About Us

History

The concept of a First Year Experience (FYE) at The College of New Jersey began to take shape in the early 1990s with the development of an interdisciplinary core curriculum and the redefinition of a general education program. Researcher Alexander Astin has shown that student peer groups and faculty are the two most important influences on students' development during their college years. Essential to the success of the residential program, then, was the integration of the academic emphasis and the support of the faculty and upperclass students. Within those parameters, and after several pilot programs, the entire entering first year class for the fall of 1995 was invited to live collectively in our Travers/Wolfe high-rise complex.

National Recognition

While our program has since expanded to include a third residence hall and adapted to the recent academic transformation at the College, our core beliefs have remained the same; a successful first year student is one that learns to connect with both the academic and co-curricular/social aspects of a college environment. The College's commitment to this goal has led to a nationally recognized First Year Experience program and a first year retention rate of 95% since its inception.

Residential Learning

This is accomplished through the integration of academic work, opportunities for civic engagement and service learning, and the transitional programming aimed at our first year students living in residence. Based on the work of Ernest L. Boyer, President of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching until he passed away in 1995, the Office of Residential and Community Development focuses its efforts on teaching our incoming first year students the basic life skills needed to cope with the transition to a higher education environment and build strong communities within our residence halls.

Community Development

This concept of community is at the heart of the residential program at The College of New Jersey. A Residence Hall Social Contract was developed in 1976 and has been reviewed and revised each year by members of the Residence Hall Association and the staff of the Office of Residential and Community Development. The social contract provides specific, negotiated behavioral expectations for students in such areas as study environment, security, use of facilities, and mutual respect.

To take the process a step further in the First Year Experience, each floor will negotiate an additional floor contract that outlines the community norms for their own, specific, community. Students discuss their need for quiet, use of bathrooms by guests, floor cleanliness, and how residents will confront each other if these norms are violated. Finally, this model is utilized once again on an individual room/suite basis, where each set of roommates will be asked to discuss and create their personal set of agreed upon expectations.

Over the course of the year, these agreements are revisited to determine if they need to be revised or if community members need to be addressed for not meeting the expectations they had previously agreed to. Throughout these processes, undergraduate paraprofessional, graduate, and professional staff are available to assist students in their discussions.

First Seminar Program

In the Fall of 2004, our first year residents began participating in an exciting residential community design that integrates academics as well as residential based programming. All of the first year students will be registered to participate in the First Seminar Program (FSP) during the fall of their freshman year.

These seminar classes will in turn be housed together on a floor in order to facilitate contact outside of the classroom for open discussion, group work, study groups, or even just making it easier for a faculty member to stop by and visit. A select group of students participated in a pilot version of this program in the Fall of 2003. Here are a few of their responses when asked in a follow up survey if living with their classmates enhanced their FYE experience.

• "Yes, it encouraged more discussion of the work and was also a big help when it came to having to work on projects together. It was also more comfortable in class when it came to discussions and presentations"
• "It did help me get to know some of my classmates better since I saw them more than if we didn't have class and saw the way they acted in different environments"
• "This program did help me to become more aware of the opinions and personalities of the people on my floor. Because of this I feel I became closer to a few people"

 

Safe, Positive Environments

The Office of Residential and Community Development will continue to supplement the academic side of the First Year Experience for our residents. Our energetic and well trained staff will help our new residents adapt to campus life and understand the transition from high school to college. Educational programs on a variety of life skills and community building social events are offered on a regular basis by the staff. We are also here to assist residents going through difficult times, serving as information resources about campus or just a friendly ear, and to provide first year students with a safe and positive environment.