(Pre-)Pharmacy Learning Community Makes Fleece Baby Blankets for Connecticut Children's Medical Center!

Members of the (Pre-)Pharmacy Learning Community got together to make 24 fleece-tied baby blankets to donate to the Connecticut Children's Medical Center for the winter months. Not only did everyone work together and have fun, but they gave back to a community that as future pharmacists they could potentially be working very closely with in the future.
~submitted by Justine Dickson, (Pre-)Pharmacy LC RA

Learning Community Bonds over Low Ropes Course

by Kate Schneider, first-year Pre-Teaching major

(reprinted from Community UConnections, November 2009)

On October 10, I was fortunate enough to take part in the Community Service Learning Community's Low Ropes Course experience. Early in the morning we bundled up for the crisp fall air and stuffed into CO vans to head out for a fun-filled team bonding exercise at the Four Arrows Ropes course on the University's Depot Campus.

After a warm greeting from our leaders, we began by playing a variety of fun games in the blustery fall day, such as “Capture the Chicken,” played with a rubber chicken, and “Trust Falls,” in which members of the group stand in a circle and catch their teammate as they “fell” into one anothers' raised hands. Every one of the games was geared toward the bonding of individuals into a cohesive team.

Once we had become comfortable with each other, the community ventured out into the woods to push ourselves to our limits on the nearby low ropes course. Students and advisors found themselves confronted with a variety of different obstacles including the “Spiderweb’ where students helped each other through different sized holes of a rope web, both high and low. Twila Hinds, a freshman, said, “It helped us to put our ideas together and learn to work as a team.”

Each task required a considerable amount of strategizing as a team, forcing the community to think outside the box. These tasks were intended to push both students and advisors together as a group and allow us to expand our comfort zone. Our FYE instructor, Heather Wilhelm, believes that the students made “lasting bonds with one another that will carry [them] throughout the school year.”

The ropes course represents just a sampling of the events that the Learning Community has participated in this fall. As a freshman, each event has helped to introduce me to upperclassmen and underclassmen alike and created ties to wonderful people whom I otherwise never would have met. More importantly, the community pushed me to become an active member of the UCONN community, thus greatly aiding my transition to college.

All Learning Community students involved agree both the event and the community as a whole have become a great success, and a big part of their lives on campus. The moments shared by students will certainly be remember for years to come, “I met many new people through [our] learning community. [It is] definitely a good bonding experience,” exclaimed Laura Kim, a freshman. I couldn’t agree more!

Nursing Mentoring Program

by Sara Ferguson, Nursing Major

Members of the Nursing Learning Community in South Campus have gotten together to begin the Freshman Mentor Program with Nursing majors living in Rogers Hall in Northwest Campus. The Mentor Program is for freshman to become acquainted with college life and the School of Nursing. It allows the new students to have someone to talk to that can relate to the whole first year college experience. On Thursday, November 12th, a pizza dinner was hosted where the mentors could meet their mentees and get to know each other over food, games and Grey’s Anatomy! More group events will be organized in the future as well as individual lunch and dinner dates between the mentors and their mentees.

Invisible Children

Members of the Community Service Learning Community attended a dinner with two representatives from Invisible Children. Through this dinner, we were able to learn more about the war in Uganda and the unfortunate forcement of children to be soldiers for the oppressive leader, Joseph Kony.

Following the dinner was a viewing of the eye-opening documentary, "The Rescue." Representatives made it clear that it is important for the youth of America to get their voices heard. If you are interested in helping this cause to rescue child soldiers from Joseph Kony, information can be found online: www.invisiblechildren.com.

Democracy's Challenge

At the end of last month several of the members of the Community Service Learning Community attended a dinner and lecture entitled Democracy's Challenge.

The event focused on how citizens can become more directly involved in society. Those of us who attended this event came to the realization that through smaller organizations, people of this nation can begin to have their voices heard. It is when groups of people come together via religious or social groups that opinions have a stronger effect than that of a single individual. After becoming so interested and motivated by this event, the five of us decided to introduce it to the rest of our upper-classmen LC class. Awareness of topics such as these will play a large role in how we each decide to make a difference in this world.
Picture credit

Meet Andrea Lama!

Andrea Lama is a Senior International Business Management Major who joined the Leadership Learning Community as a Freshman and never left! Take a minute to learn about Andrea's LC experience and why she decided to continue her journey throughout her UConn career:

How did living in the LC help you academically? Living on the Leadership floor showed me a lot of resources that I wouldn't have been exposed to otherwise. I was also able to network with lots of people in the Leadership and Student Activities community that were really helpful academically. I had the opportunity to meet with many UConn faculty who have helped me with my courses and even internships.

What did you find most beneficial? Definitely the networking I've been able to do through the Leadership LC. I've gotten job offers and fantastic recommendations because of the people I've met, and I've also made incredible friendships with the great people I lived with.

Would you recommend this LC? Definitely! If you're nervous about meeting people, a LC is the best way to start because there is already a set group of people you get to interact with. Also, the Leadership LC just teaches you so much about yourself that you wouldn't necessarily learn elsewhere.

Do you believe living in an LC helped your transition to college? It really did help me adjust to UConn. Being such a huge place, I was worried I'd be lost or unimportant, but with the Leadership LC I got to meet great people right away and the LC gave me such a good foothold on the UConn way of life. If I ever needed anything, the people involved with the Leadership LC were always there to help me.

Did living in an LC encourage or provide opportunities for you to get involved? Living in an LC was such a great introduction to getting involved on campus. It was because of the Leadership floor and the other students in it that we all started HOLDUP! HOLDUP! stands for Husky Outreach for Leadership Development, Understanding, and Pride!, and was started by the Leadership LC in 2006! After loving our LC and the INTD course so much, we decided to make a program that would bring what we learned to others, and HOLDUP! was born! Now HOLDUP! is a UConn program in the Department of Student Activities and it brings interactive workshops on Leadership to at-risk and inner-city high schools around Connecticut. The program wouldn't have come together if it weren't for the Leadership LC and the great people who were in it with me.

Did living in an LC limit you in any way? What was the level of commitment? In absolutely no way did living in the LC limit me. It was so great! A lot of people might be nervous about living in an LC, they might be worried that it's not cool or that they won't get to do fun things if they're committed to a community, but that isn't true! If Leadership isn't your thing, there are SO MANY other communities you could join, and since when is doing something you love uncool? Living in the LC didn't take any more work than anything else at UConn. It's all great stuff and so much fun that you won't think of anything involved as "work."

*Along with being involved in starting HOLDUP!, Andrea also blogs on the Student Activities website. Check it out to see what she's up to!

The Learning Community Journey

by Alexandra Kuehnle, RA, Political Science Major, Human Rights Minor
(reprinted from Community UConnections, September 2009)

As the Community Service Learning Community embarks upon its third year, students are eager to take the wheel on what promises to be a gratifying journey. This year, Director of Community Outreach, Matt Farley, has taken the reins on the service learning aspect of the learning community by developing coursework designed to catalyze initiatives on social issues and generate active global citizenship through service. Besides growing in size, Learning Community freshmen attend the same English class, as well as a First Year Experience class designed to foster transition to the college environment through the lens of community service. Upperclassmen in the Learning Community earn credits for community service hours as well as partake in a three thousand level interdisciplinary course designed to prepare students for active citizenship by exploring the role of civic engagement and its connection to their personal identities, local communities, and global society.

Besides the coursework, Learning Community students have many plans to implement service on a local and even national level throughout the year by participating in national days of service and constructing local community projects that encompass social issues such as environmental advocacy, literacy awareness, and homelessness. In addition, students will also create a spring alternative break trip, directed by Community Outreach student leader and learning community member, Alexander Senetcky. "I feel lucky to be part of a community with such a fierce passion for service learning. It is comforting to know that despite everything, I can come home at the end of the day to people who have very quickly become some of my closest friends and who have the same values that I do," said Jessica Montana, first year learning community student.

This new face of the Community Service Learning Community is designed to create new student leaders within Community Outreach, on campus, and within global society. Ask any Learning Community student, and they will tell you that they are ready to embrace this challenge and trek this journey, both individually and as an active community.

Bodies Revealed Trip

Students and staff representing several communities [Nursing, (Pre-)Pharmacy, Public Health, Global House, Leadership, Connecting w/ the Arts, WiMSE, Allied Health, Pathobiology, and the Honors Program] visited the Bodies Revealed Exhibition at Foxwoods Resort Casino. The display features real human specimens, allowing people to view the inner body in a way typically reserved only for medical professionals.

Nursing RA, Emily MacKenzie, held a real human heart and stomach, as she explained to those around her what she was learning about them in her courses. There were whole human bodies, as well as individual organs, or systems displayed.

"Green Game Day" at Rentschler Stadium!

EcoHousers had already been busy around the Storrs campus but last weekend, they headed to Rentschler Stadium for "Green Game Day." The gorgeous fall day had Jonathan strutting his stuff in an EcoHusky t-shirt, volunteers helping with a pilot recycling program in the tailgating lots, and many more volunteers "Manning the Can" around the stadium.

Green Game Day was the latest in a series of sustainability initiatives hosted in partnership by UConn Athletics and the Office of Environmental Policy. Thanks to all of the volunteers who made the day such a success!


You can read more about Green Game Day and EcoHouse in this press release from UConn Athletics!

Eco-Madness Fall 2009!

Eco-Madness is a conservation contest between Buckley, Northwest, Towers, Shippee, and West. Each residence complex will compete against each other to see who can conserve the most energy and water per person. The contest will take place from September 28th to October 25th. The winning dorm residents will receive a Dairy Bar Ice Cream party and an Energy Offset Certificate!

Here are some useful conservation tips!
1. Turn off your lights when leaving a room
2. Turn off and unplug appliances (TV, microwave, computer) when not in use
3. Use CFL lightbulbs instead of standard bulbs
4. Keep your heat low & windows closed
5. Bike, walk, or take the bus
6. Use a power strip to turn off multiple appliances at once
7. Take fewer or shorter showers
8. Do not leave the water running while brushing your teeth or washing your hands and face
9. Do only full loads of laundry
10. Hang clothes to dry instead of using the dryer

STOP THE DROP! To report leaks that won't stop, visit https://webcentral.reslife.uconn.edu

Schedule of Eco-House Madness Events:
Monday October 5th: Eco-Trivia in the Dinig Halls 5-7 PM
Sunday October 25th: Eco-Madness Ends

Sign up to be an Eco-Captain!
Eco-Captains are responsible for motivating fellow residents to conserve energy and water and advertising the contest. If you are interested, please contact catherine.pomposi@uconn.edu.

For more information, see: http://ecohusky.uconn.edu

If you live in one of these residence halls, don't forget to conserve!!!

Meet Laura Bozzi!

Laura Bozzi is a sophomore this year and was (and still is!) involved in the WiMSE (Women in Math, Science, and Engineering) Learning Community. She plans to graduate in 2012 with a degree in Physiology and Neurobiology. We had her answer our questions based on her experience as a freshman last year. Her answers may give women in those tough science/math/engineering majors an idea of what the community is like. (Photo: Amanda Cartier left, Jennifer Newman middle, Laura Bozzi right)

Why did you join a LC? I decided to join a LC because I wanted to interact with people that had common interests in the same fields as I do.

How did living in a LC help you academically? I was able to adjust to college with my peers and having colleagues right down the hall helped me to stay on task and focused. They [colleagues] were also there for support and extra help.

What did you find most beneficial about your LC experience? The class. It got me to meet and interact with the women on my floor. It also helped to turn away the awkwardness there was with being a freshman and helped everyone to get along better.

Would you recommend this LC to other students? I would definitely recommend this to all students because it helps you meet your classmates outside of the classroom.

Do you think living in a LC helped ease your transition to college? It did help me transition and allowed everyone to adjust together. It was great to know that you had a person next door with your major going through the same things you were.

Did living in a LC provide any opportunities for you? The organization [WiMSE Club] helped me to meet different professors and assistants around the campus. I helped plan the Annual WiMSE Banquet this past spring (April 2009) and in the fall (Fall 2009), and I will be one of the co-presidents of the organization. I would have never joined the WiMSE club if it had not been for the learning community. They also got me involved with the Husky for a Day Program where I got to describe UConn to high school seniors, who were in the same position I was in the year before.

Did living in a LC limit you in anyway? At first I wasn't sure how I was going to feel living with all science majors, but I ended up loving it and meeting fantastic people who I had a lot in common with. We all ended up eating together because we all became so close.

Learning Communites are on Facebook

UConn's Learning Community program is now on facebook where regular updates, tips and event notices will be posted. Become a fan!

Individual communities also have their own facebook pages. Find them on the LC website.

Study Technique Workshops

IS YOUR STUDY TECHNIQUE GOING TO PRODUCE THE GRADES YOU WANT OR NEED?

In order to consistently produce high grades you need to create an intentional approach to processing your course material. That technique needs to help you to understand, remember, and use the notes, readings, articles, problem sets, and labs from your classes.

The following workshops will look at strategies and techniques for effectively and efficiently processing information. No reservation is necessary.

Study Technique Workshops
7:00 pm
Mon., September 21, 2009 or
Tues., September 22, 2009
Location: Q Center, 1st floor Learning Commons area
in the Homer Babbidge Library

Tip! For one-on-one coaching on study techniques,
visit the Academic Achievement Center (AAC)!

MLK T-Shirt Design Contest!

Announcing the UConn Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. 2010 T-Shirt Design Contest! Open to all UConn students! Submissions should reflect the 2010 theme,
“Coalition Building: The Key to Advancing the Dream.”

The winning submission will be used for the 2010 event, and the winning designer will receive ten of the shirts. The event will occur on Monday January 18, 2010 in the afternoon in the Student Union, more information to come soon.

E-Mail your electronic submission to Ryan.Barone@uconn.edu by Friday October 30, 2009.

NOTE: Submissions need to be completed in Illustrator and done in Vector Art. Submissions must be in JPG/PDF format. The design may have a maximum of three colors. The MLK Planning committee reserves the right to alter the winning submission as needed.

Meet Juan Carmona!

Juan is a senior Resource Economics and Spanish major. He was involved in the Leadership Learning Community his freshmen year; and last year (2008-2009), he was a Resident Assistant for the Leadership Community. We asked him to fill out a short questionnaire that may give some better insight into what a Learning Community is all about! (Photo: Juan is the last person on the right)

Why did you choose to live in a Learning Community (LC)? I chose to live in a LC because I felt it was a great opportunity to get involved on campus early on. I wanted to get to know my floor mates in a setting outside of the residence hall and the LC was a helpful tool in achieving that goal.

How did living here help you academically? The Leadership LC helped me have a better focus on my academics and provided me with numerous resources that allowed me to stay strong academically.

What did you find most beneficial about your LC experience? One of the most valuable things I got out of this experience was the founding of the HOLDUP! Program (Husky Outreach for Leadership Development, Understanding and Pride!). The program is designed to reach out to high school students in our community and bring out their leadership skills. This experience also opened many doors to many blessings, more involvement, and personal success in the last 2 years, so much so that I decided to serve as the LC's RA last year, and it was truly my pleasure to do so. I am extremely grateful for the experience and the faculty/staff who organized the LC, especially Dr. Joseph Briody (Associate Director of Student Development and Learning).

Did living in a LC encourage you, or provide opportunities for you, to get involved on campus? Definitely! I was a Resident Assistant (3rd year), one of the founding members of HOLDUP!, a FYE Mentor for 2 years, a METAS Mentor, Tour Guide, and I was involved in the UCONN DanceSport Club and the Leadership Legacy Experience.

What was the level of commitment needed to live here? The requirements have changed since I was a freshmen, bit I believe the benefits are greater. The things learned in the classroom and in the residence hall are so useful and applicable to the real world, regardless of the students' major.

Events this Week!

Involvement Fair
>> Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009
>> 3-8 pm in the Student Union
Opportunities to get involved!
**********
Study Abroad Fair
>> Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009
>> 4-7 pm Rome Ballroom (upstairs from South Dining Hall)
**********
Allison Gannon, WiMSE RA is holding a
CPR/AED Certification Class
>> Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009
>> 10 am in Hawley Armory, Gym 1
>> Cost: $40 (+$10 optional book)
Contact Allison.Gannon@uconn.edu to sign up!

Taught by certified instructor. Participants will earn official certification from the American Heart Association valid for 2 years.
If enough students sign up, there will be a discount!

2009-10 Kickoff!

Social Justice: Ashley, Kristen, Kayla, Jarvis, Matthew, Michael

The 2009-10 Learning Community Kickoff was a great success!
Professor Veronica Makowsky,
Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education and
Steve Kremer,
Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs,
addressed the five hundred students, plus faculty and staff, in attendance.

Community Service

Women in Math, Science & Engineering (WiMSE)Leadership
Honors Program
Global House
(Pre-)Pharmacy
Connecting with the Arts and Fine Arts
Public Health/Public Service
Nursing
EcoHouse
Music
Animal Science

Move-in Weekend at UConn!

Welcome to UConn, students! You are the life & energy of this campus, so we are excited to have you back. Have fun settling in, and for those of you new here, enjoy exploring campus.

All LC Students ~
You're invited to the
Learning Community Kick-off!!
>> Sunday, August 30, 2009
>> 10:30 am
>> Student Union Ballroom (3rd floor)
Wear your LC t-shirt!
Speakers will welcome you, & then we'll move outside (weather permitting) to take some group photos. Full Husky WOW Schedule

Stephen Colbert meets Bill McKibben

A few days ago, Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, appeared on the Colbert Report! You can use the following link to check out the video: http://www.350.org/billoncolbert.

350.org is an incredible organization, dedicated to raising awareness around the importance of returning atmospheric carbon dioxide levels to 350 ppm in order to avoid the most drastic effects of climate change. The current level is approaching 390 ppm. They're hosting an international day of action on October 24 and as of now, there are 98 countries signed up to participate! If you have any ideas for how EcoHouse or UConn in general could get involved with this day of hope and activism, definitely drop me a line.

The 6th Annual Festival on the Green! will be held on Sunday, September 13 from noon to 5pm behind the Storrs Center commercial plazas (rain location: E.O. Smith High School) on Route 195.

Don't miss the kick-off event, the Celebrate Mansfield Parade which begins at 12. The parade will run along Storrs Road (Route 195) between Route 275 and Dog Lane.

Plus, there will be performances from local bands (including the headliner, James Montgomery Band), food from local restaurants and vendors, an art show, cooking demonstrations, petting zoo, and more.

The festival is a low-waste event. Not only do all food vendors use compostable cups, bowls, plates, etc., but the "plastic" material used to produce these items is actually corn. The goal of the festival is to divert 90% of the waste generated at the event from the Town of Mansfield's trash incinerator. Bins for recyclables, compostables, trash, and returnable bottles helps with this goal.

Opportunity! Want to be a part of the action? Volunteers are needed for:

• Set-up (9:00-12:00)
• Parade traffic control (11:00-12:30)
• Puppets in the Parade (Time TBD)
• Clean-up (5:00-6:30)
  

If you are interested in volunteering, contact the Mansfield Downtown Partnership at 429-2740 or mdp@mansfieldct.org