The Summer Leadership Institute is an annual event hosted by the Bonner Foundation that brings together over 300 students, administrators, faculty and partners. It is generally a four-day event held in late May or early June. The host campus gets to showcase its Bonner Program, engagement work and commitment to the community. To host, the campus must provide housing for 300-400 attendees, 15-20 classrooms, spaces for large and small group sessions, and arrange for meals. A student planning team of 12-15 students and 1-2 staff must plan logistics, programming and social activities. Programming must reflect the Bonner commitments and diversity. The Foundation covers all costs. Interested campuses must submit dates and a

1. Hosting the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute
About the Summer Leadership Institute
The Bonner Summer Leadership Institute (SLI) is the largest annual event for the
Bonner Network, bringing together 300+ students, administrators, faculty, and
representatives of local, national, and international organization partners for three
days of workshops, discussions, and networking. The Corella & Bertram F. Bonner
Foundation partners with a specific Bonner Program in the network every year to host
the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute on its campus. It is generally a four day event
that occurs during the last week of May or first week of June (so as to accommodate
programs with differing
academic calendars from
across the U.S.).
Hosting SLI is a wonderful
opportunity for the host
campus to showcase its
own Bonner Program,
c a m p u s - c o m m u n i t y
engagement, service-
learning and research, and
c o m m i t m e n t t o t h e
community. In addition, it
offers a high-powered
leadership development
opportunity to student and
staff organizers. This memo
outlines some of the
requirements for hosting
the annual meeting. We invite Bonner Programs to consider and apply for this
prestigious leadership role.
The Summer Leadership Institute generally includes two full days and two half days of
programming. While the blocks of the event may vary, below is a generic agenda for
the conference:
2019 Bonner Summer Leadership Institute, Waynesburg University,
Planning Team and Foundation Staff

2. First Day Second Day Third Day Final Day
Travel in Breakfast Breakfast Breakfast
Programming
(panels, workshops
or planning sessions)
Programming
(panels, workshops or
planning sessions)
Programming
(planning sessions)
Lunch Lunch Departure
Afternoon
registration
Programming
(panels, workshops
or planning sessions)
Programming
(panels, workshops or
planning sessions)
Dinner Dinner Dinner on your own
Opening All Group
Session
All Group Session Night off
Evening Social
Activities
Evening Social
Activities
Evening Social
Activities
2012 Bonner Summer Leadership Institute, Carson-Newman University, Foundation Staff
and students

3. Hosting Requirements
To host the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute, the hosting campus must be able to
provide the following:
I. Space & Facilities
Below you will find what kinds of facilities are generally needed. The Foundation has
worked with some institutions that have conference and event offices and others that
do not. Foundation staff will work with your team to determine the best way to
arrange the use of your space. The host campus keeps track of this and bills the
Foundation at the end.
Lodging:
• Participants are housed in dormitory style lodging, unless they choose to stay
off campus (at their own institutions’ expense).
• The host campus must be able to provide on-campus housing for all
participants typically ranging from 300 - 400 attendees. The Foundation will pay
for these costs, but the cost of this housing should be arranged as an internal
event fee (to the Bonner Program), so that it is minimum. To be affordable, the
cost of lodging is generally around $15-30 per person per night.
• Additionally, the host has to provide linens (sheets, towels, and pillow) for each
participant. Campuses with event services often have these supplies. Other
campuses have arranged rental or purchase (donating these linens to a local
nonprofit at the end). The cost of this is generally another $15 or so per person
(for the entire event).
Space and Audio Visual Needs:
• It is ideal that all buildings and rooms used should be ADA accessible.
Additionally, it is best to choose buildings that are within a reasonable walking
distance of each other during the event. Additionally, most or all of the rooms
should have audio-visual capabilities (such as a projector, screen, and sound) to
accommodate presentations in a variety of formats.
• One space should accommodate all-group sessions of roughly 350+
participants. This space is only used periodically for All Group Sessions.
• Three to four spaces should accommodate breakout sessions of roughly 50-100
participants each. It is best for these spaces to be open and multi-purpose (with

4. chairs and/or tables that can be set as desired). Some spaces, however, can be
lecture style rooms.
• R o u g h l y 1 5 - 2 0
classrooms or workshop
spaces are needed to
accommodate elective
workshop blocks of
r o u g h l y 2 0 - 4 0
participants each. It is
helpful to have these
classrooms available
any time of day during
the event.
• Some multi-purpose spaces (such as lounges, theaters, gymnasium, etc.) are
needed for social activities, which are planned by the student committees.
Meals:
• Working with campus dining services, the host campus helps arrange breakfast,
lunch, and dinner for the attendees for the duration of the conference. These
arrangements are generally made through Dining Services, using an internal
rate (i.e., what students would pay for breakfast, lunch, and dinner). Any meals
are also part of the bill. Daily rates for three meals tend to be around $30-40.
• In addition, Foundation staff will work with dining managers to arrange snacks
roughly 4-5 times throughout the conference. This is generally coffee, tea, juice,
and other light options. At times, students will staff the breaks (which are set up
in hallways or outside during breaks.
II. Student Planning Team
A crucial aspect of hosting a successful Bonner Summer Leadership is the Student
Planning Team. The team should be comprised of:
• One or more administrative staff leader(s) (who are also Bonner Directors
and/or Coordinators)
• 12-15 Bonner students who will then choose and work on one of three
committees: Logistics, Programming, and Social
2018 Bonner Summer Leadership Institute, Wagner College,
All-Group Session Speakers

5. • Three (or so) Student Leads or “Chairs” who will oversee the committees
The Foundation staff plays a major role in the planning of each SLI event. This means
that student leader responsibilities are realistic for their part-time involvement over
about six months (on top of their academic and Bonner work). For instance, Bonner
Foundation staff play the following roles:
• Managing registration of participants from across the network
• Publishing information, such as the schedule
• Recruiting about 2/3 of the programming, including speakers and workshops
• Recruiting and solidifying the roles of attending national partners
• Developing and managing an overall work plans
• Working closely with the host team and committees so that they play a meaningful,
fun role before, during, and after the event.
The Social Committee is generally responsible for:
• Planning 3 nights of social activities (i.e. dances, open mics, etc.)
• Social Media
• Activities for registration
• Look & Feel (which includes signage, teeshirts, banners, and other items that give
the event a distinctive Bonner brand)
The Logistics Committee is generally responsible for:
• Securing all needed lodging and space discussed above
• Working with dining services, facilities, residence life, etc. to arrange conference
logistics and attend to the needs of participants
• Day of Event Registration
• Campus signage
• Materials needed for the printed program (such as welcome letters, restaurants
list, maps, etc.)
The Program Committee is generally
responsible for:
• Recruiting 10-15 elective workshops
(about 1/3 of those offered)
• Recruiting keynote and featured
speakers, especially alumni and
community leaders
• Developing programming for
specific sessions and content for the
printed program (such as themes,
2018 Bonner Summer Leadership Institute, Wagner
College, Resume Review

6. the introduction of the campus, and so on)
• Networking events
III. Programmatic
The programmatic elements of the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute are
developed as a collaborative partnership between the Bonner Foundation and the
host campus. It is imperative to ensure the programming meets the following
requirements:
• Reflects the Bonner Common Commitments (Civic Engagement, Community
Building, Diversity, International Perspective, Social Justice, and Spiritual
Exploration) in an inclusive way, taking into account not only the unique culture of
the campus and community in which it resides, but also the composition of the
national Bonner Network as a whole.
• In particular, programming should reflect the diversity of the Bonner National
Network, including but not limited to at least half of the keynote speakers and
other key players being people of color and/or other marginalized identities. Our
aim is to uphold the same values and philosophies that are critical to the success
of the Bonner Program as a whole. Besides diversity, this means that the
Foundation and Host Team will work collaboratively to demonstrate these
commitments.
• Aspects are place-based and reflect the local community and hosting campus. We
also aim to highlight and integrate the core pedagogies of effective community
service and engagement, which include adequate orientation and education,
inquiry, reflection, and reciprocity.
IV. Planning Retreat
In collaboration with the Bonner Foundation, dates for a day long Planning Retreat are
set approximately six months out from the conference.. The host campus must reserve
space and recruit a diverse Student Planning Team to participate. The Foundation staff
will come to campus and facilitate the retreat. During the retreat, the student planning
team will form their committees, learn event management, brainstorm the theme, and
leave prepared to help plan and facilitate the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute.
V.Planning Process

7. • If selected and dates have been confirmed, we asked that host campuses reserve
spaces immediately and
begin to identify student
leaders and staff to serve on
the planning team.
• Approximately six months
out, Foundation Staff will
come to campus to meet with
conference services, dining
services, and/or other
identified campus offices to
manage logistics of the
conference, take a tour of
reserved campus spaces, and
lead a day long planning
retreat.
• The retreat and visit includes
time for visioning and brainstorming the many ways that the best practices of the
host campus and surrounding community (and other partners) can be showcased
through programming.
• From the Planning Retreat to SLI, the Staff and Student Leads will regularly
communicate via Basecamp (an online management system) and zoom video calls
to collaborate on the planning process.
VI. Support and What to Do Next
The Bonner Foundation covers all costs of the conference through registration fees
and our internal budget. The hosting campus, working with your finance office, can
decide the best way to track expenses and be reimbursed by the Foundation for
accrued conference costs (meals, housing, etc).
Foundation staff members (led by Liz Brandt, Community Engagement Director) will
work closely with campus Bonner Program staff as well as facilities staff on all aspects
of the event. Staff will work with campus administrators and student leaders to forge
the agenda, organize and manage logistics, and host a successful conference. Thank
you for your interest in hosting the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute.
If you are interested in hosting, please see the checklist on the following page and
complete it. Additionally, we ask that a team of at least one staff member and two
students develop a 1-2 page letter that addresses the following questions.
2019 Bonner Summer Leadership Institute Planning Retreat,
Waynesburg University

8. 1) Why would you like to host the Bonner Summer Leadership Institute? Describe 3-4
main reasons.
2) Thinking especially about the Bonner Common Commitments, please describe
some of the specific features of your Bonner Program, campus, and community
that you would seek to highlight.
3) What questions do you have for discussion with Foundation staff?
Please contact for questions and inquiries:
Liz Brandt, Community Engagement Director
10 Mercer Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
(609) 924-6663
liz@bonner.org

9. Hosting the Summer Leadership Institute Checklist
Space must be able to accommodate all-group sessions (300+), breakout sessions
(50-100), and elective workshops (20-40).
Must be able to secure in-house pricing for housing, meals, etc.
Programming must reflect Bonner six common commitments and diversity of the
National Network, including at least half of the keynote speakers and other key
players being people of color and/or other marginalized identities.
Host Planning Retreat in partnership with the Bonner Foundation.
Must secure a willing and able Student Planning Team of 12-15 Bonner students.
Send proposed dates that must take place no earlier than the last week in May and
no later than second week of June.
Send letter of interest addressing questions on the prior page, to Liz Brandt,
Community Engagement Director, at liz@bonner.org.