PAGE TURNER
by Chris King and Tony W. Cawthon
Faculty-in-residence (FIR) programs are becoming increasingly popular among campuses as educators attempt to bridge the gap between academic and student affairs. Specifically, the development of living-learning communities (LLCs) has bridged this gap as extensive literature reflects the benefits of faculty engagement in such communities. Whatever name these programs fall under – residential learning communities, living-learning communities, faculty-in-residence, or residential colleges – these programs typically have at least one faculty partner engaging with the students and sometimes teaching courses. In many cases, these faculty typically reside off campus, which makes it difficult for them to engage with their students who are residing together on campus.
The Faculty Factor: Developing Faculty Engagement with Living-Learning Communities, edited by Jennifer Eidum and Lara Lomicka, focuses on how faculty and students should engage in LLCs by participating in a program designed to better engage faculty and students in their learning both inside and outside of the classroom. More than 20 years of empirical research have demonstrated that faculty are key to LLC success. Students are more engaged in their learning when they have a faculty member living in residence, and faculty are more engaged with students on campus when they are living alongside them. For anyone considering having an FIR become part of an LLC, this book offers a practical outline with things to consider and best practices to use to create an FIR program.
This book attempts to shift the thinking beyond these studies and expand the knowledge base by sharing theoretical and practice-driven moves for LLC faculty engagement. It is organized into three parts, with 13 chapters, and prior to each chapter a vignette illustrates the key concepts of the chapter. These reflections allow authors to offer personal insights in the following chapters, each filled with both literature and practical applications of the chapter topic. Offering a comprehensive perspective of the impact of faculty engagement in LLCs, this book examines topics such as faculty engagement, an overview of the growth of LLCs, an examination of the roles faculty play in LLCs, recruiting and sustaining faculty in LLCs, and co-creating a common curriculum.
Part One, “Creating the Conditions for Successful Faculty Engagement in Living-Learning Communities,” opens with a vignette on becoming a faculty partner and then provides a 20,000-foot overview of faculty engagement in LLCs. Chapter 1 examines the changing demographics of higher education; if faculty are to be successful, they must understand a “new majority” and what works and will not work when engaging with these new students. Campuses look different than they did even 20 years ago, and faculty need to keep that in mind when planning programs and developing curricula in order to ensure that they include all students. Data from the Assessment of Collegiate Residential Environment and Outcomes report and data on how faculty are engaging with students at three specific schools provide important details about students’ residential experiences. Chapter 2 examines the impact of institutional commitment on experiential learning, innovative teaching, and emerging pedagogy. Such commitment enables a holistic perspective on students, one committed to their academic and personal growth. The chapter also presents the personal experience of accepting a faculty partner position and various strategies to incentivize faculty to apply.
Chapter 3 offers a “Four-Sphere” model for engaging faculty in a residential learning community (RLC): institutional context, organizational structure, professional motivation, and personal motivation. Each component of this model drives the level and type of faculty engagement. Particular attention is paid to vulnerability, as it is a crucial foundation for building any relationship. Students can be wary of having a faculty member in their midst, so faculty may need to share more about themselves than they would in the classroom. Chapter 4 demonstrates the challenges for faculty partners of balancing multiple personal and professional roles and introduces the idea of building a “residential campus [that] is a relationship-rich, high-impact practice powered by student, staff, and faculty mentoring.”
Part Two focuses on developing relationships between faculty partners and residential life staff, who must partner with one another to ensure that both living and learning experiences are intertwined in the process of planning, development, and oversight. Chapter 5 brings to light the strained relationships that can occur if LLC partners do not have a shared approach to building and overseeing an LLC. The authors developed a collaborative model that reflects best practices of student affairs partnering with academic affairs and serves to move the goal “from shared vision up to shared success.”
The vignette prior to Chapter 6 presents the story of how a new staff member and a new faculty partner learned that it takes significant time and investment to build an effective partnership with clearly delineated roles. The author offers some guidelines for what residential life staff and faculty should expect as part of their roles and concludes with a strong discussion on selecting and onboarding faculty partners and establishing an effective communication plan.
It is important to get to know each other as people when building a strong partnership, and the vignette for Chapter 7 ties that in by discussing the meaningfulness of knowing the “name and story” of individuals with whom one works. As the chapter title suggests, “it takes a village” (in this case, a campus village) to build and strengthen these partnerships. In addition to offering a “partnership continuum” model, which “conceives of academic collaborations in increasingly engaged steps” moving from support to full cooperation, the author identifies barriers to effective collaboration, potential LLC partnerships, integrating faculty-in-residence programs into an LLC, and best practices for starting an LLC. Chapter 8 explores the role of experiential learning in student engagement and provides recommendations for establishing courses and curricula within LLCs. The chapter provides an effective summary of existing literature on improving undergraduate education and introduces the concept of a “data mine,” which involves exploring information in order to discover areas where gaps exist. The final vignette, for Chapter 9, illustrates the mark that faculty partners can leave on students and the mark that students can leave on faculty partners. The chapter dives deeper into intentional engagements between faculty and students in an LLC and provides readers with a framework to achieve this kind of interaction.
Part Three examines the lived experiences of faculty-in-residence and what to expect from engaging in this position. Using national data to address the “Who? What? Where? Why?” of these programs, Chapter 10 presents a synopsis of their benefits and varying structures. Faculty aren’t the only ones involved in this partnership; their families also become part of the experience. The vignette prior to Chapter 11 offers a heartwarming story of an FIR raising children in a residence hall and how impactful the experience was for both the children and students. Faculty families can help students feel more comfortable and at home in a community, which leads to further engagement in learning. Chapter 12 explores the practicality and reality for faculty of living in a residence hall, with much of the discussion centered on how to maintain a work/life balance, which is particularly difficult for those who are living where they work. The final chapter offers a discussion on the future of faculty engagement and FIR programs. Future issues include expanding faculty involvement, specifically focusing on how DEI principles are incorporated and revising faculty recruitment processes to engage in more inclusive recruitment.
For housing staff seeking to have meaningful faculty engagement in their housing communities, this book is a must read and an excellent resource for those developing residential curricula or teaching an RA class. How to read it will be determined by where you are in the process of faculty engagement. Those in the initial stages would be best served by reading the chapters in order, whereas those with more experience could benefit from reading those chapters most appropriate to where they are in the process. Readers are highly encouraged to go to the website (listed in the foreword), which provides discussion questions, additional book resources for each chapter, and an array of other resources such as guiding questions for LLC curriculum development or new faculty/staff partnerships and an LLC policies and practice template manual.
Overall, this book provides an excellent practical perspective on increasing faculty engagement with LLCs. The authors explore each topic extensively and discuss potential challenges. We would recommend this book for student affairs professionals, campus housing staff, and faculty to explore increased options for learning outside of the classroom and interacting with students in an entirely different way. The real-world examples and practical advice make this book a page turner, and the reader will leave with a newfound or reinvigorated passion for LLCs and the importance of faculty engagement.
Chris King is a graduate community director at Clemson University in South Carolina. Tony W. Cawthon, Ph.D., is an Alumni Distinguished Professor at Clemson. “Page Turner” is a recurring column that pairs Cawthon with a graduate student or professional colleague as they review books and scholarship of interest to campus housing and student affairs.
