The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 1 - 88

Kathleen Buell * Vaughn Love * Christina Yao

course-oriented learning activities of academic
affairs with the programmatic learning activities typical of residential life" (Henry & Schein,
1998, p. 9). LLPs typically include a shared
focus centered on an academic discipline or
interdisciplinary theme (Shapiro & Levine,
1999) and function as residential communities that emphasize faculty and student interaction. As one of the early pioneers of LLPs,
Zeller (1994) highlighted Washington State
University (WSU) as an example of how residential learning communities (RLCs) can successfully incorporate faculty, students, and
student affairs efforts into collaborative learning environments.
For the purpose of this paper, LLPs refer
to residential programs that involve a cohort
of students who are typically co-enrolled in
one or more courses organized around an academic discipline (e.g., business, engineering)
or interdisciplinary theme (e.g., leadership,
multiculturalism) (Shapiro & Levine, 1999).
As a point of clarification, we use the term LLP
throughout this paper; however, when university programs use other terms, we remain
consistent with their terminology. This distinction becomes important later on, as we more
thoroughly discuss the LLPs at both WSU and
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL), institutions that respectively refer to their LLPs
as either residential learning communities
(RLCs) or learning communities (LCs). Also,
we want to recognize that many scholars use
different terms to describe LLPs, as evidenced
in related literature.
In this paper, we examine the changes
since Zeller's (1994) report of successful
connections between faculty, students, and
student affairs staff in the RLCs at Washington
88

State. We first provide an overview of Zeller's
(1994) article and continue with a brief review
of how LLPs have changed in the past 20 years.
We then provide examples of the changes that
have influenced how LLPs have been established and developed at UNL. We conclude
with recommendations for practice based on
this historical review of LLPs.

REWIND: OVERVIEW OF LIVINGLEARNING PROGRAMS
Zeller's (1994) article "Residential Learning
Communities: Creating Connections Between
Students, Faculty, and Student Affairs Departments" began with a review of the contemporary literature of the time regarding the
relationship between student and academic
affairs and described scholars' increasing calls
for "stronger collaboration between the two
areas" (p. 37). The author identified a shift in
practice, which, while slow and complicated,
called for faculty and student affairs staff engagement in student learning. Zeller (1994)
argued that despite the literature's strong endorsement of cooperation between multiple
campus partners, in reality, such work was
difficult.
The RLCs at Washington State began in
1989 as a part of the Department of Residence
Life's efforts to "refocus the direction of programs and services" (Zeller, 1994, p. 39) to
more closely link students' personal and academic development. Zeller (1994) identified
residing on campus as an important feature
that positively influenced the personal and academic development of students. In addition,
other changes to resources and student learning outcomes (e.g., having established peer
advising groups and being a highly residen-

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The Journal of College and University Student Housing - Volume 44, No. 1

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