March 13 - 20, 2010, a Group of 28 Students and 4 Staff Will Work with Community-Based

Macalester College 2009-2010 Bonner Program Highlights

New Orleans: First Year Service Trip & Faculty Development

The Bonner First Year Service Trip to New Orleans is designed to promote learning about multiple social issues through service, community connections and discussion. In preparation for this experience, participants meet weekly to learn about the neighborhoods and communities they will be working with, to gain a greater understanding of the social, economic, and political impacts of Katrina, and to reflect on motives for participating in an alternative break.

In 2010, Macalester sponsored the fifth alternative Spring break trip to New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina, underscoring the college’s commitment to this work. Bonner first year students worked with community-based organizations throughout the New Orleans metropolitan area to assist in rebuilding communities and repairing the damage done by Hurricane Katrina. 24 students (Bonners and non- Bonners) and 4 staff participated in the trip.

While in New Orleans, students and staff were part of issue-based small groups, which facilitated learning and reflection. These small groups focused on environment & sustainability, the schools-to-prisons pipeline, immigration, and working with homeowners. The group’s itinerary and photos can be found on the Wiki.

The week’s schedule included the following:

Levee Tour  Steve Nelson, Chair of Earth & Environmental Sciences, Tulane University

Large Group Service Projects  The Green Project, Metairie Census Outreach w/Puentes NOLA, and Lafitte Corridor

Neighborhood Projects & Cultural Tours  Backstreet Cultural Museum in Treme & The Porch  7th Ward House of Dance & Feathers & Lower 9th Ward Projects

Small Group Projects by Issue Area  Youth, Schools & Prisons; Environment & Sustainability; Homeowners/Neighborhood; and Immigration

Reading and Reflection  All participants received a packet of selected readings to prepare them for their trip and to provide them with a background on NOLA and the impact of Hurricane Katrina. Opportunities to discuss and reflect on the readings in the context of their experiences and service are built into daily reflection.

Social Engagement  Students and staff were fortunate to engage with Macalester alumni in the area, and with students and faculty from Dillard University. They also shared in a discussion with Ms.

1 Shirley, a NOLA resident with whom we have worked in previous years. Students learned about the personal impact of Katrina for these folks as individuals and as a college community.

The trip reinforced the excitement and energy within our Bonner community for maintaining long term commitments with our community partners in NOLA. In addition, the local, first-generation students in the Bonner program find group travel to a different region helps to build confidence about future travel opportunities (ie. study abroad, Bonner SLI and Summer of Service Internships). This also holds true for their families.

In fact, we have decided that the 2011 trip to NOLA will include only Bonner first-years. This choice enables us to align the trip's curriculum more closely with the Bonner developmental model and prepare the students to think about how the trip shapes their involvement in Bonner. We will also be able to engage in a deeper type of work that we hope develops into future Bonner-related opportunities, particularly with the Summer of Service Internships.

Building on Bonner experience and previous student trips to New Orleans, Macalester hosted a five-day colloquium in January 2010 for 11 faculty and 4 staff. The colloquium was designed to connect Macalester faculty with the people, issues, and organizations Macalester students have engaged since 2005. Each day involved guest lectures, discussions, and community-based learning opportunities that touched on the theme of “resilience,” the ability to adapt, adjust, and strengthen community life. Faculty sought to explore new angles and topics for teaching and to learn more about the experiences of Macalester students in the region.

A wealth of ideas and energy was generated by the NOLA faculty colloquium. Outcomes included: new units focusing on New Orleans added to courses; a public dialogue among Macalester students and faculty regarding their experiences in New Orleans; a faculty presentation at the Fall 2010 Imagining America national conference; a team-taught course on the “right of return” as an issue shared by displaced people in New Orleans and Palestine; a reading group on Haiti, the Haitian revolution, and the Gulf Coast; plans for a reverse exchange visit so that our colleagues from NOLA can see and participate in Twin Cities events and initiatives; and deeper institutional connections between Macalester and various organizations and institutions in New Orleans. Through this trip, we introduced the Bonner program to additional faculty thereby developing deeper connections and building faculty support for the program.

Summer of Service

Seven Bonners participated in Summers of Service at the local and international levels. Four rising sophomore Bonners were awarded Summer of Service stipends. Three are completing summers of service in their hometowns. Catholic Charities of Kansas City (KS), the Louisville Science Center (KY), and the Minnesota Aids Project in Minneapolis are learning sites. The fourth student, a resident of China, is working with an international organization in Ghana.

Three junior Bonners are completing fellowships in the Twin Cities and in the Philippines. In the Twin Cities, fellows are completing projects at the Division of Indian Work in Minneapolis, and at Neighborhood House in Saint Paul. Finally, a Bonner is completing a fellowship with The Container School, a school housed in discarded shipping containers in a poor section of Manila. These projects are also supported through summer sponsorships available to Bonners at Macalester, including the Lilly Summer Fellowship, the Chuck Green Fellowship and the Kathryn Davis Projects for Peace.

2 Community Building

Within our second full class of Bonners, the idea of “Bonner Love” has taken root. This cohort has met the storming and forming challenges small groups face by holding one another accountable and by developing conflict resolution skills. The group did not steer away from confrontation. In the process, first year Bonners demonstrated genuine care and concern for one another as peers and friends. Their willingness to face struggles squarely brought the group closer together.

As they grappled with the transportation issue described later in this report, the first year Bonners developed a collective mentality, considering how the college's resources could be spent wisely and fairly. The values implicit in the solution were as important to them as solving the problem. This group also worked tirelessly to raise funds for their trip to NOLA. Rather than focus on the individual cost of the trip, the students focused on what they would need to raise collectively, to cover costs for all participants. They organized an on-line silent auction that raised over $5000 for the trip.

Through adverse and challenging situations this group has made tremendous effort to support one another and to develop a culture of Bonner Love at Macalester.