Opportunities & Events

Please join us for one of our upcoming information sessions to learn more about the Bonner program at Mason and meet our Bonner leaders!

Upcoming Dates: 

Tue, Feb 3, 2026 (6:30 pm EST)
Thu, Feb 19, 2026 (6:30 pm EST)
Sat, Feb 28, 2026 (6:30 pm EST)

Admissions Events

Also find us at the Office of Community Engagement and Civic Learning (CECiL) table at GMU's upcoming admissions events!

Upcoming Dates: 

Spotlight Day 1 - Mon, February 16, 2026 (10 am to 2:30 pm)

Honors College "A Celebration of Excellence" - Sun, February 22, 2026 (9:30 am to 2 pm)

Spotlight Day 2 - Fri, February 27, 2026 (10 am to 2:30 pm)

Summer Leadership Institute

The Summer Leadership Institute (SLI) is an annual event organized by the National Bonner Foundation and hosted by one of the Bonner schools in June. At this 3-to-4-day conference, students travel to the host college/university of the year to attend workshops and activities. SLI is a fun weekend that helps us connect with and learn about other Bonner programs around the country.

The weekend typically consists of:

• Bonner program development workshops
• Professional development workshops
• Networking and graduate school fair
• Nightly activities to facilitate bonding with other Bonners

Bonner Congress

Bonner Congress (BonCon) is a 2-day event hosted by the Bonner Foundation each fall in Illinois, just outside of Chicago. This event is significantly smaller than SLI, as typically only 2 Bonners are sent to represent each school. Bonner Congress has a similar structure to SLI, with program development workshops, a graduate fair, and group bonding activities. While similar in structure, the content of Bonner Congress is much more targeted than SLI. The Bonner Foundation uses Bonner Congress to directly communicate initiatives for students to implement at their schools' Bonner programs.

National Bonner Internship

Each year, the National Bonner Foundation chooses five Bonners for a summer internship. National Interns work in the foundation office in Princeton, New Jersey, to receive training and mentorship from foundation staff, engage with Bonner programs around the country, help plan and implement the Summer Leadership Institute, and work on initiatives that support Bonner Programs and National Foundation priorities. Each intern receives $5,000 in compensation and a housing stipend.

In only the second year of the GMU Bonner Program, one of our students, Anu Baskar, was selected for the internship in 2022.