Learning Communities: Connecting the Pieces
Are you interested in having access to or Interaction with Instructors? Small Classes? Personal Attention?
Do you want to develop your skills in Oral and Written communication? Technology? Critical thinking? Quantitative reasoning?
Would you like to participate in a smaller, more intimate community on campus? Develop stronger relationships with classmates? Create a support system of residential and instructional staff, classmates, and community residents?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you should think about joining a Learning Community.
“The Learning Community Experience is a very beneficial experience because you are able to bring the classroom environment into your residential environment, and overall you learn a lot compared to regular classrooms.” — Learning Community Student
What is a Learning Community?
Living/Learning Structure: Take Classes with Hallmates
- The Learning Community Program provides students with an enriching college experience, which interweaves their social/residential lives with their academic lives.
- The Learning Community Program is designed primarily for incoming freshmen, though returning students and transfer students can join.
- Students who participate in the Program live in a residence hall and take (some) classes with other students in their building. Through this living/learning structure, students develop a community—the foundation of a Learning Community.
Community Building
- Learning Communities offer students much more than just the chance to live with classmates, though. In a Learning Community, the residential and instructional staffs associated with the program work together to help build the community environment, to assist students in their adjustment to college, and to create a more holistic experience for students.
- Learning Communities create environments which connect themes and issues naturally arising out of classroom and residential experiences.
Videos of Learning Community Students
- You can see what Learning Community students had to say about the program and their experiences in the program by watching the videos below.
Where the Learning Communities Are
- Five residential communities—College-in-the Woods (CIW), Dickinson, Hinman, Mountainview, and Newing—offer Learning Communities. At least one residence hall in each community is a Learning Community hall. Courses vary somewhat among the different Learning Communities, but all fulfill many General Education requirements.
Theme-based Emphases
- Learning Communities offer theme-based emphases, providing students opportunities to investigate possible pre-professional directions or topical interests.
- Importantly, though, Learning Communities (with the exception of Mountainview’s Watson Engineering Learning Community) are open to ALL students regardless of major and provide an excellent foundation for ANY major.
The Learning Communities featuring themes include:
- Pre-Law and Sciences (CIW)
- Globalization and Cultural Identity (CIW)
- Exploration: Starting your Academic Journey (Dickinson)
- Community Service and Leadership (Hinman)
- Engineering (Mountainview)
- Pre-Health (Newing)
- Sciences (Newing)
Choosing a Learning Community
- Students can choose a Learning Community based on the courses offered or the hall’s thematic emphasis.
- To learn about the specific course offerings, click on the “Courses” tab above, which organizes courses for Fall 2008 by community.
- To learn about the thematic emphasis of each community, click on the “Residential Area Themes” tab above.
Collaboration
- The residential staff, which includes Resident Assistants, Discovery Advisors, Resident Directors, and Faculty Masters, plays a key role in Learning Communities.
- The collaboration between the residential and instructional staffs can include workshops, study sessions, films, forums, and guest speakers, with most occurring in the residence hall.
- You may download the list of programs offered for students in Dickinson’s Fall 2007 Learning Community; these are representative of programming in all of the Learning Community halls.
Capstone Projects
- Members of the Learning Communities celebrate their semester’s work and the communities they have developed through Capstone Projects. Presenting before all members of their individual Learning Communities, students create engaging, reflective projects which represent their experiences in the Learning Communities.
- Past projects have included: webpages, ‘zines, documentaries, skits, presentations, and more. To view a sampling of former Capstone projects, click on the “Capstone” tab above.
**To join the Learning Community, you must have paid your housing deposit**
Spaces in these fall Learning Communities are limited, and are reserved on a first-come, first-served basis. To apply, select a Learning Community option when you submit your housing preference. Choose your desired Learning Community and associated courses. Courses in Learning Communities (Oneida, and Mohawk Halls in CIW; Digman Hall in Dickinson; Smith Hall in Hinman; Cascade Hall in Mountainview; Chenango and Broome Halls in Newing) require confirmation from the coordinator—who will also register you into them.
For More Information, Contact:
Steve Duarte at (607) 777-4709 or sduarte@binghamton.edu
Kellie Deys at (607) 777-3620 or kdeys@binghamton.edu