Dinner celebrates 25 years of Bonner

Pres. of Bonner Foundation acts as event's keynote speaker

In connection with Waynesburg University’s Day of Service, the institution celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Bonner Scholarship through the Bonner Foundation.

On Saturday, March 18, past and present Bonner Scholars along with scholarship coordinators and university officials assembled in Alumni Hall for a dinner and a presentation by Dr. Robert Hackett, Bonner Foundation president.

Adrienne Tharp, coordinator of the Bonner Scholar Program, assisted with the planning of the event and said the process took over a year. Hearing about the legacy of the foundation, Tharp said, was important for the students present.

“It is fantastic having [Hackett] come here,” said Tharp. “I think a lot of students see the Bonner Foundation as this mysterious thing – we talk about it often – but having somebody here and actually talking about the legacy and the impact of this program and the history behind it and where it started and where it is now [is important].”

Hackett recounted the history of the foundation and the story of “vision and partnership” which was necessary for the successful program. However, at the start of the foundation, Hackett said most people did not realize the potential of the program.

“This name – Bonner – means so much to so many people,” said Hackett. “I don’t think people understood that would happen, but Mr. Bonner built things to last.”

Over the decades, Bonner Scholars have contributed to countless hours of community service and leadership. The hard work behind these motives, Hackett said, stims from passion.

“If you look around Bonner… [The scholars] will talk to anyone; they will help anyone; they will get up really early in the morning; they will stay up really late at night if that is what it takes,” said Hackett. “[Bonner Scholars] will do anything for somebody else – and that Bonner love isn’t this cutesy thing; it’s this deep abiding passion of showing compassion for the other.”

Across the network of more than 50 institutions involved in the Bonner Foundation, Hackett said Waynesburg University has stood out in its contribution.

“There is no campus in our network that has aligned itself more fully with the goals of the Bonner Foundation than [Waynesburg University],” said Hackett. “There is no school that I feel more like the Bonner Program has had a bigger impact than this university.”

Hackett said typically Bonner Scholars represent the majority of service hours at an institution; this is not the case at Waynesburg University. Over the past academic school year, Bonner Scholars at Waynesburg University have contributed over 17,000 hours of service, which is only a third of the total number of service hours accumulated by the university.

“I get very nervous when I see these numbers,” said Hackett. “I worry that Bonner is 80 percent of the total or 90 percent of the total; it’s barely a third [at Waynesburg University] and that is the most exciting thing possible about the future and where [this school is] headed.”

Waynesburg University President Douglas Lee said the scholarship at the university contributes to creating a mindset of service in students, which will have a lasting impact on society.

“Through the Bonner Scholars program, a generation of young leaders has become vital contributors to society through initiating thoughtful and strategic public service,” said Lee. “Coupled with our universities founding mission of faith, learning and serving, Waynesburg’s Bonner program has effectively developed and nurtured the servant hearts of it scholars for 25 years, resulting in individuals with a lifelong drive to serve.”

The impact of the program, Tharp said, could be seen in the Bonner Scholar alumni who attended the event.

“[It is] really neat seeing some former students coming back and sharing about their experiences with the current students and vice versa,” said Tharp. “[It’s] just so cool to still see the impact this program had on [the alumni] that they wanted to come back and be a part of this celebration.”

Daniel Garcia graduated as a Bonner Scholar in 2015 and was present at the assembly. Garcia said the mentality behind service followed him even after graduating from the program.

“In my first year of grad school I missed volunteering,” said Garcia. “I actually set up a way of finding organizations to volunteer [at] and I ended up volunteering at an elementary school – really just [continuing to] have that burning passion to serve after [graduating].”

During his years at Waynesburg University, Garcia said the scholarship created additional experiences he would have otherwise missed.

“It created a lot of opportunities to meet a variety of people,” said Garcia. “It also allowed me to build leadership skills and really confront real world problems.”

Junior athletic training major Melanie Byler has served as a Bonner Scholar over the past three years and said the program has helped her grow.

“It’s provided a really cool community and opportunity to build leadership skills,” said Byler. “It has also been very influential in helping me shape the kind of person I want to become.”

Looking forward, Byler said the program will be a baseline for her following graduation.

“I think [being a Bonner Scholar] is going to be foundational,” said Byler. “This program has allowed me to branch out and to try new things and definitely set me up for success by forcing me to be in a professional environment and working with professionals and grow in that skill.”

With the Bonner Foundation celebrating a 25-year anniversary, Hackett said he sees potential growth in the next quarter century. Outside of Bonner Scholars, Hackett said wants to see institutions develop other service-oriented programs for the students who are not involved in the Bonner Foundation.

“We would love to see [Waynesburg University] and other schools that have the Bonner Program have other service based scholarships in other people’s names to make it possible for students beyond the Bonner to do this,” said Hackett.

Additionally, Hackett said he hopes to see furthered integration of the program in the classrooms.

“[I want to see] more tightly connecting the needs and the opportunities to bring about change in the community in these issues with what students are learning in the classroom; more tightly integrating so it’s not strictly curricular, co-curricular, but a whole experience,” said Hackett. “[So] from the student perspective they don’t think of it as distinct, they think of it as one.”

With ideas to continue to grow the Bonner Foundation, Hackett said the program strives to make a lasting impact on a student.

“A lot of times we talk about training leaders for tomorrow,” said Hackett. “Our view is that’s procrastinating – why not now?”