Arnie the chinchilla visits students in Hahne Hall with his
handler from Cool Critters Outreach.Chicks and chinchillas on North Quad. Learning to cook tofu in Hahne. Yoga in Stonebridge. Karaoke in Hepburn. Cookies with cops in Tappan.

From stress relief and self care to community building and connection to academic success, residential students had no shortage of program options this year. Resident assistants, residence life professional staff, and community leadership teams combined efforts to host more than 1,300 engaging programs.

“The major function of residence hall programs is to facilitate togetherness,” said Vicka Bell Robinson, director for the office of residence life. “There was certainly a time when students could only get access to some information by going to an in-person program. Students today have access to information at the end of their fingertips. Almost everything that we teach via hall programming can be learned from the internet, so our programming goals are less about what students learn more about having a positive shared experience with other students in their community. Of course, we want students to learn, but positive community development is always the goal.”

Graduate Assistant Mecca Abdul-Aziz, tries her hand
at flipping hot tofu in the pan.Faculty and staff participated in many programs. Dr. Jonathan Levy had lunch with honors students. Dr. Renate Crawford discussed women in leadership in Hamilton. Bethany Brose hosted a nursing panel in Symmes. Carolyn Craig, director of diversity, equity and inclusion for the College of Arts and Science, visited the first year research experience living learning community and the Stokes scholars in Hepburn multiple times during the year. Dr. David Eyman led a creativity workshop and had dinner with Dorsey residents. And, among others, Dr. Jennifer Blue, Dr. Jane Keiser and Laura Anderson chatted with students in Morris Hall about achieving success in math and science.

“Sometimes students are intimidated by a faculty member’s status as a faculty member, not because of anything the faculty member has done,” said Bell-Robinson. “We find that helping students get to know faculty members in an informal setting paves the way for them to feel more comfortable forming high quality academic relationships with experts.”

Students generally appreciate the many opportunities for getting involved and learning right in their own hall.

Arnie, the chinchilla, visits students in Hahne Hall with his
handler from Cool Critters Outreach.Haley Owens, a first year student in Hahne Hall, said, “One thing I liked about the [Cool Critters] program was I was able to be fully hands on with all of the animals. I was able to engage with them and learn about them to the fullest extent.” Interactivity is a hallmark of residence hall programming.

About her living learning community (LLC), Stephanie Staltzer said, “I have met so many different people through attending events, and everyone is always super enthusiastic. Not only are the people within the LLC extremely involved, but a lot of the activities are very hands-on and they are incredible experiences!”