 20th Anniversary Summer Leadership Institute that shares with the entire Bonner Network the work of Congress Representatives in 2009-2010 on their big ideas. Please write your report in the format below. For an example, click on this page: http://bonnernetwork.pbworks.com/Big-Idea-Summaries
1) Awareness of the Unknown: Breaking the Silence on HIV/AIDS.
2) The Case: HIV/AIDS is one of the most rapidly growing sexually transmitted diseases and is affecting the Charleston, SC area heavily. As an abstinence only education state, many high school students in South Carolina are not getting the type of education necessary to effectively prevent transmission and spreading of the disease.
3) The Solution: To address this growing problem, Bonner Leader students at the College of Charleston decided to teach a series of four HIV/AIDS awareness sessions to high school students that were a part of the Upward Bound Program with the College of Charleston.
4) The Process: First, in order to become "experts" in the area of HIV/AIDS, members of the Bonner Leader Program first received education on the issue during their weekly meeting. Next, the students participated in a week long winter break service trip that focused on HIV/AIDS in New Orleans.
Upon returning, the Bonner Leaders were separated into teaching teams that enabled them to focus most directly on one or two specific issues within the larger topic of HIV/AIDS (ex. basic facts, HIV and people of color, treatment and prevention, facts in focus). The Bonner Leaders creatively designed lesson plans including games, trivia, skits and an option to ask questions anonymously, that would engage the high school students.
Finally, Bonner Leader students reached out to the entire campus with a poetry spoken word event focused on breaking the silence on the disease on the College of Charleston campus.
The main purpose of addressing this issue was to bring the topic to many students that did not have the opportunity to intentionally or purposefully address the issue in their day to day education and activities. The goal was to empower the high school students to be aware of the disease and the different facts and stereotypes surrounding the issue, feel confident sharing their knowledge with others, and to know how to protect themselves in the future.
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Please upload 2-3 relevant photos (of your Reps, project, etc.). Try to select photos that have high resolution quality. This will appear in the booklet.
The deadline for this update if you want your school to be considered and included in the book is FRIDAY, APRIL 30th!
Reminders
March 2010
- March 19-21 — IMPACT Conference in Little Rock, AK
June 2010