Bethany BOLD

Bethany Invites Students to Build, Organize, Love, and Dare

BE BOLD.

Lead where it’s hardest.
Grow where it matters most.
Live with purpose—and no new debt.

Bethany BOLD is a fully funded, residential leadership program for students ready to face real-world issues with courage, clarity, and faith. Participants will:

  • Enroll as full-time students in one of Bethany’s degree or certificate programs.
  • Serve 4–6 hours a week in Wayne County, Indiana at shelters, nonprofits, and community organizations.
  • Learn through public events, trainings, debriefs, and reflection.
  • Live in intentional community with others who care deeply.
  • Grow in self-awareness, resilience, and real-world leadership skills.
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What does it mean to be BOLD at Bethany?

  • Students will BUILD. They will do the personal work needed to grow in capacity as a leader who is a capable adult, taking responsibility for their actions and cultivating self-respect.
  • Students will ORGANIZE. They will make sense of the community they strive to lead by learning how structures and organizations work, developing a nuanced understanding of race and class.
  • Students will LOVE. They will fully engage in serving as they live out their faith, joyfully offering their heart and whole self in hope of bettering the lives of others.
  • Students will DARE. They will push and question, seeking the courage and grit to see this challenging project through, living into the uncertainty and ambiguity that accompanies difficult tasks, developing the deep resiliency that leaders rely on.

Program Elements

Community Structures

Students will grow to understand Wayne County, Indiana, by going to a wide variety of organizations and churches. They will also participate in a variety of educational opportunities like lectures and trainings.

Synthesis and Reflection

There will be a variety of opportunities for students to put together what they are learning, such as coffee conversations with community leaders, weekly debriefing sessions, program leadership responsibilities, and journaling.

Community Service

Students will engage in community service through ongoing assignments and one-time events. These assignments will address real-world problems, including volunteering with underserved and at-risk populations in schools, shelters, and community organizations. Issues of poverty and racial injustice are the focus of these work assignments.

Contact Us

Please contact us with your questions.

Mary Parrett, Coordinator for Bethany BOLD

Dr. Maggie Elwell, Assistant Professor of Peace Studies and Director of Bethany BOLD

bold@bethanyseminary.edu

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Building on the success of the promises of no-debt, academic excellence, and community living begun in PPRS, Bethany BOLD continues our commitment to transformational theological education. BOLD strengthens our Anabaptist and Radical Pietist witness to the community we live in, inviting our residential students more deeply into love of neighbor and peacemaking through intense experiences of community engagement.

Learn More

  • Sandra Reisinger

     “While serving dinner at the Bridges for Life’s Friday evening meal program, a guest told me, ‘I’m not used to being served like this.’ It’s such simple dignity to serve someone a meal, I wondered why we find it so difficult to do.” ——Sandra Reisinger, Bethany BOLD participant

  • Connor Ladd

     “One thing I have learned from my volunteer activities is the importance of listening to someone’s story. The best first step for helping someone is to listen to their story because in doing so, you might learn about a need that may not have been expressed, even if that need is as simple as having someone to talk to.” ——Connor Ladd, Bethany BOLD participant

  • Dr. Maggie Elwell

     “Bethany BOLD is a chance for Bethany students to deeply engage in Wayne County, to put their faith and studies into action so that the world flourishes. It’s an opportunity for the student to grow in self-awareness and love while immersed with real people, dealing with real issues.” ——Dr. Maggie Elwell, assistant professor of peace studies and director of Bethany BOLD

Our financial aid is generous

Financial aid is available for all graduate and certificate students. We are not a tuition-driven institution. Instead we are driven by the hope of a more peaceful church and world. The generosity of our supporters means that generous financial aid is available, creating an opportunity for qualifying students to pursue a nearly debt-free seminary education.

Support BOLD

615 National Road West

Richmond, IN 47374

800.287.8822

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