Bezos Scholar Participant Expectations

All Scholars agree to the following student and educator participant expectations and commitments:

Virtual Sessions

• Over the course of the Scholar year:
  • Students will keep an 80% or higher attendance rate.
  • Educators will keep a 70% or higher attendance rate, supporting students in keeping theirs.
• If Scholars absolutely cannot attend a virtual session, barring an emergency or power/Wi-Fi connectivity issues, they will communicate in advance via email asking for an excused absence by sharing what session date they cannot make and why.
• If Scholars miss a session, it is their responsibility to catch up on what they missed using the resources provided.
• Scholars will access, track, complete and submit Scholar work assigned to them by BSP, ensuring they complete all readings, assignments, and independent/teamwork requested by assigned due dates.

Aspen Trip

• Scholars commit to attending the entire Aspen trip (trip dates shared during selection process) and will not make any plans for the day of departure from their hometown, as well as departure from Aspen, to account for needed travel time.
• Educator Scholars are the students’ chaperones while traveling to and from Aspen. Program staff are chaperones from the time students arrive in Aspen until they depart. While there, educators are participants and may play a support role as needed/requested by students and/or program staff.
• Scholars will follow all rules and expectations shared with them before and during the trip.

Community Change Project

Scholars understand that they are responsible for meeting monthly milestones set by BSP, with the support of their educator and BSP staff. These milestones include:

• Conducting community engagement efforts to engage diverse stakeholders to inform project selection and design.
• Building a team, beyond their Scholar teammate(s) who will help design, develop and implement a project.
• Submitting and revising (when applicable) a strong grant proposal that lays out their vision and project plans by the due date set by the program. This includes securing an approved fiscal sponsor who will accept grant award funding on the project’s behalf.
• Creating and submitting a project logo and other information about project progress as requested.
• Planning and co-facilitating a virtual project presentation during an assigned project showcase event.
• Carrying out goals, action steps and activities that the Scholar team sets that are imperative for the project’s success.
• Launching their project by the end of February of their senior year or an agreed-upon date set in advance with BSP staff and completing it before high school graduation, as laid out in the grant proposal.
• Submitting a completed final report by the due date set by the program or an agreed-upon date set in advance with program staff.

Overall Expectations

Scholars understand that:

• They must fully and successfully carry out a Scholar Community Change Project to receive the grant funding offered.
• If their project does not launch and/or they do not complete and meet grant deliverables, such as the proposal and final report, their project may not be eligible for continued funding.
• If they do not fully and successfully complete their Scholar year and their Scholar Community Change Project, they may not be eligible to join the Bezos Scholars Alum Network or engage in opportunities offered through the Network.
• As student Scholars, while they are active program participants, they will refrain from engaging in any consensual romantic relationships with fellow student Scholars in their cohort until after they become program alumni.
• Educators understand that, as voluntary participants, if they do not meet the above expectations or if they step down or are removed from the program for any reason, they may not receive some or all of the honorarium offered.
• Bezos Family Foundation staff will exercise sole, ethical and fair discretion when determining what constitutes inappropriate behavior or an infringement of the Scholar Agreements and Expectations and will arrange for program removal or early departure from the trip portion of the program if necessary.