Colleges and universities increasingly recognize that residential Living Learning Communities (LLC’s) promote student success and student engagement. These smaller groups within larger resident populations build community by combining res-life programming with academic partner initiatives.

Hillside Hall, a new home for the University of Rhode Island’s Pharmacy and Nursing LLCs is a model for successful LLC planning. So much so, that the Association of College and University Housing Officers – International (ACUHO-I) has invited architects Jordan Gatewood (MMA), Chris Ladds (LLB Architects), and Chip Yensan, former Residential Life Director at the University of Rhode Island, to talk about it at an LLC-focused conference later this month.

Community clusters, neutral bathrooms, and strategically placed common spaces, all planned for flexibility, help campus planners achieve their goal of encouraging students to personally connect with their academic and residential peers.