University of Central Arkansas - Residential Colleges

Residential Colleges

There are currently four residential colleges at UCA, Hughes Hall (1997), State Residential College (1999), Short/Denney (2006), and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S.T.E.M.) (2010). Bear Hall will be open in the fall of 2012. This is a new dorm that will hold the E.P.I.C. program (Entrepreneurship, Public Scholarship, Innovation, and Community Engagement) on the fourth floor for upper class students.

Residential colleges are co-educational learning communities in which students and their professors interact closely with one another. By living in the same residence hall as a faculty member, and taking classes with other college members, residential college students form academic connections which enrich the entire educational experience.

Any student admitted to UCA is eligible to apply for admission to the Residential Colleges. The program is open to students in all majors and programs. Students generally enter a residential learning community the first semester of their freshman year.

The UCA Residential College Program is a community of learners that was implemented in 1997 to educate the whole student. To do this, the program provides each student with opportunities to develop her or his academic, professional, and societal lives.

Academically, the RC college program expects their graduates to: know themselves as discerning thinkers who are able to evaluate and interpret complex information from a variety of sources, have a strong commitment to making learning a lifelong process, express themselves thoughtfully and with meaning in a variety of contexts

Professionally, the Residential College program expects their: work well in teams, including those of varied composition; building consensus and working with dissension; utilize learned technological skills in ways which further and enhance their careers; act creatively, ethically, and with initiative.

Socially, the Residential College program expects their: demonstrate a sense of commitment to local and global concerns; contribute their time, talents, and efforts in service to the community; recognize themselves as part of a diverse and ever-changing world.

Because "the end depends upon the beginning," the UCA Residential College Program dedicates its faculty and resources to making the transitions from high school to college and college-to-career both meaningful and successful. By offering a space for conversations about things that matter, we build the communities and connections so essential to our education and our society.