Learning Communities
Connecting advising, enhancing learning, engaging community
As freshman roommates and hallmates meet the new and challenging environment of college, they develop some of their most lasting friendships. For students participating in Living and Learning Communities - which combine the residential and academic functions central to a student's first year - the roots of these friendships become intellectual as well as social.
Learning Communities, a group of 9-12 freshman who are enrolled together in a class and live together on the same residence hall, are designed to bring together students, academic advisors, faculty, and peer mentors in a shared academic and co-curricular experience. They link the student to an academic advisor, to a course, and to the other students in his residence hall with the goals of creating a holistic learning experience that will improve the quality of classroom time, increase student success rates, and arm freshmen with the personal connections and decision making and self-advocacy skills essential to a successful and fulfilling college experience. From the very beginning, freshmen learn that Hampden-Sydney is a place in which ideas are not simply a part of the classroom, but rather a part of college life.
2026-27 Learning Communities
Advisor: Richard Burke
Are you interested in a career in politics or government? Do you love politics? Do you want to be a good citizen? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then this living and learning community is perfect for you. Together, we will reflect on citizenship. Specifically, we will discuss the 2026 midterm elections, evaluate our news habits, engage in local politics, and meet Hampden-Sydney alums who are working in careers dedicated to public service. This living and learning community may be of particular interest for Wilson Leadership Fellows, as well as prospective Government majors. Students who choose this Living & Learning community will be enrolled in GVFA 101: Introduction to American Government, which can be used to satisfy the College’s Core requirements for Social Sciences and American Studies.
Advisor: Tara Stephen
Curious about Dubai chocolate? Wondered about Korean hot chili popcorn? Then join this Living and Learning Community! We try snacks from different countries each month, using food as a gateway to learning about people and cultures across the world. These informal culinary conversations are part of a one-hour course where we explore the role of food in movies, tv, video games, literature, and more. In addition, students will be enrolled in a section of Western Culture in the fall and Dr. Stephan’s Global Cultures in the spring, fulfilling two requirements in the Core Curriculum. If you love travel, history, or just like to eat, this Learning Community allows you to explore the world both in the classroom and outside of it.
Advisor: Nicholas D. Nace
This LLC, run in conjunction with Dr. Nace’s RHET 101, will focus on the intellectual and artistic dimensions of combat sports. While our approach will be largely academic as we learn about the philosophies, techniques, and histories of various combat sports, what we learn may also constitute a prelude to your participation in HSC’s various martial arts clubs. We will read some relevant sports journalism by A.J. Liebling, literary essays by Joyce Carol Oates, and some cultural criticism by RZA of the Wu Tang Clan. We will inform ourselves about the basics of various arts by watching some short instructional videos by Kurt Osiander (BJJ), Frank Gilfeather (boxing), and Tawanchai (Muay Thai), but we will also cast our attention to lesser-known arts (French savate, Brazilian capoeira, and Japanese sumo). In the fall, there will be monthly viewings of kung fu films from the Shaw Brothers Studio that will form the basis for understanding later multicultural works of martial arts cinema—from Jim Kelly’s Black Belt Jones to Berry Gordy’s The Last Dragon to Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill—that we will watch in the spring.
Advisor: Matthew Locey
Are you a diehard football fan? If so, this learning community may be for you. Students in this group will gather monthly to tailgate and/or watch a football game. We'll also discuss psychological phenomena involved in being a fan. Students in this learning community will be enrolled together in a section of Introduction to Psychology (PSYC101) with Dr. Locey for the Fall of 2026.
Advisor: Matthew C. Hulbert
Are you a hunter or angler? Are you interested in learning about the sport, discussing the ethics and principles of hunting, or in making friends on campus that share your interest? Do you want to compete in an on-campus fishing tournament with prizes? If you answered “yes” to any of those questions this Living & Learning community is for you. Discussions will revolve around ducks, deer, bass, and everything in between, as well as recent news related to hunting and fishing in Virginia and beyond. We’ll have a catered film night and Zoom with professional hunters in Tanzania and Alaska. Students in this community will be enrolled in Dr. Hulbert’s HIST111: America to 1865 (fulfilling a general education requirement), which will involve its own fair share of the outdoors.
Advisor: Jake Euteneuer
What is the greatest video game of all time? What makes it so good? Can we really compare Tetris to Fortnite? These are some of the fun questions we will debate as we explore the world of video games, from the Atari era to modern VR headsets. We will play games and get to know each other as we throw grenades at drones in Arc Raiders, uppercut rodents and robots in Super Smash Bros., and attempt to cross endless roads in Frogger. We’ll tackle trivia on our phones and use Meta Quest headsets to map the world around us in search of new games. Students will be enrolled in Dr. Euteneuer’s RHET 101 as we explore how writing shapes how we think about games, culture, and society. The goal is that we will be able to learn and have some fun as we think about what writing and playing have in common.
Application Process
After you have been accepted to Hampden-Sydney College and have submitted your deposit, you will be invited to begin the housing application process. As part of that process, you will have the opportunity to opt into the Living and Learning Communities Program. Communities will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis early in the spring with a final deadline in May.
If you have any other questions, please contact Dr. Matthew Hulbert.
mhulbert@hsc.edu | 434 223-6215
- Brown Student Center, P.O. Box 5, Hampden-Sydney College
- (434) 223-6128
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- Learning Communities