Welcome Wednesdays: To Join An LLC Or Not To Join An LLC
Elmira, NY (05/04/2022) — This is the second of five weekly articles that serve as guides to incoming students as they prepare for an exciting step in their academic journey.
Incoming first-year Elmira College students preparing for the start of their academic careers will need to weigh whether to join a Living Learning Community (LLC). LLCs are optional, but provide special opportunities for new students to find their place at EC.
Selections are due by May 30 and students can indicate their choices using this form.*
What are Living Learning Communities (LLCs)?
LLCs are a way to help bring together students with shared interests and form a small support community. Discussions and ideas from the classroom can more easily be continued in the residence halls and across campus, helping to highlight the connections between academic life and campus life at EC.
Students in the same LLC benefit from
- living together with each other in the same residence hall,
- learning together by taking First Year Seminar (FYS) together in the fall and taking Foundations of Academic Writing together in the winter, and
- building community together by organizing and attending events and activities together.
For the 2022-2023 academic year, students will have the option of choosing between one of three themes:
- Environmental Sustainability
- Social Justice
- Healthy Living
Why Join An LLC?
Two first-year students shared a little about their experiences in an LLC and why they found it valuable.
Tori Egy '25 took the Sustainable Living and Environmental course. She enjoyed getting outside and having fun working on the campus community garden. She also appreciated how the students in the course live in the same residence hall together.
"I loved living with the people in that class," she said. "It helped me find friends. I always had people to walk to class with or to grab lunch with."
Egy said the students used common spaces for their projects, like growing seeds for the garden. That would not have been as easy if they were spread apart. This focus on team and togetherness helped her but she did caution that someone who thrives on independent study may not enjoy the course as much as she did.
While most students who take an LLC will live together in a residence hall, Madison Nichols '25 commutes to Elmira College. She said that did not diminish the experience and the focus on teamwork helped her feel very connected to her group even though she doesn't live on campus.
"I definitely feel as if the First Year Seminar I took (Toward A More Just World) really opened my eyes not only to the problems in my backyard but to the country as a whole," she said. "I feel that what I learned really taught me how to be a better asset in my community."
About the Environmental Sustainability LLC.
Keen to be outside while learning about the social effects of climate change? If so, you'll want to take the First Year Seminar LLC titled Sustainable Living and Environmental Justice and led by Alexa Yesukevich, Instructor in Sociology and Coordinator of the Women's and Gender Studies Program. Yesukevich is eager to explore ways students can adopt everyday practices that limit their carbon footprint while learning to advocate for systemic changes. Whenever possible, this learning will occur outside.
Students will be involved in the College's new community garden and go on field trips, all while exploring the value of personal contributions to environmental sustainability.
"In this class, we'll look for inspiration in ordinary people around us who have made a decision to do things differently," said Yesukevich. "Students will study and/or visit local initiatives such as a youth farm that equates sustainability with racial justice; planned neighborhoods organized around environmental sustainability; and a business incubator that offers land, equipment, and training for new agricultural entrepreneurship. Whenever possible, our field trips will involve hands-on service learning."
About the Social Justice LLC.
Students who want to help create a more just world but aren't sure how to go about it, might be interested in the First Year Seminar LLC titled Toward a More Just World and led by Joel Stoker, Lecturer in Religious Studies.
Educators, artists, religious leaders, and activists will speak to students about how they successfully shifted power structures and empowered minorities and the underprivileged. Students will learn about historical policies that created discrimination, explore the narratives of those who moved the arc of justice forward, and participate in a local social justice organization, collaborating with leaders from local organizations.
"I'm excited to help students discover how people have changed the world in the past, but more importantly, how people are working to make the world a better place right now," said Stoker. "There are numerous organizations in our own backyard filled with volunteers who make enormous sacrifices to help others find enough to eat, discover a vocation, educate our youth, shelter those who need it, and provide opportunities for racial and social justice."
About the Healthy Living LLC.
Looking for tips and strategies for staying physically and mentally healthy in an exciting (and sometimes stressful) new college environment? Then check out the First Year Seminar LLC titled Healthy Body and Mind and led by Kelly Smith, Assistant Professor of Human Services. Students in this LLC will focus on the positive habits that promote a healthy body and mind as they undergo the transition to college life.
"Transitioning to college can be a very stressful time," said Smith. "I am very excited to help students learn healthy, positive ways they can navigate their new world. Students will be exposed to a number of tools they can use during their time in college and beyond. During the experience, students will hear from guest speakers, take a field trip, and participate in both on- and off-campus events. I want students to feel capable of managing challenges while feeling supported by, and connected to, their campus community."
PREVIOUS WELCOME WEDNESDAYS ARTICLE:
Welcome Wednesdays: Introducing The First Year Experience and Living Learning Communities
*Incoming students should have access to the form. If you have issues reach out to the Admissions Office.
Media Attachments
Students in the Sustainable Living and Environmental Justice Living Learning Community course will spend time digging and preparing a community garden on the Elmira College campus.
Students in the Toward A More Just World course get involved with area non-profits, often helping in food pantries.
Students in the Healthy Body and Mind course will get tips about how to relax, meditate, be mindful, and take time for themselves as they transition from high school to college.
