Nazareth student honored as Newman Civic Fellow
Tayla Bunn ‘22 recognized for commitment to solving societal problems
Published March 25, 2021
Nazareth College’s Tayla Bunn spends considerable time working in the community, advocating for social justice, working with the elderly, and guiding her peers to engage and make change where they are. A junior legal studies major, she plans to earn her law degree to improve society through law. She can now add the prestigious Newman Civic Fellow to her title.
Tayla Bunn '22, a legal studies major, plans to earn her law degree to improve society through law.
Tayla attending a Black Lives Matter protest in Brooklyn.
Nominated by Nazareth President Beth Paul, Tayla joins 212 students from 39 states; Washington, D.C.; and Mexico to form the 2021 cohort.
"Tayla truly personifies effective and long-term commitment to civic engagement in all that she does. I'm confident that she will put into action what she learns as a Newman Fellow, for the betterment of our society for all," says Paul.
The Newman Civic Fellowship is a year-long program for students from Campus Compact member institutions. The students selected for the fellowship are leaders on their campuses who demonstrate a commitment to finding solutions for challenges facing communities locally, nationally, and internationally. The fellowship is named for the late Frank Newman, one of Campus Compact's founders, who was a tireless advocate for civic engagement in higher education.
Tayla has grown up serving her community. She is a member of Lions Club International, one of the largest non-profit community service organizations in the world that meets the needs of local communities through service. She followed in the footsteps of her mom, who is also a Lion's Club member.
"I started as a Leo, the teen branch of Lions that provides young people an opportunity for personal development through volunteering," says Tayla. "My mom always made sure we made time to give back to the community that has given so much to us." She became president of her area Leos district for teens who live in the Brooklyn and Queens neighborhoods.
Tayla cleans up a park with her Lions Club near New York City in March 2020
Tayla with Monroe County Executive Adam Bello (right) at a student event where they could ask him questions during his campaign
As a legal studies major, Tayla hopes to change society through the law. "Earning my law degree will allow me to actively make changes needed on vital social issues. I use communication and education with my peers on social media to emphasize the importance of being involved and making an impact, challenging them to uproot their own personal biases, and I challenge myself to lead by example."
Tayla is very active on the Nazareth College campus, from working as an orientation leader with first year students, to the Campus Activities Board, which has worked hard to engage students in a year when in-person activities are limited.
Connecting with students from different majors, class years, and backgrounds is also important to Tayla. She participates in Nazareth's Student Academic and Achievement Program (which supports first-generation students, students in the Higher Education Opportunity Program, and high-achieving diverse students) and has worked for Partners for Serving (PFS) for three years.
"PFS offered me a leadership position this fall, where I facilitate opportunities for other Nazareth student partners to support individuals living at a long-term elder care facility. I guide the students to reflect on the larger issues affecting the elders," says Tayla. "Working at Episcopal Senior Life has been one of many highlights here at Nazareth College. Seeing the joy on the elder's face when we arrive makes my whole day. The elders teach me perseverance, patience, and humility."
She is dedicated to racial justice. After participating in protests regarding police brutality in Rochester, she presented a workshop to other students about being an ally to students of color and she is involved in the Black Lives Matter movement at Nazareth College.
“Continuing the Black Lives Matter Movement and implementing it into the curriculum is vital to making sure all minorities have a space to be heard at Nazareth. The College is already on the right track to being equitable all around but there is room for more improvement,” says Tayla.
Tayla also is an active member of the College’s Black Student Union (BSU), where she participated in events like drum circles — where students can speak on issues in our communities — and fashion shows showcasing African-American designers and performers.
“Tayla and her team spearheaded the winning idea in last year’s all-campus Social Innovation Hack-a-thon, which was to create a community anti-racism/bias parade,” saysAdam Lewandowski, associate director for civic engagement and co-director of the Hack-a-thon with Jennifer Leigh, management professor in the School of Business and Leadership. Though the pandemic has not allowed the parade plans to move forward, “Tayla continues to bring people together and provide education and awareness to the campus community.”
Campus Compact provides fellows with a variety of learning and networking opportunities that emphasize personal, professional, and civic growth. Each year, fellows participate in virtual training and networking opportunities to provide the skills and connections to create large-scale positive change. The cornerstone of the fellowship is the Annual Convening of Fellows, which offers intensive skill-building and networking over the course of two days. The fellowship also provides fellows with pathways to apply for exclusive scholarship and post-graduate opportunities.
Campus Compact
Campus Compact is a national coalition of colleges and universities committed to the public purposes of higher education. Campus Compact supports institutions in fulfilling their public purposes by deepening their ability to improve community life and to educate students for civic and social responsibility. As the largest national higher education association dedicated solely to campus-based civic engagement, we provide professional development to administrators and faculty to enable them to engage effectively, facilitate national partnerships connecting campuses with key issues in their local communities, build pilot programs to test and refine promising models in engaged teaching and scholarship, celebrate and cultivate student civic leadership, and convene higher education institutions and partners beyond higher education to share knowledge and develop collective capacity. Visit compact.org.