In this issueFIRST ISSUE OF THE UNIVERISTY HOUSING ACADEMIC EZINE

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Learning by Connecting

What HAPPENSIN AN LLP?

Learning around the fireplacewithtransitions

POLY CANYONVILLAGE TACKLES SOPHOMORESUCCESS

Food for thought

THE IMPACTOF 25-35

Think about where you see yourself in 2 years ... or 4 years. Will you be starting your career, continuing your education at Cal Poly or Learning by Doing in a one of the kind internship? University Housing hopes that wherever you are you have gained essential life skills and enhanced your Cal Poly experience by living and participating in one of our learning communities. We take pride in knowing that students who live on campus receive higher grades and have more opportunities to engage in academic resources, on average, than their counter parts off campus.

Be active in creating your future self, whether that be an engineer, architect, entrepreneur, biologist, teacher, politician, agricultural expert or any one of the exceptional careers that Cal Poly grads embark on by taking advantage of the resources in your community and checking out the first edition of University Housing’s Academic Ezine. In the pages ahead we strive to keep you informed on ways to get involved in your community, explore your career interests and invest in your academic success.

We want you to know where you can find the resources to succeed and how to make the most of your Cal Poly experience, whether you are a student in one of our Connections themes, actively getting together to discuss the recent election in Inception, our leadership focused community or…

In one of our Living Learning Program halls tied to their College, where faculty and staff come in to share career options and tips for academic success linked to a specific College or…

In Transitions, where freshman and continuing students living in Cerro Vista, have the opportunity to learn from each other in unique suite style apartments or…

In Sophomore Success in Poly Canyon Village (PCV) where Academic Tuesdays give residents access to various Cal Poly resources in the comfort of their own home, i.e. PCV’s knowledge center.

With these four distinct learning communities you have the opportunity to personalize your experience, thus finding a community exclusively created for each Cal Poly student. As you travel through your journey with University Housing we encourage you to share with us how you are enhancing your academic experience by participating in one of our fireside chats, cooking in the canyon with faculty, review sessions, study groups, mentor programs, in hall tutoring, honors banquet or one of the many academic programs taking place in our learning communities. Also if you have ideas on programs or services that you would like to see occur in your community that would enhance your academic experience let us know, residential-life@calpoly.edu.

A Note from the Housing Team:

University Housing, 1 Grand Ave., San Luis Obispo CA, 93407-0207 805.756.5690 housing.calpoly.edu

A positive housing community is inclusive, respectful, and provides its members with a sense of safety. University Housing is committed to creating safe and welcoming communities for all residents and staff members, regardless of race ethnicity, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age, ability, socio-economic status, and veteran status.

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The Connections learning community is housed in Sierra Madre and Yosemite halls, but this year with the addition of twelve new themed areas (examples Inception: leadership, Seasons: food, and Resonate: music) these communities have taken on new energy, including a focus on academics. Students have the opportunity to live in towers based on their interests and lifestyles, and to find others who share in them. Connections residents, though, have shown that even with all their various interests, they still make time to study and excel. This year the staff of Connections is doing everything they can to assist residents in staying on top of their academic game. In Sierra Madre, new study groups are

being organized so residents get a chance to study with their fellow neighbors. These study groups focus on common classes for Sierra Madre students, so they will be relevant to the needs of many of the residents. Yosemite, another Connections building, also implemented weekly study nights during which residents get together to focus on their school work and upcoming class assignments. These study nights emerged from the creative efforts of one Resident Advisor, but became so popular that students all over the residence hall began to organize their own. Resident Advisors in Connections have also created a fun system to reward residents who are studying and working hard. When Resident Advisors are on rounds, they take with them a stack of “Connections Cash” to

CONNECTINGLearn by

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by Grace Park, Graduate Assistant

hand to any residents they see studying in and around the towers. Students can also approach their Resident Advisors with exams, papers, and assignments, and based on their scores can receive various amounts of Connections Cash. The students who collect Connections Cash will have the chance to play games and win prizes at a Poker Night that will be held to reward the residents for working hard and successfully completing their year. Residents of Connections also get the chance to enhance their learning through ConnecTED, which are weekly Friday night programs based on the TEDTalks series. Residents get the chance to watch a TED video and discuss what they watched and how it affects their lives. The videos encompass a wide array of

topics from food and diets to nature to the arts, and work to engage students to think and learn about subjects outside their immediate scope. Most importantly, at any given time of the day (and night), residents are studying in their lounges, the common areas, and in their rooms. Sierra Madre and Yosemite may not have college-specific themes, but the residents take their academics seriously and are making connections with the staff and each other by continuing to learn and study! If you’re a Connections student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact Sarah Fernandez, CSD via email at ssfernan@calpoly.edu.

CONNECTING

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The traditional resident hall buildings or red bricks are home to the Living Learning Program (LLP), which provides students with a unique opportunity to live with other first year students within their academic college at Cal Poly. University Housing staff work collaboratively with the Colleges’ faculty and staff to connect the housing experience and academic learning in order to create greater opportunities for deeper understanding and integration of classroom material with the life learning which occurs outside the classroom. There are six separate residence hall communities within the Living Learning Program- Fremont Hall: College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences; Muir Hall: College of Science and Mathematics; Santa Lucia/ North Mountain Hall: College of Engineering; Sequoia Hall: College of Architecture and Environmental Design; Tenaya Hall: Orfalea College of Business; and Trinity Hall: College of Liberal Arts. Each residence hall provides a variety of unique and impactful programs to support and further students’ academic learning.

What happens

in an llp?

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By Various LLP Staff

Tenaya offers many popular events in conjunction with the Orfalea College of Business, such as weekly in-hall tutoring in Tenaya Hall’s back study lounge for the college's most challenging and popular classes, monthly Executive Partner events where business leaders and professionals within the San Luis Obispo community spend an evening in Tenaya Hall, and collaborative study sessions with professors in Tenaya Hall’s study lounge. During winter quarter we welcome a new class of Orfalea College of Business students into the Tenaya Hall Honor’s Society and celebrate those accomplishments with a hall-wide Honor’s Banquet. Keep your eyes open for advertisements around Tenaya Hall with dates and more information on these and other upcoming programs. If you are an Orfalea College of Business first year student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact the Tenaya CSD Christina Tutt via email at ctutt@calpoly.edu.

Coaching Circles began early in fall quarter and are hosted by the Academ-ic Excellence Program (AEP) Team for the College of Architecture and En-vironmental Design (CAED) for the students in Sequoia Hall. The Coach-ing Circles concept was implemented to provide a setting for students to ask questions and receive instant responses from academic advisors, career counseling, library experts, and hall staff members. Sequoia Hall has also implemented a mentor program, pairing first-year with third-year students in CAED. In this program, students are able to connect with upperclassmen who have experience working with many of the assignments and issues that the first-year students are encountering for the first time. Both programs are open to all students in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, but all events related to the programs take place inside Sequoia Hall to provide the residents direct access to the resources being created for them. If you are a College of Architecture and Environmental Design first year student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact the Sequoia CSD Gregory Haines via email at ghaines@calpoly.edu.

Sequoia Hall

Tenaya Hall

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Trinity utilizes an academic incentive program where students are rewarded when Housing staff, such as the RAs, see them studying, exhibiting positive academic behaviors, and even when they receive a good grade. Students are rewarded with Incredibucks, to be used at the end of the academic year to enter into a silent auction for a variety of fun prizes. Another year long program that Trinity implements is Trinitea, a weekly program where students come together to enjoy tea and treats, as well as a variety of guests from the College of Liberal Arts. The academic advisors from the college regularly attend the weekly program to provide in-hall advising hours for students. Additionally, the College of Liberal Arts, in collaboration with the Trinity Hall Coordinator of Student Development, developed a peer mentoring program for first generation college students. The program is comprised of first year students and upper class students who serve as mentors. The students meet each week to go over a variety of topics ranging from study techniques to presentation etiquette and campus resources to studying abroad. If you’re a College of Liberal Arts first year student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact the Trinity CSD Briana Enriquez via email at bnenriqu@calpoly.edu.

Study flags are the easy new way to study with a buddy making forming groups quick, convenient, and fun. They are simply a dry-erase flag attached to a pole so that the flag and study subject stand tall. The residents write on the flag with a dry-erase marker to denote what area of study they are cover-ing. This is Fremont’s first year with the Study Flags program and it has been a huge success. "I use study flags because if I need help people will come grab a seat and help," said freshman CJ Wagner. In Fremont Hall, the residents like them because there is no need to pre-plan creating a study group and they can be formed on the fly. If you’re a College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences first year student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact the Fremont CSD Chuck Petranek via email at cpetrane@calpoly.edu.

FREMONT HALL

TRINITY HALL

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SLNM hosts its own academic study incentive program handing out study bucks when students are spotted studying in the hall. These bucks can be saved up to buy awesome prizes at the end of the academic year. The study bucks are continually passed out throughout the year, thus residents are encouraged to grab a buddy and study within SLNM. In addition, professors from the Engineering department hold study sessions in the residence hall to assist with student success. During Fall quar-ter, Professors Robert Holtzapple and Grace Neff held active study sessions for Physics 141 and Chem 124. Electrical Engineering professor Tina Smilkstein was even able to come and hang out in SLNM to watch a TED talk video on electricity and then hold a discussion with students afterwards. SLNM also offers linked classes to its residents. Freshman students who want to take CPE 101 were able to sign up for a section of this course that is reserved for SLNM students only. This assists students by providing them opportunities to study together in the hall and enables professors to hold study and review sessions where the students live. SLNM also hosted Academic Advisors from the College at a PASS Party which gave students an opportunity to get on track to plan their class schedule. Staff gave helpful advice on College and major requirements, what order to take classes in, and how not to get behind. If you’re a College of Engineering first year student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact the Santa Lucia/North Mountain CSD Allsion Keuch via email at akeuch@calpoly.edu.

SANTA LUCIA AND NORTH MOUTAIN

MUIR HALLMuir Hall works very collaboratively with the College of Science and Mathematics (COSAM) to support the academic growth of first year students. Muir encourages residents to study 25-35 and make the most of their College experience by utilizing the various study tips and academically related programs. It is very crucial for COSAM first year students to have a well-balanced experience both in and out of the classroom. If you are an upper classman and would like to be a mentor to first year COSAM students or would like to get involved in events please contact the CSD Lauren Wilson at lwil-son02@calpoly.edu. If you are a COSAM first year student and would like to know when Muir Hall is hosting an event or program please feel free to contact the CSD above.

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Picture this, 1 group of confused students sitting comfortably on a couch by the fireplace + 1 professor with an hour of time to explain a new concept = a group of Cerro Vista students better understanding the material and getting the opportunity to find out more about how they can use those concepts in their career. This is what takes place every quarter in Cerro Vista when professors come into their main lounge, complete with comfy furniture and a homey fireplace. Cerro Vista is home to the Transitions community, which is designed to provide residents with opportunities to enhance personal and academic success. Bringing in professors to Cerro Vista helps students connect with the faculty of Cal Poly and can bridge the gap between students and professors. Many students think that going to office hours means you are struggling in a class, however, by allowing students to meet their professors in their living community they are able to see that you can go to office hours for various reasons. The programs that are hosted in Cerro Vista aim to help the residents learn effective study skills and become better students. One of the first questions that Transitions residents ask is how he or she can succeed in college. Besides the usual responses of spending time in the library, making a study schedule, going to class, taking notes,

Learning Around the Fireplace in Transitions

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by Nicole Larsen, Community Advisor

and not taking too many classes, another response that is often given, but not often heeded is going to a professor’s office hours. These invaluable opportunities allow a student to not only clarify concepts taught in class, but also help the professor become better acquainted with the student and individualize education. Going to a professor’s office hours also shows initiative and that the student wants to take charge of his or her learning and is willing to put in the extra effort. Many professors recognize that and this can even make the difference between learning something crucial that impacts their grade. That’s one of the advantages of being a resident in Cerro Vista! In addition to having professors from various colleges come in, you can find academically related bulletin boards, newsletters with study tips, a PASS event to assist in planning your schedule, and interactions with residents of all majors in this community that work together to help each other in Cerro Vista. Earlier this year, CAs hosted a political science professor to talk about the 2012 presidential election. Posters were displayed with the different propositions in the Cerro Vista Community Center and the professor led the discussion, both lecturing and answering questions for residents who kept him there for over two hours! Our fireplace was blazing, scones were consumed, and our very own Coordinators of Student Development made espresso for all. This is just one of the programs that Cerro Vista has to connect students with their professors. Cerro Vista is also lucky enough to have the Honors Learning Community (HLC) hosted in Cabrillo. Honors students choose to live here and earn Honors credit by attending a variety of programs that focus on academic and personal learning. Watch for more programs with information about study sessions, supplemental workshops, and student success seminars! If you’re a Transitions student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact Emily Kalstad, CSD via email at ekalstad@calpoly.edu.

Learning Around the Fireplace in Transitions

The programs that are hosted in Cerro Vista aim to help the residents learn effective study skills and become better students.

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The infamous “sophomore slump,” destroyer of both dreams and GPAs alike, is a challenge students will invariably face during their college careers. Second year students find themselves in a transition where classes are ramping up in difficulty and other commitments are requiring increased amounts of time. While the previous year may have been a breeze, many sophomores will find themselves struggling. University Housing, in order to aid sophomore students living in Poly Canyon Village, provides Sophomore Success Tuesday programming and Honors receptions. Sophomore Success Tuesday is a series of weekly programs that cover a wide range of topics. Hoping to better prepare students, the topics selected are germane to situations students will actually encounter. For example, during the Fall 2012 quarter, a Sophomore Success program brought in academic advisors to assist any students who found themselves on academic probation. By bringing the program to where the students live, there is a higher chance students will get the help they need instead of perpetually avoiding a visit to the academic advisor office. Another program brought in

Poly Canyon Village TacklesSophomore Success

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by Aaron James, Community Advisor

business librarian Mark Bieraugel, who taught students how to utilize their college’s librarian and various library resources. While University Housing cannot guarantee every student will succeed, the residents of Poly Canyon Village are provided with many opportunities to better prepare themselves. For those students with academic honors, their efforts should be rewarded and highlighted. University Housing honors hard work and achievement regularly. Exemplar students, who earn a 3.5 or above GPA, are invited to a social where they are recognized for their achievement with a certificate, desserts and other refreshments. While simple, the acknowledgement reminds successful residents that their efforts have not gone unnoticed and provides incentive for others to strive for academic achievement. The upcoming quarters present an opportunity for PCV Sophomore Success Program to help those students who are struggling through the sophomore slump. By offering edutainment programs, educational program that also entertain, Housing hopes to assist students to flourish in their sophomore year. If you’re a PCV student and have any questions, comments, or suggestions please contact Tim Bethune, CSD via email at tbethune@

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College life can be tough no matter what past experiences you have survived. Adjusting to liv-ing on your own, making new friends, and bal-ancing academics and a social life are enough to cause stress for any student. During this time of increased stress, it is important to follow some ba-sic tips such as eating right, maintaining a regular exercise routine, and obtaining adequate amounts of sleep to try and neutralize the stress or at least provide a safe outlet to vent it all out. In college, a bag of snacks and a cup of coffee can never go amiss during late night studying. Es-pecially during midterms and finals week when the library and study rooms are jam packed with people cramming for tests, it is not uncommon to find among papers and textbooks a pile of candy wrappers or empty coffee cups. While most peo-ple eat when they study, there is a healthier alter-native to all those quick, high-calorie food and drink. Benjamin Franklin’s famous quote, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” is a perfect example of a food that can serve as a junk food substitute. Not only are apples in the fruit category, which everyone knows are beneficial, but they also curb hunger cravings better than a bag of potato chips. Apples are also high in fiber, very low in calories and as an extra perk even act as a mouth fresh-ener! These easy snacks are great for transporting

around since they keep well, so you don’t need to worry about messes or spills when packing them alongside all the papers and textbooks. Vegetables, like fruits, have extraordinary health benefits. There are many different varieties of vegetables and each one has its own unique set of advantages. An easy vegetable that’s small and easy to carry around, but still high in nutrients are carrots. Carrots are extremely high in Vitamin A, and provide many different forms of antioxidants. Celery is another vegetable convenient for carry-ing around and snacking on later. While most peo-ple like a dip to go with it such as ranch dressing or peanut butter, eating plain celery is great by it-self too. The benefits of celery include anti-inflam-matory properties, many various antioxidants, and support to the cardiovascular and digestive tract in the body. These are a few foods out of hundreds that can turn uncontrolled junk-food eating into healthy, nutritious snacks. However, since we are all col-lege students and potentially spend the majori-ty of our time studying, let’s take a look at some brain foods that can help reduce stress levels. • Avocados - these fruits are loaded with potassi-um and monounsaturated fatty acids, or MUFAS. Research has shown that both of these nutrients can lower blood pressure, and MUFAS may con-tribute in lowering depression.

FOODFOR

THOUGHT

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by Payton Anders, Resident Advisor

• Fish - we all know that fish contain an essen-tial fatty acid called linolenic acid commonly re-ferred to as omega-3s. These fats may help keep the stress levels down and they also fight against depression. Omega-3s have also been shown to benefit the eyes, heart, and brain.• Dark Chocolate - this delicious food contains stress-relieving characteristics that may help re-duce blood pressure and control the stress hor-mone, cortisol. Along the same lines of eating a balanced diet and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is get-ting enough exercise. Not only is exercise great for the body, but studies have shown that getting just three, 45 minute walks in a week can help boost memory and keep the hippocampus region (the part associated with memory) of the brain in peak condition. It was found that as time goes by, the hippocampus shrinks about 1-2% every year. However regular exercise, such as 45 min-ute walks three times a week, is enough to counter and even reverse that trend.

The third major element in reducing stress is sleep. Late night studying and early morning classes leave little time for sleep. Instead you get by chugging the coffee or energy drinks multiple times a day. These habits, spread out over long pe-riods of time, are detrimental. Time management skills and scheduling are important to avoid this bad habit, as well as being realistic with acknowl-edging how much time you need to study and complete homework. Sleeping well and getting enough hours can boost your mood, increase at-tentiveness and learning, and can result in easier memorization and recall. So in summation, it is clear that a healthy, bal-anced diet, regular physical exercise, and adequate levels of sleep are keys to retaining a sharp mind and a trim waist. The best way to handle stress is to be proactive, and avoid it in the first place. By living a well-balanced lifestyle, you can lower your stress levels dramatically.

Not only are apples in the fruit category, which everyone knows are beneficial, but they also curb hunger cravings better than a bag of potato chips. “ ”

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Study 25-35 hours a week. It’s the phrase that has been permanently stitched into the minds of all Cal Poly students. We see it every day. Small yellow flags and fliers have been permanently posted on random doors, bulletin boards, and windows all throughout campus. Freshmen heard it countless times their first week of school, and continued to hear it as they went through and finished their first quarter. Various Cal Poly professors and advisors who interact mainly with freshmen avidly try to bring it up in lectures or conversations. Why? Well obviously it’s good to study. But I think these Cal Poly faculty are attempting to begin stitching this early in the Cal Poly experience, because they understand that freshman year

is a bigger deal than most students, especially freshmen, realize. Often it is not until after the students’ first year that they figure out how much time they should have spent actually studying, as was in my case. I wasn’t a bad student as a freshman, but I definitely should have invested more time into learning how to study consistently and efficiently. If I had, I might have been able to start off my sophomore year with a higher GPA and wouldn’t have had to spend so much time learning how to learn. I wish I had taken those yellow flags a tad bit more seriously. The first quarter of freshman year is great. It’s a clean slate. Everything’s new, you get to start over. Say goodbye to your nice 4.27 GPA, that’s history. College is your reality now. But still, you have plenty of quarters to do well in school. It’s freshman year! If ever there was a time to slack off and have some fun it would be now, right? To some extent, I had this attitude when I started off at Cal Poly. I didn’t take my first year as seriously as I should have. Even though there are many years ahead for students after their first year, it is still important to realize this is a quarter of your overall GPA at Cal Poly. A poor performance for your first year could leave you playing catch up during your sophomore year, while trying to raise your GPA. It is also worth realizing that classes will never be easier than they were during freshman year. They get increasingly more difficult

learning the

IMPACTOF 25-35

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by Sam Thompson, Resident Advisor

as you dive deeper into curriculum at Cal Poly, so it is important to take advantage of the opportunity to obtain the best grades you can in the beginning. Many students may begin college with expectations of how often they will actually need to study to pull an A or B in a class. As it was in my case, these expectations are unrealistic. Sure in high school it was easy to get good grades. Lots of students hardly studied and could still ace tests without a sweat. The truth is college material is significantly more difficult, much more difficult than I had originally thought it would be. On top of this, professors will grade with much more purpose and higher expectations in mind than teachers did in high school. For this reason it is crucial to learn how to study and perform your best in the classroom early on. The learning skills you develop now will carry on and continue to improve all throughout your college career and will be used throughout your career. At some point a student has to sit down and realize that there is no easy way to get through their education. It takes hard work to get from here to there, it doesn’t just happen. Better to learn how to do that work now, rather than later. If I could have done freshman year over again, I would have done it differently. I wouldn’t have changed any of the fun parts. That I did well. But I would have shifted my attitude on how I treated academics and made it a higher priority. I wish I had known then, what I know now… freshman year is truly significant to the student experience and to my future career. It would have been great starting off my sophomore year with a higher GPA and not having to learn how I learn best. This is why I urge you to commit to working hard for your first year at Cal Poly. It is a long term investment that will definitely pay off in the end. Don’t like the grades you got last quarter? Actually try studying 25-35 hours a week. You just might learn something.

" I wasn’t a bad student as a freshman, but I definitely should have invested

more time into learning how to study consistently and efficiently. "

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