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Revised Living/Learning Center Offers Unique Faculty/Student Interaction Worcester, MA (October 11, 2006) —Recent program changes have reshaped the Assumption College Living/Learning Center (L/LC), resulting in a stronger community among its occupants. The L/LC is an apartment-style residence hall with 72 bedrooms. When the building opened in 1998, students who wanted to live in one of the four-person units had to submit a proposal for a year-long project that they and their roommates would complete. Although that format worked well to incorporate learning into a living environment, a restructuring committee was put into place in early 2006 to recommend a new structure. What emerged was a revised learning format that brought students out of their rooms and engaged them more into their own living community. Rather than work on projects limited to just each other, students who submitted the appropriate applications and essays were then placed into one of 13 different discussion groups known as “interest circles.” Interest circles are discussion groups that are focused on a specific topic and led by a professor. The groups research their topic, hold heated discussions and learn mostly from each other. There are no exact requirements on how the interest circles are run, and each professor conducts his/her circle a little differently. For example, Professor Kim Schandel (Natural Sciences) runs her interest circle, “Science and Society: Promise, Predicaments, and Peril,” far different than a usual classroom discussion. Her students are paired together and each pair finds a fascinating topic within the subject to begin group interaction. Other professors break students into pairs and allow them to lead the discussion in rotations. Most pairs research their topic to prepare for leading the discussions. Several professors have similar systems where they allow students to lead the discussion, occasionally jumping in to offer guidance. Some professors show videos to help stimulate their group. Professor Kathleen Fisher (Theology) plans to take her interest group, “Spiritual Paths,” on outings into Worcester. “This semester we will join the Worcester Zen Community in a meditation evening, and we will attend a meeting of the Society of Friends, also called the Quakers,” she said. Ashley Gomes ’09 finds her discussion group interesting. She participates in Professor David Crowley’s (Natural Sciences) “Can we have Faith in Science?” interest circle. Ashley comes from a Catholic background and enjoys the split views of her group, which is made up of students with diverse spiritual backgrounds. “It’s good to work with other people, to see new and different views and explore a broad range of topics,” she said. Amy Laurendeau ’09, who lives in the same apartment, added she is glad her professor takes a back seat and allows the group to begin the discussion. Ultimately, the interactive structure of the interest circles removes the constraints of a classroom and allows students to express themselves more openly. The interest circles connect the residents of the L/LC in a new way. According to Stephanie Penetier ’09, “The interest circles make the L/LC a community.” Resident assistant Mark Blessington ’08 added, “The interaction between the residents is good and it’s still building. It’s even better than it was last year.” 2006-07 LLC Interest Circles: Peter Toscano, Psychology - “Bringing Up Children” Chris Klofft, Theology - “All the Sex and Violence You can Handle” Richard Bonanno, Foreign Languages - “Mother Earth News” Louise Carroll-Keeley, Philosophy - “The Call of the Professional Life” Ann Murphy, English - “War in the Middle East” Patrick Corrigan, Philosophy - “How Shall We Live?” David Crowley, Natural Sciences - “Can we have Faith in Science?” Richard Gendron, Sociology - “Personal Relationships, Networks, and Cyber Society” Nancy Adams, Social Rehab - “When Bad Things happen to Good People: Resiliency and Coping Strategies” Kathleen Fisher, Theology - “Spiritual Paths” Bernard Dobski, Political Science - “The Politics of Just Wars” James Hauri, Natural Sciences - “But I Became a Lawyer to Avoid Science Classes” Kim Schandel, Natural Sciences - “Science and Society: Promise, Predicaments, and Peril”
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