ERIC Number: EJ1432936
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0161-827X
EISSN: EISSN-2470-9220
More than an Assemblage of Queers: Queering Living-Learning Communities
Jess Silvia; D. Chase J. Catalano
Journal of College and University Student Housing, v50 n3 p12-25 2024
Using scholarly personal narratives as a research tool, we explored how the director of an LGBTQ+ living-learning program (LLP) created community within the constructs of an otherwise cis- and heteronormative residential environment. We reviewed the first author's reflections about community experiences and analyzed them for opportunities to upend assumptions, practices, and operations for more liberatory futures. Students participating in LLPs tend to have higher levels of engagement and belonging, but those with marginalized identities may benefit even more from this kind of involvement. The first author's personal narratives about serving as an LGBTQ+ LLP program director revealed that many of the residents appreciated the feelings of affinity and safety offered by this residential community, and they were uninterested in engaging in community in many of the expected ways (i.e., program attendance). Our exploration offers liberatory possibilities for queering institutional transformation, with the recognition that campus housing professionals should reconsider their expectations for all LLPs, and higher education institutions must make strong commitments to provide support that resists assumptions about queerness and community. The stability and growth of this LLP requires specific support that allows it to evolve into configurations that reflect the needs of its divergent communities while still being centered in queerness. [Discussion questions prepared by Kaleb Scott.]
Descriptors: Living Learning Centers, LGBTQ People, Sense of Community, Community Development, College Housing, School Space, Student Participation, Minority Group Students, College Students, Dormitories, School Safety, Social Justice
Association of College and University Housing Officers - International. 1445 Summit Street, Columbus, Ohio 43201. Tel: 614-292-0099; Fax: 614-292-3205; e-mail: office@acuho-i.org; Web site: http://www.acuho-i.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A