Living Learning Communities
Living-Learning Communities (LLCs) are smaller, residential communities that provide students with a dynamic experience with others who have a similar academic or social interest. Students live together on the same residential community floor(s) to engage and learn through in-class and out-of-the classroom connections with peers, faculty, and staff.
Students can enhance their college experience and gain a better sense of community while at UC. Each LLC is unique, varying in the type of academic and social connection, in-hall activities, and eligibility requirements. All of our LLCs offer students a space to live and learn with their peers to allow for lasting connections and academic success.
While no one is required to choose a special interest option, these communities are created to assist students in becoming engaged citizens and experience-based learners for their academic success.
Make note of the communities that interest you. You will be asked to complete a couple of essay questions for the LLC that interests you most as part of your University Housing application. In order for roommate requests to be considered, all applicants must be in the same Living-Learning Community.
If you have questions or would like more information about a LLC contact REDlearning@uc.edu.
Application Process & Dates
The priority deadline for Living Learning Communities for 2025-26 is May 1, 2025. Offers will be made on a rolling basis and you will receive your offer via UC email. You must go into your housing portal and 'accept' or 'deny' your offer.
Room assignments for Living-Learning Communities will be complete by the end of June and you can view your assignment by logging back into your housing portal.
Priority Housing for Honors Students
University Honors Program (UHP) students are not required to live in honors housing. Rather, it is a special-interest housing option that many of our students choose. Honors housing is available for UHP students in Scioto Hall, Marian Spencer Hall, Turner Hall, and U Square Apartments. These communities provide a variety of accommodation and cost options to our students.
Eligible honors students who have completed a housing application and paid the room reservation fee will have the opportunity to receive their room assignment before the general assignment process.
Available Living Learning Communities
It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept and celebrate those differences. - Audre Lorde
The Audre Lorde Social Justice House provides a supportive and inclusive community through exploration of differences, developing skills for allyship and advocacy, and leading social change.
The Audre Lorde Social Justice House is a gender inclusive community designed for students interested in social justice. Located in Campus Recreation Center (CRC) Hall, the Audre Lorde Social Justice House is a supportive and inclusive community where students will share time and space with others who have similar passions and values. The house is committed to Audre Lorde’s belief that the core of social justice is recognizing, understanding, and celebrating differences. Together, the community will explore their differences through discovering foundations of social justice, social activism and social change through workshops, speakers, and civic engagement. Living in the Audre Lorde Social Justice House will prepare students to be the change agents needed in society.
As a university committed to excellence and diversity, the Audre Lorde Social Justice House is dedicated to helping the University of Cincinnati maintain its commitment to creating an inclusive environment where innovation and freedom of intellectual inquiry flourish in order to develop educated and engaged students.
There are Gender Inclusive Housing options available across campus for students that best meet their needs, gender expression, gender identity, and comfortableness in transition. The Audre Lorde Social Justice House was created as a space for like-minded individuals looking for an inclusive and supportive environment to create a community that celebrates all students regardless of sex, gender, race, etc.
For students not interested in the Audre Lorde Social Justice House but would like to explore Gender Inclusive Housing, they are encouraged to contact Assistant Director of Resident Education & Development, Jordan Williams, early in the housing request process so that they may be offered the widest range of possible housing options.
Members of the Audre Lorde Social Justice House will have the opportunity to:
- Identify ways to incorporate self-care into their daily routine, as a way of sustaining activism.
- Develop skills to be leaders in their community through allyship and advocacy.
- Create an inclusive and supportive environment through exploring aspects of identity and differences.
- Discover ways to challenge views and opinions that invites dialogue and creates safe spaces.
- Demonstrate strategies that facilitate positive social change through community engagement.
Requirements
- Be a first-year or returning student interested in social justice.
- Live in Campus Recreation Center (CRC) Hall, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Attend all community meetings and at least one event per month.
- Uphold the standards of being in an inclusive and supportive community.
- Actively engage in the community through attending programs and participating fully.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the Audre Lorde Social Justice House.
- Why do you want to be a member of the Audre Lorde Social Justice House?
- What areas of social justice do you find most compelling or want to learn more about?
What do you envision the Audre Lorde Social Justice House community to look like and how can you contribute?
Bearcats Wellness is a community where members are encouraged to maintain a lifestyle that supports academic success, personal development, well-being, and a sense of community. Residents work to promote healthy choices within the LLC and throughout the University of Cincinnati. As a member of the community, students will enjoy specialized opportunities including retreats, excursions, and workshops on different dimensions of wellness, including emotional, mental, physical, and social health. The LLC empowers students to put wellness at the center of their higher education experience to maximize positive and professional outcomes.
Members of Bearcats Wellness will have the opportunity to:
- Engage in wellness activities and events across all dimensions of wellness, including nutrition, stress management, fitness, sexual health, alcohol, drugs, financial wellness, mental wellness and healthy relationships.
- Gain a sense of belonging on campus with other first year students who want to learn how to improve their holistic wellness.
- Attend exclusive meet and greets with representatives from wellness units on campus including the Campus Recreation Center, Dining Services, and Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS).
- Learn about a variety of wellness resources that provide support personally and academically to a UC student.
- Set wellness goals and begin working toward them in a supportive environment.
- Receive personal attention from full-time professional staff who will help teach you practical ways to maintain your wellness.
- Receive free, wellness centered supplies and swag.
Requirements
- First-year student with a strong desire to cultivate and maintain a healthy lifestyle, whatever that looks like for them.
- Live in Turner Hall, on a designated floor, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Abstain from the use of alcohol, drugs, and tobacco while at LLC sponsored events and in Turner Hall.
- Roommates must also be first-year students who have been accepted into the Bearcats Wellness community.
- Required to enroll in Personal Health HPE 1001 during fall semester. This 3-credit course can be taken online or in person.
- Attend at least 2 Bearcats Wellness LLC sponsored or pre-approved wellness themed events/programs during fall and spring semesters.
- Attend monthly mandatory LLC floor meetings. More information about dates to come.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the Bearcats Wellness community. Please provide at least 3-5 sentences response for each one.
- Why is wellness important to you?
- How do you forsee your membership in the Bearcats Wellness community contributing to your goals in college and beyond?
- In your opinion, what does it mean to be "well" as a college student?
- What does it mean to be a part of a community?
The DAAP Living-Learning Community connects students pursuing their studies in DAAP. Participating in a living-learning community is positively linked to engagement as well as overall satisfaction with college. Students in DAAP take discipline-focused course work, and this community provides an opportunity to connect with students in other DAAP majors to begin building a network of peers pursuing similar interests. The benefits for students that choose to participate in the community include:
- Workshops and programs designed to support your academic and personal success (e.g. time management tips, self-care, unique creative opportunities).
- Opportunities to network with faculty and staff outside of a classroom setting.
- A community of students with a passion for creativity and problem solving.
Requirements
- Be a first-year student in the College of Design, Architecture, Art, & Planning
- Live in Daniels Hall, on a designated floor, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Roommates must also be first-year students accepted into the DAAP Living-Learning Community.
- Attend events throughout the semester designed to foster strong residence hall communities.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the DAAP Living-Learning Community.
- Why are you interested in being a member of the DAAP Living-Learning Community?
- How will you contribute to this community?
The Dr. P. Eric Abercrumbie Living-Learning Community (ALLC), supported by the Office of Ethnic Programs and Services (EPS) and the African American Cultural & Resource Center (AACRC), is a residence-based learning community in Turner Hall for students who have been accepted into the Darwin T. Turner Scholars Program and/or the Transitions Program. Participants will live in an environment that fosters personal and social identity development, leadership engagement, and academic success.
Through this community, we honor the history and legacy of those who came before while providing students the opportunity to create their own path towards leaving their mark at the University of Cincinnati and the broader community. Students who decide to live in the ALLC participate in various service-learning projects and meet monthly. Members of this community engage in dialogues and reflection that facilitate a sense of pride in one’s racial and ethnic identity and their other intersecting identities.
By applying and being accepted into the Dr. P. Eric Abercrumbie LLC, you agree to commit to the values of equity, diversity, and inclusion. This Living-Learning Community is not a requirement for participation in the Transitions or Turner Scholars Programs; it is an optional enhancement of the experience that allows students to connect more with individuals who share values for equity, diversity, and inclusion.
As a result of participating in the Dr. P. Eric Abercrumbie LLC, students will:
- Engage in respectful dialogue and discourse with individuals who may or may not share their respective personal and social identities.
- Recognize their leadership capacity, develop their own personal definition of leadership, and translate this into tangible action.
- Identify how their personal and social identities affect how they engage in different spaces.
- Build meaningful relationships with students in the ALLC.
Requirements
- Be a first-year student accepted into the Darwin T. Turner Scholars Program and/or Transitions Program.
- Live in Turner Hall, on a designated floor, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Roommates must also be first-year students accepted into the Dr. P. Eric Abercrumbie community.
- Participate in monthly meetings for the ALLC, attend cultural campus events, and participate in service-learning projects.
- Meet the expectations and requirements of the Darwin T. Turner Scholars and/or Transitions Program.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the ALLC.
- In 150-300 words, please explain what legacy you hope to leave through being a champion of diversity and inclusion at the University of Cincinnati?
Supported by the Department of Engineering and Computing Education (DECE), the ELLC is a residence-based learning community in Calhoun Hall and Turner Hall for first-year students who have been accepted into the College of Engineering and Applied Science (CEAS). Students from all CEAS majors live in an environment that fosters community, collaborative learning, and campus engagement; additionally, ELLC students will be grouped together in their first-year courses, allowing students to form dynamic study and support groups outside of the classroom. ELLC students will participate in activities that connect them to student organizations on campus, like Tribunal, and that promote on-going development of leadership, engineering design, and problem-solving skills, like the Paper Rollercoaster and other design contests. ELLC students also have leadership opportunities through election on the ELLC Leadership Board, serving as the first-year liaisons to DECE. By selecting the ‘ELLC’ on your Housing application, you agree to enroll in any first-year ENED courses (regardless of outside credit) and attend required events throughout the semester.
As a result of participating in the ELLC, students will:
- Engage in activities that enhance their academic success.
- Explain how their strengths enable them to lead self and others.
- See themselves as engineers.
- Identify themselves as members of the CEAS and UC communities.
Requirements
- Live in Calhoun Hall or Turner Hall on designated floors, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Roommates must also be first-year students who have been accepted into the College of Engineering and Applied Science and the ELLC community.
- Enroll in any first-year ENED courses (regardless of outside credit).
- Attend events throughout the semester designed to foster strong residence hall communities.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the ELLC.
- In what ways have you positivtely contributed to a community (academic, extracurricular, athletic, professional, etc.) in the past?
- Describe a time where you had to work with someone culturally, racially, or ethnically different from you. What did you learn from this experience?
- Why do you want to live in the ELLC? How will living in the ELLC positvitely impact your first-year experience at UC?
Lindner College of Business community is an opportunity for first-year students entering the Lindner College of Business to acclimate to college life with other like-minded students. Lindner students have the chance to live in Morgens Hall and build a community together that will allow them to form life-long friendships and network with one another. There will be activities throughout the year for students to engage in Lindner College of Business programming with social events, professional speakers and more. Participating in a living-learning community is positively linked to engagement as well as overall satisfaction with college. Students within the Lindner Business community will live together but also learn together in an inclusive environment that promotes collaboration and success.
Requirements
- Be a first-year student accepted into a Lindner College of Business major (could be a traditional or honors student).
- Live in Morgens Hall, on designated floors, for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Roommates must also be first-year students who have been accepted into the Lindner College of Business.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the Lindner College of Business community.
- Share a specific moment that shaped your interest in business. How do you envision the LLC helping you grow academically and professionally during your time at UC?
- Describe a time when you worked with others to achieve a shared goal. What challenges did you face, and how did you demonstrate professionalism and character to ensure that everyone’s strengths were utilized?
The UC the World LLC is an on-campus residential community designed to foster and appreciate cultural diversity. Through organized internationally focused events and activities, the LLC will facilitate interactions between students with varied life experiences and backgrounds. Students will develop a global lens that focuses on the importance of cross-cultural connections and the exploration of international issues. International and domestic students are encouraged to apply in an effort to create a well-rounded community that promotes international cultures on campus and better prepares students for international experiences.
Requirements
- Must be a student's first time living in University Housing.
- Both domestic and international students can apply.
- Live in the designated LLC in CRC Hall for the 2025-2026 academic year.
- Be open-minded, curious, and interested in making international connections.
- Actively engage in the community and organized programming.
Application Essay Questions
As a part of your housing application, you will be asked the following questions to apply for the UC the World LLC.
- How does the UC the World LLC connect to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals?
- What do you wish more people knew about your culture and your home country? If you’re a U.S. student, what do you wish more people knew about your culture or your hometown here in the U.S.?
- If you are selected to live in this community, what are some activities, programs, or events that you would want to participate in with other members of the LLC?
FAQ
A Living-Learning Community (LLC) is through Resident Education & Development in partnership with Student Affairs, Campus Services, and an academic unit and/or sponsoring department(s). A LLC is a residential community of students who have shared academic interests and are provided opportunities both inside and outside of the classroom. A Learning Community (LC) through Learning Commons is a non-residential community of students who have a shared academic interests and interact in two or more university courses. These communities are through specific university colleges and are linked by an LC meeting time that is facilitated by a Peer Leader.