National Learning Communities Conference 2024

Community of Voices

The history and growth of Chicago is reflected in the communities and neighborhoods that make up the city. From its humble beginnings to its current status as a thriving global city, Chicago welcomes people of all nationalities and backgrounds, fostering a rich 'Community of Voices'. Learning communities play a similar role in education, offering students the opportunity to build valuable communities and expand their understanding of diverse perspectives.

Embrace the spirit of inclusivity and collaboration at this year's National Learning Communities Conference, themed 'Community of Voices'. Join us as we come together to share, celebrate, and amplify our diverse experiences. Let your voice be heard and join other learning community colleagues from across various institutions in building a stronger, more connected community.

Conference Registration

Registration for NLCC 2024 has begun. The registration fees are listed below.

Registration Options	Fees	Dates Available
Regular Registration	$525/person	Through September 30, 2024
Late Registration	$625/person	After September 30, 2024

Pre-conference sessions on Wednesday, November 6th will begin at 3 pm, see more information on the Featured Speakers tab. Conference sessions on Thursday, November 7th and Friday, November 8th will run from 8 am -5 pm. Additional schedule details will be posted at a later date.

*Registration fee includes free membership to the National Learning Communities Association (NLCA).

No Refunds (Please note that you can transfer your registration to another person that is in your institution.)

Have questions?

Email us at nlcc@harpercollege.edu

NLCC logo

Plan Your Trip

The National Learning Communities Conference (NLCC) 2024 will be held at Loews Hotel – Chicago O’Hare with Pre-conference sessions on Wednesday, November 6th and full day sessions on Thursday, November 7th and Friday, November 8th.

Hotel
Travel
Entertainment

Hotel

Loews Chicago O'hare Main Entance and Drive Up

Harper College is proud to partner with Loews Hotels to provide accommodation for conference attendees at a discounted rate.

Hotel rooms at Loews Chicago O'Hare are still available. After October 14th please email nlcc@harpercollege.edu for reservations.

Group Rates Available: November 6, 2024 through November 8, 2024
Guest Room Rates: starting from $209 plus tax
Group Block Closes: October 14, 2024

To reserve a room and get additional information regarding event specific accommodations - Click Here

If you would prefer to speak to a Loews Travel Planner, please call 1.877.868.9134 and reference Group Code: HARN06.

Discounted group rates will be honored for attendees three days before the conference and three days after based on availability. You may reserve rooms for Wednesday (11/6) and Thursday (11/7) either online or on the phone at the discounted conference rate. Separately you can reserve shoulder dates at the normal rate, then request an adjustment to the discounted rate by sending an email to nlcc@harpercollege.edu with your registration information.

Hotel amenities include:

Complimentary shuttle to and from O'Hare airport every 15 minutes
50% discount on self-parking rates during the conference
Onsite Dining
Complimentary WIFI
24-hour Fitness Center

Venue Information:
Address: 5300 N River Rd, Rosemont, IL 60018
Phone: (847) 544-5300

Air Travel

International flags in a terminal at O'hare Airport — Photo by Engin Yapici on Unsplash

There are two airports in Chicago:

O'hare Airport (ORD)

Address: 10000 W Balmoral Ave, Chicago, IL 60666
Distance to Conference: 3 miles (approximately a 6 minute drive)
Phone: (800) 832-6352
Website: flychicago.com/ohare

Midway Airport (MDW)

Address: 5700 S Cicero Ave, Chicago, IL 60638
Distance to Conference: 29 miles (approximately a 40 minute drive)
Phone: (773) 838-0600
Website: flychicago.com/midway

Explore Rosemont

From fashion-forward finds to culinary delights, Rosemont offers an unforgettable experience beyond the conference room. We encourage you to see some of what Rosemont has to offer:

What to do in the Entertainment District
Shop the Fashion Outlets

Call for Proposals

The planning committee for NLCC 2024 invites submissions from educators, researchers, administrators, and practitioners actively involved in the development, execution, evaluation, and maintenance of high-quality learning communities. The deadline for proposals is May 1, 2024.

Time	Event
2-6 pm	Conference Check-In
3-4:15 pm	Pre-Conference Session A C'est la VIE: Virtual Intercultural Exchange in the Learning Community classroom Presenters: Richard Johnson and Kimberly Jaeger, Harper College As the world becomes more intensely interconnected in all aspects of human activity, employers are insisting that college graduates have intercultural competencies that enable them to work effectively within and across a variety of cultures. Two colleagues at Harper College have embraced VIE (virtual intercultural exchange) as a transformational tool for infusing their Learning Community with global and intercultural perspectives. They will share the challenges they have faced, the missteps they have made, and the successes they have enjoyed on their intercultural journey connecting their students with peers around the world. Join us to learn how you too might adopt VIE in your classes!
4:30-5:45 pm	Pre-Conference Session B Crossing the Streams with Creative Projects: Workshop on content-based Kids' Books and Board Games Presenter: Gregg Fields This interactive preconference workshop focuses on integrating creative projects into classroom content. The session begins with strategies for crafting children's books from college-level content, highlighting storyboarding, visual design, and narrative adaptation for young audiences. The second half transitions to game creation, using the Octalysis gamification framework and design thinking processes. Participants will engage hands-on in developing both children's literature and various game types (from card games to board games to kinesthetic play) aimed at enhancing learning through engagement and innovation. The workshop promises to equip educators with tools to bridge generational gaps, foster community, and enhance academic engagement, culminating in book and game prototypes ready to playtest for classroom use.

Time	Event
7:30-8:30 am	Breakfast/Conference Check-In
8:30-8:50 am	Welcome
9-9:50 am	Break-Out Sessions If These Walls Could Talk ... Moving from "I" to "We": One Campus' Learning Community Adventure 20 Years of University College: An LLC Case Study Is There a Crisis in Learning Communities at the Community College? Creating, Maintaining, and Sustaining Living-Learning Communities
10-10:50 am	Break-Out Sessions Listening and responding to the campus community: How feedback informs improvement in LCs Utilizing Flex Technologies and Digital Resources to Strengthen our Classroom Community Living Learning Communities at an Urban Hispanic-Serving Institution: Opportunities and challenges The Chicago Novel as Historical Artifact: Teaching LC Students the History of Our City through its Great Literature Building Support: Training Residential Life Staff on How to Promote Academic Success in the Residential Halls
11-11:50 am	Break-Out Sessions CGCC's Linked LCs: A 14-Year Longitudinal Study Building Equity-Focused Communities: Innovative Campus Designs for Uplifting Black and Brown Students Wowsers!!! Experiences (Both Good and Bad) with a Learning Community between a 100-level Introduction to Business Class and 200-level Computers in Business Class Building a Sense of Belonging in Living Learning Communities Engaging Students and Alumni Through Executives in Residence
12-1:30 pm	Lunch/Keynote
1:45-2:35 am	Break-Out Sessions Scaffolding Experiential Learning Activities to Maximize Student Development in a Learning Community The Rise and Fall of the First-Year Learning Communities Program Clubs, Workshops, and Make-a-thons (Oh My!): Two LLC Models for CoCurricular Engagement in Creative Communities Why we like teaching in learning communities OR how to recruit your colleagues to LCs. Using Student Assessment to Maximize Our Impact
2:45-3:35 am	Break-Out Sessions Getting better all the time: building a community of faculty development for linked course LC's A story slam retrospective: 30 years of summer institutes at the Washington Center Working Across Campus Silos to Support Student Engagement in LLCs Sharing Voices Beyond "Borders" Experiences and Outcomes Associated With Students Who SelfSelect into Living-Learning Communities at a R3 University
3:45-4:35 am	Break-Out Sessions Stacking High Impact Practices to create community through a Wellness Showcase featuring Wellness-themed English Learning Communities B is for Belonging: Building & Bonding Activities Where the Magic Happens: A Student-centered Approach to Community Building in Faculty-led Interdisciplinary & Affinity Living/Learning Communities Assessing Learning Networks: Using Network-based Methods to Conceptualize, Measure, and Tell the Story of Your Community Wading The Waters of Parallel Partnerships between Faculty and Residential Life Staff NLCA Council Member Meeting
5-6 pm	Reception

Time	Event
7:30-8:30 am	Breakfast
8:30-9:45 am	Opening Remarks/Keynote
10-10:50 am	Break-Out Sessions Information Literacy Skills as Community Skills Welcoming Sister Institutions into the LC Fold: Institutional Mentorship Programs at the Regional College Level Aligning Living-Learning Community Outcomes with Place-Informed Career, Community, and Industry Engagement Goals: Opportunity Areas. Supporting Faculty Connection using Institutional Research Tools to Develop the On-ramp to Full Integration Fostering Successful Learning Communities Through Purposeful Assignment Design: Work Smarter, Not Harder
11-11:50 am	Break-Out Sessions Crafting Pathways to Success: Promising Assessment Strategies to Deliver High-Quality Learning Communities Utilizing career exploration to encourage retention: How helping students explore can lead them to stay Living, Learning, Launching: Guiding First-Year Interns Creating Sustainable Learning Communities: Continuous Innovation in a Learning Community as a Key to Success Let's talk dirt: The trials and tribulations of a fully integrated learning community
12-1:30 pm	Lunch/Awards/Announcements
1:45-2:35 pm	Break-Out Sessions Creating a STEM-Liberal Arts Learning Community Black Men Thriving: Cultivating Belonging at a Midwestern PWI through a Living-Learning Community Program for Black Men (Man 2 Men) Faculty Mentors: Utilizing mentorship within learning communities to aid in the success of minority students Voices from the Community: LC Student Panel Interfaith Living-Learning Communities: Lessons Learned
2:45-3:35 pm	Break-Out Sessions Supporting HBCU Students' Academic Identity Development: Understanding the Experiences of First Year Students Engaged in Freshmen Learning Communities Every Voice, Every Session: Flipping the Script on Hyperbonding & Negative Behaviors in LCs "So, how do you work with Housing?": Navigating Cross-Divisional LLC Partnerships, Strategies from Academic and Student Affairs Assessment: Selling LCs to Institutional Stakeholders--It's Easier Done Than Said SuperTwofers: Take Two
3:45-4:35 pm	NLCA Annual Meeting/Wrap-Up

Pre-Conference Sessions

The following Pre-Conference Sessions will be held on Wednesday, November 6, 2024:

3:00 p.m. – 4:15 p.m. Pre-Conference Session

C'est la VIE: Virtual Intercultural Exchange in the Learning Community classroom

Presenters: Richard Johnson and Kimberly Jaeger, Harper College

As the world becomes more intensely interconnected in all aspects of human activity, employers are insisting that college graduates have intercultural competencies that enable them to work effectively within and across a variety of cultures. Two colleagues at Harper College have embraced VIE (virtual intercultural exchange) as a transformational tool for infusing their Learning Community with global and intercultural perspectives. They will share the challenges they have faced, the missteps they have made, and the successes they have enjoyed on their intercultural journey connecting their students with peers around the world. Join us to learn how you too might adopt VIE in your classes!

4:30 p.m. – 5:45 p.m. Pre-Conference Session

Crossing the Streams with Creative Projects: Workshop on content-based Kids' Books and Board Games

Presenter: Gregg Fields

This interactive preconference workshop focuses on integrating creative projects into classroom content. The session begins with strategies for crafting children's books from college-level content, highlighting storyboarding, visual design, and narrative adaptation for young audiences. The second half transitions to game creation, using the Octalysis gamification framework and design thinking processes. Participants will engage hands-on in developing both children's literature and various game types (from card games to board games to kinesthetic play) aimed at enhancing learning through engagement and innovation. The workshop promises to equip educators with tools to bridge generational gaps, foster community, and enhance academic engagement, culminating in book and game prototypes ready to playtest for classroom use.

Keynote Speakers

Shermann "Dilla" Thomas

Shermann “Dilla” Thomas is passionate and well-versed in Chicago’s history, architecture, and culture. He brings the city to life through captivating storytelling and insider knowledge. The Chicago Emmy winning, self-taught historian was awarded the City of Chicago's Tourism Ambassador of the Year by Choose Chicago. Public Narrative has named Dilla the 2022 Studs Terkel Uplifting Voice recipient, and The Chicago Public Library has awarded Dilla the 21st Century Award for his recent achievements in promoting Chicago to the world. Dilla has been independently studying the history of Chicago for over 20 years, and his candid and truthful reflection of that history can be felt in his videos and presentations. Dilla embodies the essence of the city and reverberates his message everywhere that “Everything Dope about America Comes from Chicago”.

Todd D. Zakrajsek

Todd D. Zakrajsek PhD, is an Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Medicine at UNC at Chapel Hill, where he develops resources for faculty on teaching/learning, leadership, and publishing. Prior to joining the SOM he was a tenured associate professor of psychology and built faculty development efforts at three universities. Todd has served on many educationally related boards and work groups during his four decades of teaching and faculty development. Todd’s recent books include Classroom Assessment Techniques 3rd ed., Teaching at Its Best, 5th ed.; The New Science of Learning, 3rd ed.; Teaching for Learning, 2nd ed.; Advancing Online; and Dynamic Lecturing. Todd has given keynote addresses, campus workshops, and conference presentations in 49 states, 12 countries, and 4 continents.