Fundraising underway to endow MC's Bonner Scholars program

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 14, 2009
Contact: Karen B. Eldridge, Director of News and Public Information
865.981.8207; karen.eldridge@maryvillecollege.edu

With the announcement last year that the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation was awarding a $4.5 million matching grant to permanently endow Maryville College’s Bonner Scholars Program, college administrators are now engaged in a public campaign to raise the $2 million match required to secure the larger gift.

Founded and supported by the Princeton, N.J.-based Corella and Bertram F. Bonner Foundation, the Bonner Scholars Program consists of students at 27 colleges and universities who receive scholarships from the Foundation when students commit to a certain number of community service hours for each year they are in college.

The Bonner Scholars program at Maryville College was implemented in 1991. Today, it supports about 60 current students who each agree to contribute at least 40 service hours a month in local non-profits, schools and other agencies.

In the last 15 years, it is estimated that 200 Maryville College Bonner Scholars have donated more than 250,000 hours of service to local nonprofits and churches as well as programs in Africa and Latin America.

“But of course the numbers aren’t the main story of the Bonner Scholars Program,” said Rev. Anne D. McKee, campus minister and Bonner program director. “The real story is the one about transformation. One transformation is in the lives of students, who through their Bonner service gain skills and grow to see their lives as resources for change. And of course the other story of transformation is in the lives touched through all students doing service.”

In making the announcement last year about the grant opportunity, Wayne Meisel, president of the Bonner Foundation, said Maryville College was a founding institution of the Bonner Scholars Program and a long-standing partner and friend of the Foundation. “When it came time to launch the Bonner Scholars Program, Maryville was one of the first campuses we turned to launch this bold and powerful initiative,” he said. “By endowing the Bonner Scholars Program at Maryville College, the Bonner community of more than 80 institutions and 2,500 students annually nationwide will continue to be challenged and led by the example and the innovation that is born out of Maryville College. I could not imagine the Bonner Scholars Program without Maryville College.”

Acknowledging that the current economic climate was not favorable for fundraising, Maryville College President Dr. Gerald W. Gibson said that he was confident the match could be raised because the program is worthy of support and because donors would take hold of the opportunity to maximize their giving.

“The program offers an unparalleled return on investment because every donated dollar is matched 2.25 times by the Bonner Foundation to give bright students with financial need the opportunity to learn and serve,” he said. “Maximizing the impact of charitable contributions is so important, especially in this economy. With the Bonner Scholars Program, everybody wins. Students get a transformative educational experience, and community organizations get passionate, dedicated volunteers.”

The College has until Aug. 1, 2009 to raise the funds necessary for the match.

For more information on the Bonner match, contact Brandon Bruce in the office of Advancement and Community Relations at 865.981.8191 or brandon.bruce@maryvillecollege.edu.

Maryville College is ideally situated in Maryville, Tenn., between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Knoxville, the state's third largest city. Founded in 1819, it is the 12th oldest institution of higher learning in the South and maintains an affiliation with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Known for its academic rigor and its focus on the liberal arts, Maryville is where students come to stretch their minds, stretch themselves and learn how to make a difference in the world. Total enrollment for the fall 2009 semester is 1,103.