Residential College - Baylor University

Residential College

School of Engineering & Computer Science

ECS Living-Learning Center

• What is the ECS LLC? – A residential complex that houses

engineering & computer science

students.

– Students live together, and classes

together

– A community of like-minded students

• Why live in the LLC? – Studies have shown that living-learning

environments significantly enhance

student success in a technical major.

General Information

• Like minded students living together • Freshmen through seniors • Average SAT above 1320 • Application Only • 262 Students

– 102 are female—39% – 160 are male—61%

ECS Living-Learning Center Growth

2004 •Originated with 50 ECS Students

2007 – 2008

•25 Female Students •115 Male Students

2008 – 2009

•50 Female Students •134 Male Students

2009 – 2010

•64 Female Students •157 Male Students

2010 – 2011

•99 Female Students •150 Male Students

2011 – 2012

•102 Female Students •160 Male Students

Holistic Educational Programming

• Bible Studies • Worship Nights • Prayer

• Community Discussions

• Guest Lectures • Free tutoring!

• Intramurals • Paintball • Capture the Flag

• Semi-Formal • DPH • Men/Women’s

Activities

Social Physical

Spiritual Intellectual

What helps to create this community?

• Faculty-In-Residence – Dr. Ian Gravagne and Family

• Director – Emily Fallin Sandvall

• Leadership Council – “The Heartbeat” of the community

• Recruiting & Retention

• Academic Integration and Excellence

• Like-Minded Community

• Increased Relationships

• Student Development Opportunities

• Rich Tradition

Benefits of the ECS-LLC

• Success as an Living Learning Center

• Outgrown the North Village

• Lack of dining facility and spiritual formation space

• To increase the programmatic retention and graduation rate of our students

• Nurturing community of like-minded individuals who all share the burdens of an extremely challenging academic track

• Faculty mentorship, interaction, and development

Why a Residential College?

Residential Colleges 101

• What is a Residential College? – The academic collegium: a group

of faculty fellows, including a

faculty master

– Residential: students live and

interact with the collegium in and

out of class.

– A residential college is not the

building, but the building can help

or hinder!

Residential Colleges 101

• The Four General Aims of RCs everywhere 1. Decentralization: Create a small academic

society (ideally 300 to 600) within the larger

university.

2. Faculty leadership: the master (in residence),

the faculty fellows, a board of trustees, possibly

other faculty in residence

3. Stability: a predictable rhythm of life, a safe

place to be, a home and a family

4. Diversity: esp. intellectual diversity

Residential Colleges 101 • Where are these Residential Colleges?

– Oxford/Cambridge ,400 years+

– Harvard Houses, est. ~1930s but genesis in

1894

– Yale/Rice colleges, est. early 1900s

– Princeton colleges, est. 1960s

– Baylor University, est. 2006

• A renaissance since 1990! – UC Santa Cruz/UC San Diego, U. of Miami,

Truman State U., MIT, WVU, many others

– 20+ countries!

A Recent Visit to Princeton and Yale

Yale: Jonathan Edwards College

A Recent Visit to Princeton and Yale

Princeton: Mathey College

Princeton: Mathey College

(almost) Unique to Baylor • Baylor’s RCs partner with specific Academic Units

– Preferential admission to the college of students from that unit

– Unit has say in selection of faculty master

– Unit gets first dibs on RC offices, can place its support staff in the RC

• The RC supplements and supports the unit, but does not attempt to replicate – Many of the same things the ECS LLC already does! Spiritual growth/formation, Leadership

development, in-house tutoring, freshman advising, etc…

Vision for the Faculty Master (a work in progress!)

• Promoting intellectual diversity and breadth

• Establishing a model of shared, collaborative governance of the college

• Striking a tone of intellectual excellence

Distinguished visitors in the

master’s home

Music and artistic

expression

Faith through the lens of STEM professionals

Master and staff Board of Trustees

Faculty Fellowship

Recognition for academic

achievement

Exhibition/ Presentation of

student scholarship

Civic participation and

responsibility

College Council

If we get it right? • Students graduate with a quintessentially collegiate experience • Engenders loyalty to college, ECS and Baylor (and how!) • ECS wins more recruiting battles with Rice, UT, even Ivies

– Better ECS retention

– Higher graduation rates

• Four/five years of consistent emphasis on the virtues of collegiate leave lifelong impressions on students

– Focus on the life of the mind and spirit, service,

forbearance and patience, intellectual excellence,

friendship, sacrifice, civic responsibility and pride

• A 4th generation resident faculty scholar…?

East Village – Potential Phase I

East Village – View at 2nd and Bagby

East Village – View at 2nd and Bagby

• Opens in August of 2013

• 360 beds (62% male-223/ 38% female- 137)

• Additional Faculty and Staff Offices

• Conference Rooms

• Study Rooms

• Common Areas (Game room, Kitchen, etc.)

• Classroom

• Cafeteria

ECS Residential College “East Village”

East Village Questions or Comments