Kent State University Residence Services will be launching several new residential learning communities and making the last single-sex dorm coed for the Fall 2011 semester.

One of the new learning communities, International Village Experience, is a new version of the Global Passport program that is currently housed in Beall Hall, which will be discontinued when IVE is put into effect.

“The IVE is a theme community, which does not have an academic component,” said Joel Bynum, coordinator of academic partnerships and initiatives. “It is students living together that have a shared common interest. In this case, the common interest is living in a community that has an international or multicultural focus.”

IVE will be located in Van Campen Hall, where the Office of International Affairs is located. This program will change Van Campen Hall from a women’s dorm to a mixed gender living community because of the interest in the program received from both sexes.

“This new and exciting community will provide its residents with the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills necessary for living and working in an increasingly globalized world,” said David Di Maria, director of international student recruitment.

Valor Through Education and Training community will be a smaller residential community in connection with the College of Arts and Sciences that groups veteran students on one floor of McDowell Hall. This program is designed to cater to the specific needs of the student by providing academic, team building and career counseling.

“This will be designed to take student veterans who have never been to college or have never had residential experience and provide them with a supportive environment with which to live and grow as they transition from a life in the U.S. Armed Forces to the life of a college student,” said Joshua Rider, assistant director for adult and veteran students.

The International Business Community will be an addition to the business residential college of Prentice Hall. Their intended audience is both American and international students of any major that are interested in having international business as part of their career path.

The College of Arts and Sciences Residential College will be on the lower six floors of Wright Hall. It’s designed to connect students and faculty who share the common interest of their major. There will be activities and events related to the college’s theme to build friendships in the community.

“The CAS Residential College staff will help students organize their time and increase study skills by providing residents with an opportunity to share experiences,” said Karen Clement, coordinator of the CAS Residential College. “If you are working on a class project, you can walk next door and talk to someone else in your class.”

Residence Services feel that these four new residential learning communities will positively affect the students of Kent State.

“It is beneficial because students who live in residential learning communities report higher GPAs and satisfaction with living on campus,” said Bynum. “They feel more connected to Kent State and to other students in their college.”

Contact Kate Murphy at [email protected].