The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 3 - 56

Stephanie D. Sears * Dawn Lee Tu

living-learning communities to "encourage
students to create connections between learning that takes place in the classroom setting
and the experiences, events, and individuals affecting their lives every day" (Murphy, 2002, p.
24). Scholars have shown the consistent efficacy and positive impact of living-learning communities (LLCs) on students' persistence and
engagement (Love & Tokuno, 1999; Lenning
& Ebbers, 1999; Stassen, 2003; Inkelas, Daver,
Vogt, & Leonard, 2007; Inkelas, Drechsler, et
al. 2007). Moreover, scholars have found that
students living in social justice-focused LLCs
have higher rates of civic engagement and
openness to diversity (Rowan-Kenyon, Soldner,
& Inkelas, 2007; Longerbeam & Sedlacek,
2006). Yet, how do LLCs help develop students' "openness to diversity" and understanding of social justice? Specifically, how does the
LLC program support the growth of students
like Xiomara, and their sense of praxis and
self-perceptions as change agents?
This paper presents a case study of the
Esther Madriz Diversity Scholars (EMDS), a
social justice-focused LLC for second-year students, in an effort to understand the impact of
the program on students' social justice experiences. Through qualitative analysis of student
reflection papers, we examine the development
and deepening of students' critical consciousness. We found that EMDS students expressed
a deepening of their critical reflection as well
as critical action skills and capacities. Specifically, they acknowledged an increase in their
understanding of self and others, the structural
causes of oppression, and an increased belief
that they could be effective change agents.

SOCIAL JUSTICE CURRICULUM
IN LIVING-LEARNING
COMMUNITIES
The 2007 National Study of Living-Learning
Programs (NSLLP) defines LLCs as "programs
in which undergraduate students live together
in a discrete portion of a residence hall [or the
entire hall] and participate in academic and/or
extra-curricular programming designed especially for them" (Inkelas, 2007, p. I-2). Inkelas
(2007) notes that approximately 20 social
justice-focused LLCs exist in U.S. universities, with varying foci ranging from exploring
critical diversity concepts and promoting civic
engagement, to social justice skill-building
toward creating societal change. Rowan-Kenyon et al. (2007) found students who participated in a civic engagement LLC had higher
civic engagement scores than students living
in a general LLC or those who did not participate in a LLC. The researchers found some
evidence that social justice-minded students
self- select into civic engagement-themed
LLCs and amplify one another's commitments to civic engagement and social justice.
Furthermore, Hurtado, Engberg, Ponjuan, &
Landreman, (2002) highlight the importance
of the living-learning environment in providing opportunities for peer engagement, which
can have profound impact on students' understanding of social justice.
We build on the aforementioned research
and scholarship on social justice and living
learning communities by looking specifically
at critical consciousness as a way to examine
students' engagement with social justice. Critical consciousness (CC) or "conscientização"
is defined as "learning to perceive social, political, and economic contradictions, and to

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The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 43, No. 3

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