About
The Bonner Center is under the Community Engagement umbrella at Rhodes College, specifically the Turley Memphis Center. The Center is home to Bonner Scholars, Bonner Leaders, and the Laurence F. Kinney Program.
Rhodes has long been committed to connecting students to learning experiences outside the classroom. In 1925, our campus moved from rural Tennessee to Memphis to provide more opportunities for our students. Those connections include a multitude of national and international companies, a thriving biotechnology and medical sector, and a burgeoning technology and marketing community. Memphis is also known for its commitment to giving. With more than 5,000 nonprofits in the Memphis metropolitan area, Memphis was recently named one of the most charitable cities in the country. This culture of giving has a long history on our campus as well.
With more than 200 community partners cross the city, students have the option to serve the community based on their interests and passions, or to engage with organizations that align closely with their academic majors. Students can get involved in advocacy initiatives, educational events, large-scale service plunges, or weekly service that connects them more deeply to a cause or organization.
Over time, all of these programs have contributed to the evolution of service on our campus. Moving beyond traditional approaches that focus on charity, the Bonner Center encourages students to examine the community through the lens of academics and to consider our interactions as “with, not for”. We aspire to be partners with our community stakeholders and to develop engaged, transformational relationships.