The Future of Siena Bonner | Recruiting the Class of 2024

One of the reasons why I wanted to be a Program Associate for the Bonner Program was to be able to lead the recruitment process. This is because when I attended my own Accepted Students Day in 2017, I spoke with current Bonners (specifically Andraya and Aedan) at the club fair where they answered all of my questions and made me feel more comfortable about interviewing and later joining the program. I wanted our Class of 2024 to have this same experience, which is something we have continued since moving to online classes.

A big part of the recruitment process includes meeting with Rocky to update our list of essays and our tracking spreadsheet to include new applications. We send these essays to our Recruitment Team at a couple of points throughout the semester, so that they can help us read the essays and determine who we should interview. Our Recruitment Team also helps to complete the interviews when we have Accepted Students Days. Applicants enjoy talking to our current Bonners so that they can learn about our service sites and ask current Bonners questions about their experiences.

Since we have switched to working remotely, we have had to switch up our recruitment process to accommodate the current situation. The main difference is that all of our interviews are conducted on Google Hangout or Skype by Rocky and I. We have encountered some technical issues here and there, but it has all worked out well. Rocky and I have been able to speak with people who have served their home communities, are passionate about continuing service in college, and are excited to join our program in the fall! Our Recruitment Team has continued to play an important role throughout this process as they have read essays, provided insight on how to connect with students, and connected with applicants who have questions about their majors. As we finish up the recruitment process, we made a video to send to the potential Bonners giving them insight into our B-LOVE filled community (check it out here!).

The recruitment process is hard and stressful, and I am incredibly grateful to Rocky, Katie, and our Recruitment Team; Andraya, Amelia, Marlie, Tristan, Jack, Mara, Marykate, Maura, and Tori for all of their help throughout this experience!

Dana Wakeman ’21
Bonner Service Leader