WARREN ZINN/Daily Students in the Lloyd Scholars program, a living-learning program based in Alice Lloyd residence hall, attend classes in the same building where they sleep. While living-learning programs attempt to make the University a 'smaller' environment for participants, students are allowed to take courses outside of their living-learning program as well.

Home sweet ... class?

Living-learning programs diversify forms of education

Learning does not only occur in the lecture halls of Angell Hall or the auditoriums of the Modern Language Building.

Outside the classroom, some students from different racial and cultural backgrounds are given the opportunity to debate issues, eat, live together and learn from each other.

"Students spend only a part of their lives in class; living-learning communities also attempt to introduce students to a large University," said associate provost for academic and multi-cultural affairs Lester Monts.

Vice President of Student Affairs Maureen Hartford said the communities' objective is to foster students in the transition from high school to the University.

"It tries to keep intellectual vigor and interest of learning going outside the classroom," Hartford said.

Director of Housing Public Affairs Alan Levy said the student programs allow for easy exchange between faculty and students.

"These programs are an effort to create a smaller more intimate opportunity for particularly new students to realize the benefits of a large mega University and a smaller college setting," Levy said.

Hartford said that living-learning communities have grown over the past few years.

In March, a proposal by the Living-Learning Task Force was proposed to the University administration and, if approved, would almost double the number of living-learning communities. The report consists of expanding the living-learning communities to the majority of residence halls.

"This proposal is more strategic," Hartford said. "The programs here are all-encompassing."

SCOTT LIPINSKI/Daily University students involved in the Markley Bridge Program participate in a safe sex workshop sponsored by University Health Service.

The proposal was compiled over a period of 18 months by a committee of 100 students, faculty and staff and is divided into two parts.

The first describes the current living-learning programs, including 21st Century Program, Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and Women in Science and Engineering.

The second part consists of proposals for the addition of new living-learning programs including Invention and Creativity, Society and Health, Science and Mathematics, Issues of Gender and Leadership and Democracy and Diversity.

Hartford described the proposal as "sweeping." Hartford added that students would not be obligated to participate in them although the report encourages students to consider living-learning programs as an option.

Levy said the proposal would allow all entering first-year students to be given the opportunity to participate in a living-learning program.

He added the relevant success of the existing programs have led those who wrote the proposal to believe this is the "preferable way to go for a Michigan undergraduate education."

Levy said in order to avoid students applying for a living-learning community in order to gain residence into a specific residence hall, housing administration has "strengthened the expectations included in the application."

"There is a concern that because the programs are attached to specific residence halls there are students signing in for the wrong reasons," Levy said. "Some of these programs are filled to capacity."

Monts said he has been appointed as chair of a committee to review the proposals.

"We are working as fast as we can," he said, adding that a set of recommendations will be ready by the fall.

If approved, the proposal "has the potential to provide opportunity to benefit all students," Monts said.

Hartford said the committee "looked at what worked well and came up with common things that should be in all living-learning communities."

The additional living-learning communities are intended "to develop academic and cognitive interest groups that would cut down the size of the University of Michigan," Hartford said.

Three programs that began from similar proposals include 21st Century Program in 1991, WISE in 1994 and UROP in 1996.

The living-learning communities offer students the opportunity to take courses through the program and provides an intellectual environment in the residence halls.

The Learning Curve
21st Century Program
- housed in Mary Markley residence hall
- founded in 1991
- helps students make the transition from high school to college
Lloyd Hall Scholars
- housed in Alice Lloyd residence hall
- oldest living-learning program, founded 1962
Honors College
- housed in West Quad residence hall, although students do not have to live in honors halls
- admits only 10-12 percent of students in the College of LSA
Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP)
- housed in Mosher-Jordan residence hall
- founded in 1996
Residential College
- housed in East Quad residence hall
- participants must live in East Quad their first two years
- students can design their own majors
Women in Science and Engineering (WISE)
- housed in Couzens residence hall
- branch of national WISE

09-08-98