The Liber Fellowship is an exclusive educational endorsement track for ambitious Voluntas Community members. Each Liber Fellow pursues mastery of the Liber Fellowship curriculum as outlined by the Voluntas Institute. Those who successfully master the curriculum will receive a detailed endorsement of their accomplishments to accompany their portfolio of work developed in the process.
Liber Fellow Application Requirements
1. Applicant must submit a completed Liber Fellowship Application. The recommended age to apply is 12 years old. As part of this application, the applicant must submit a statement of intent to the Liber Leadership Council. This statement of intent should explain why they want to be a Liber Fellow, what they are seeking to gain from the experience, how they believe they can benefit from and contribute to the fellowship, and what their personal interests are.
2. Applicant must pass a series of readiness assessments. The scope and format of these assessments is available from the Liber Leadership Council.
3. Applicant must submit a signed Voluntas Community Standards Agreement. A parent or legal guardian of a minor applicant must also submit a signed Voluntas Community Standards Agreement.
4. A parent or legal guardian of a minor applicant must also submit a signed pledge to take full responsibility for the education of the applicant. In essence, this means taking official legal responsibility for the education of the applicant, actively participating in progress planning and reporting, and reading and discussing great books and ideas within their family.
Liber Mentor Network
The Liber Mentor Network is a support community for Liber Fellows. Liber Fellows may choose to work with mentors to accomplish their goals and pace their progress. Liber Fellows and their families are free to choose their own mentors from inside or outside the Liber Mentor Network.
In order to work with a mentor from the Liber Mentor Network, a mentor and learner both sign a contract agreeing to a mentoring timeline, scope of support, and progress expectations and milestones. The Voluntas Institute holds mentor payments in escrow during mentoring periods and only releases funds to mentors when their obligations have been satisfied. If a mentoring contract is canceled for any reason, mentoring payments may be prorated and/or refunded on a case-by-case basis.
Liber Advantage Program
While not a requirement, many Liber Fellows choose to participate in the Liber Advantage program. The Liber Advantage Program is a programmed approach to completing the curriculum, and combines the mentoring, facilities access, and assessment scheduling into one program.
The Liber Advantage program is driven around a personalized progress plan (PPP) for each learner. Each term, a learner is primarily responsible for preparing their own PPP, but parents/guardians of minors must also participate in the development of a PPP. Each learner will also have the support of a guidance counselor in creating, reviewing, and approving a PPP.
At a high level, a PPP outlines what competencies will be pursued and how to pursue and demonstrate them. It should also include plans to produce and review portfolio artifacts that demonstrate competency or mastery of a given pursuit. A PPP may or may not include participation in formal or informal group activities.
Learners on an approved PPP will be required to report regularly on their progress. Regular progress reports will be produced by learners and reviewed by guidance counselors on a weekly/monthly basis for evaluation and approval by parents/guardians. A PPP culminates in an end-of-term portfolio evaluation and open examination by the Liber Leadership Council.