Living Learning Communities
Housing & Residence Life (HRL) strives to provide students with an environment that supports the academic endeavors of the residential student population. In order to take efforts one step further, HRL collaborates with both academic and administrative departments throughout campus in the development of Living Learning Communities. These communities provide a unique experience and can help students make a successful transition to college; improve student learning and development; and research supports the fact that these communities can facilitate better academic achievement and retention.
Each Living Learning Community may have different participation requirements. In order to sign up for a particular community, you must select it as a preference in your housing application.
Living Learning Communities
Living Learning Communities provide an environment for students to live with other students from a particular major and specifically works with these goals in mind:
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To help facilitate a smoother academic and social transition to college
- To create strong academic skills to aid in academic success
- To aid in the retention of students to the institution
- To create avenues of learning about others different from oneself
- To develop an openness to views different from one's own
Engineering Community
In partnership with the College of Engineering, HRL facilitates a process that can provide these engineering students with a high quality academic and co-curricular experience. Living with other engineering students and providing the opportunity to be part of a smaller community can be extremely helpful to student success.
Participation Requirement: Must be an Engineering major in order to participate. This community is designed for first-year students only.
Community Location: Gresham Hall
Health Professions Community
In partnership with many programs throughout campus (i.e. Nursing, Pre-Med, Dental Hygiene, etc.), HRL offers interested students in any health and health related major to live, network, and study together. Students in this program will benefit from opportunities to interact with peers who have similar interests and goals, including:
- Interact with Faculty
- In-Hall Tutoring
- Exposure to Leadership and Community Service Opportunities
- Interaction with Professionals and alumni in similar fields
Participation Requirement: Must be in a health or health-related major. This community is designed for first-year students only.
Community Location: Gresham Hall
Honors Living Community
In partnership with the Honors College, HRL provides Honors College students the opportunity to live in an environment with students of a similar academic focus. Students participating in the Honors Living Community will receive mentoring, opportunities for study groups and peer advising from upper-class students.
Participation Requirement: Must be admitted to the Honors College (for specific information on Honors College criteria and requirements, please visit their website at http://www.odu.edu/ao/honors/). This community is designed for all ODU students; first-year through senior.
Community Location: Virginia House
W.I.S.M.E. (Women in Science, Math and Engineering)
This Living Learning Community brings together first-year female engineering students in a residential environment to provide encouragement and support in pursuing a career in engineering. Living in this community helps you connect with peers in engineering while creating a setting conducive to study group, networking, peer tutoring and a variety of social activities.
WISME participants enroll in at least one shared academic course, such as Introduction to Engineering, during the fall semester and will take additional classes in common which will benefit members of this community by:
- Satisfying degree requirements
- Creating a link between curricular and co-curricular experiences
- Find it easy to form study groups
- Be introduced to academic resources at ODU
- Developing a sense of community among members
Engineering Peer Mentors will meet with the community once a week to conduct seminars to cover such topics as successful academic strategies, exploring critical issues surrounding women's roles in predominately-male fields, and other programs may include presentations on academic involvement, and research opportunities
Participation Requirement: Must be a female student with engineering as a declared major. This community is designed for first-year students only.
Community Location: Gresham Hall
