So basically the Living Learning Communities refer to separate floors of the university residence halls where people of like interest can live together. My school is introducing a new community this year that deals with LGBT as an interest. I just wanted to see what others thought of this. ----------- Here's what I think: To me, the LLC has always implied a field of study (such as arts, leadership, health, etc), and I think that introducing this new floor of homosexuality as the main focus of interest deviates from the original concept; you can't really major in being gay. This I think would cause segregation from other LLC communities in order to be a part of the LGBT community. People who may do better off in the Arts LLC or the Leadership LLC may now possibly be enrolling into the LGBT community, which lessens the enrollment of the other communities. In addition, the school has a Pride Center which focuses on the issues of LGBT and participates in several events and festivals throughout the year. I feel that LLCs should really be more of a career-oriented environment where you are able to communicate and collaborate with people in your field of interest. Also, due to the fact that we already have a well-attended Pride Center, I think there would be redundancy in having two organizations of the exact same interest. Not to mention the LLC would be exclusive only to the students in the dormitory. Students not residing in dormitories can visit only if they know a student in the dormitory who can let them in. Due to the relatively conservative nature of the city, further issues arise from this situation: The first, and most obvious I can think of, would be the ridicule from other floors. I personally would not want other people to see me going to that floor with a male friend because I know the assumptions everyone would be making. The next big issue would be roommates. It is not school conduct for a male to be rooming with a female unless they apply for a separate, off-campus dormitory that is permitted only for those 21 and older. In the case of having a predominantly homosexual floor, I believe the purpose for the aforementioned code of conduct is negated. Other such codes include only one person in a shower at a time, no sex in the bathroom, etc. I question the moderators' ability to keep some semblance of control among these codes. Finally, enrollment may be another issue. Because every floor has the same number of rooms, Community Advisors need to be able to fill the spaces. Though I have no idea what the outcome will be, it is my own personal belief that the rooms will not be filled completely. Reasons may include fear of ridicule, discomfort among roommate situations, enrollment in an LLC that specializes in the student's specific area of study, and parents who do not want their students to be enrolled in such communities to name a few. --------- So yeah, that's kinda my take on it. I'm curious to see what others' takes are on this. I even heard that in the next year the Christian organization is trying to be added to the LLC list.
