Talking Stick - September/October 2014 - 38

development, these interactions have positive
effects on their persistence, their academic
achievement, and their perception of the
college experience. Faculty also reap benefits
from engaging in out-of-class interactions with
students; they can establish stronger and more
personal relationships with students, hone
their teaching skills in different environments,
and feel a stronger sense of community
and more meaningful ties to the institution.
Faculty are motivated to engage with students
in this way for a variety of reasons. In a study
examining faculty experiences during their
first year in a residential college, authors
Jody Jessup-Anger, Matthew Wawrzynski,
and Christina Yao indicate that most faculty
engage in living-learning programs to get to
know students better or because they believe
in the interdisciplinary nature of residential
academic initiatives. Kevin Fitzpatrick, professor
of sociology at the University of Arkansas
in Fayetteville and long-time supporter of
residential academic initiatives, explains that
he engaged in learning communities to get to
know students in a deeper and more personal
way, which he found difficult in the more
regimented confines of the classroom. The
research on learning communities testifies to
the fact that many tenured faculty also engage
in learning communities to revitalize their
teaching and service experiences.

Strategies for
Engaging Faculty
There are several important strategies that

can be utilized to engage faculty in residential
academic initiatives.

Understand Motivations
In an article about academic and student
affairs partnerships, Peter Magolda, a
professor at Miami University in Ohio, advises
student affairs professionals not to engage in
collaborative partnerships with faculty just
because they can. They should first consider
how they would answer the following questions:
"'Will the creation of this partnership be good
for students and partners?' And 'How does
collaboration fit with the partners' teaching
and learning beliefs?'" Often the tendency is
to jump right into the process, dividing up
responsibilities, establishing goals, scheduling
meetings, or creating learning outcomes.
Before considering any of the administrative or
managerial procedures, however, student affairs
professionals should first carefully consider
"whether a particular partnership has merit."

Maintain an Academic
Focus
George Kuh, professor emeritus in the
Department of Education Leadership
and Policy Studies at Indiana University
Bloomington, emphasizes that the orientation
to the institution should be based primarily on
academics, and this holds true for academic
and student affairs partnerships, which should
maintain a clear focus on what each group
contributes to the academic experiences

A+ APARTMENTS
The 21st Century Project at Baylor
University in Waco, Texas, takes
the concept of a living-learning
community to the next level with the
faculty-in-residence University Parks
apartment complex. The apartments,
repurposed from older dorm-style
suites or built into the design plans,
create a 2,400-square-foot home for 11
professors in 10 different communities.
Living in such close quarters with

38

talking Stick

students has proved to be an endeavor
that has benefited both students and
faculty-in-residence. The faculty's
children, for example, have been
fully embraced by the students they
are surrounded by, and, in turn, the
students often look to the faculty-inresidence as a surrogate parent. These
bonds generate discussions of future
plans, shared experiences, wisdom,
and support. The faculty believe that

the student experience extends beyond
the classroom, and they value the
opportunity to immerse themselves
within the community of students with
mutual respect and appreciation. Both
professors and students are living the
dream that Baylor University had for
the community: more frequent and
more meaningful interactions between
the two groups. The university wanted
to create more than just diplomas;
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