The 2nd annual Learning Community Launch Party took place on September 8, 2016. Students and faculty from Learning Communities attended with their cohort, and professors brought their students as a group. The campus community, including staff, faculty and students, enjoyed mingling with each other, listening to old school hip hop, visiting program and services tables, grabbing a set of Skyline College Learning Communities sunglasses, visiting the trail mix bar and showing off their creative side by contributing to the cloth mural at the center of the quad. The Launch Party included an “open mic”, giving program staff, students and faculty the opportunity to share information and welcome the groups of Learning Community students as they arrived at the event.
The Learning Community Launch Party was a great kick-off to the academic year. The fun and memorable event strengthened informal bonds between students and faculty, increased students’ sense of belonging within the larger framework of Skyline College Learning Communities, and increased school spirit and connections to the campus.
Expanding the Launch Party from Fall 2015, this year’s event included a Student Success & Diversity Forum which included a pizza lunch for students enrolled in Learning Community classes. This part of the event took place at the conclusion of the outdoor portion of the Launch Party festivities and provided a more intimate environment to discuss topics related to building community and diversity and to hear from a dynamic student panel about their experiences at Skyline College and their tips for success.
All Skyline College students are invited to learn more about how to join a Learning Community for the Spring 2017 semester. Those who missed the event can access more information via a flowchart of course sequences for each Learning Community on the Learning Communities website. More photos from the Launch Party and other Learning Community events can be viewed on Facebook or on the Skyline College Learning Communities Launch Party Flickr album.
Article by Marisa Thigpen and photos by Will Nacouzi
