August 29, 1997

Prof moves into student rez

Lister Hall's waiting list has been growing since mid-July, however, the Department of Housing and Food Services has managed to save a spot for a unique first-time resident: Dr. Joy Berg.

Berg, department of music, will soon become the first University of Alberta faculty member in Rez. She'll move into Lister Hall along with over 1,200 students during the first week of September.

It's all part of a strategy to ensure the academic life in residence is as healthy as the party life. So far, students have been able to combine the two well. A survey of the six residences on campus shows that student GPA's are slightly above average in all but the Lister Hall residence. Averages there were slightly below average, but rising.

Rising averages is a trend Jason Hunter, residence life coordinator for Lister and Pembina Halls, wants to see continue. He says the newly established Faculty in Residence program will "improve student awareness of the academic process by providing them with a professional academic contact outside of the classroom environment."

Berg anticipates the benefits will go both ways. She hopes that "seeing students outside of the classroom, in their normal everyday living situations" will provide her with new insights into teaching and an opportunity to bridge the gap between students and teachers.

She hopes to provide a casual arena for students to "talk academic," and plans to eat in the dining hall whenever she is able, and to provide regular office hours.

She'll also work with the Lister Hall Students' Association and Residence Life student leaders developing programs. Other faculty may be invited as guest speakers on topics like study skills and the Learning Resource Centre will be enhanced.

"The academic health of students in residence is of critical importance to us," says Dima Utgoff, associate director of housing and residence life. "We are not just providing a roof over their heads, we want residence life to be part of their university learning experience."

"People live in one place and go to class in another place, but learning happens in both," says Utgoff. "We are struggling to establish our legitimacy as educators, as well as administrators," she says. "People associate faculty with learning and teaching, but residence living is an extension of what happens on the rest of the University of Alberta campus."

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