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Home > Program > Special Residential Programs Special Residential ProgramsAcademic and Language Theme Houses Seven houses offer programs organized around academic or language themes:
Theme houses enable both majors and non-majors with an active interest in a field to live together and explore a theme in a fun and comfortable residential setting. Theme programs feature lectures, receptions, film series, recitals, in-house seminars, special projects, and language tables, among other activities. Most houses maintain active contact with faculty in the relevant academic departments and programs. Theme houses often host noted scholars, cultural figures, and political leaders. Many theme houses sponsor special activities intended to draw the wider campus community to the house, such as the quarterly Pizzeria at La Casa Italiana, quarterly Cafe Night at La Maison Francaise or the annual EASTFest at EAST House, and Oktoberfest at Haus Mitteleuropa. Non-theme activities are offered in each house as well. For students preparing for or returning from overseas study, the houses with a language theme provide opportunities to continue using the language on a regular basis. One example of regular programming which occurs in most language houses is a weekly dinner for residents and departmental faculty in which all attendees speak the focus language, and feature food from that culture. In addition to a Resident Assistant, student Theme Associates live in each house and help plan theme programs. Theme Associates are generally the primary liasion between the house and their sponsoring academic department. La Casa Italiana has a resident Graduate Theme Associate; Murray and EAST houses also have Resident Fellows. Residents of theme houses must usually commit to taking at least one house seminar (offered quarterly), and in some cases organize a theme project. Murray House has both University dining and custodial service. All other academic/language theme houses have student-managed board plans and University custodial service. Each of these houses require projects or tasks to be completed throughout the year. Please see the following list for deatils. Theme/Focus/Co-Op Requirements 2009-2010
Cross-Cultural (Ethnic)Theme Houses Stanford's four cross-cultural theme houses are:
In addition to offering the social and educational opportunities available in any Stanford residence, the cross-cultural houses also feature theme programs exploring American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian, Asian-American, Black/African-American, or Chicano/Latino history and culture. Theme programs include campus-wide events, in-house classes, film and lecture series, group discussions, drama productions, music recitals, and readings by noted authors. Theme houses also sponsor major, campus-wide activities such as Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month, an annual celebration organized by Okada; Club Ujamaa, a jazz and casino night in an African-American cultural setting; and Zoot Suit Week, Cinco de Mayo, and Dia de los Muertos celebrations at Casa Zapata. Muwekma-tah-ruk also offers hands-on activities related to American Indian culture, such as pottery workshops, training in beadwork, and holds various activities to interact with members of the local Muwekma-Ohlone tribe. For students living in Casa Zapata, Muwekma-tah-ruk, Okada, or Ujamaa, the educational experience of residence life is enriched by participating in cross-cultural activities. Members of the ethnic groups living in the houses have an opportunity to be a part of a supportive community in that members of that ethnic group are clustered in the house and because the educational program emphasizes and values the cultural identity of the group. The theme programs enable members of the ethnic group and others in the house to learn about and appreciate the group's history and culture. For students who are not members of the ethnic group which is the focus of the house theme, the experience of day-to-day living in a cross-cultural house broadens outlooks, creates opportunities to form new friendships, and encourages an appreciation and understanding of cultural differences. If you are considering accepting an assignment to a cross-cultural theme house, it is important that you realize that all residents - whether members of the theme's ethnic community or not - are expected to support the house's activities, theme-related or not. For the houses to be successful, all residents need to participate in the range of house meetings and programs. The residence staff - a Resident Fellow, Resident Assistants, and Theme Associates - are aware of the special nature of their residences and seek to encourage and help residents work out compromises that make the houses comfortable places for all students who live there. The staffs are also committed to the houses' theme programs and work actively to encourage participation of all residents in theme activities. All students who accept assignment to a cross-cultural theme house are expected to enter the houses with a cooperative attitude, with an open mind about living in a theme house, and with some willingness to examine attitudes about race and ethnicity in our society. Note: Ethnic priorities for assignment to Casa Zapata, Muwekma-tah-ruk, Okada, and Ujamaa are automatically issued to Chicano/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian, Asian-American, and Black/African-American students, respectively, based on ethnic data supplied by the Registrar's Office. In addition, each cross-cultural theme house offers a possible preassignment to all students, regardless of ethnicity, who meet certain objectively defined criteria. (See Pre-Assignment.) Each of these houses require projects or tasks to be completed throughout the year. Please see the following list for deatils. Theme/Focus/Co-Op Requirements 2009-2010
Focus Houses Focus houses feature special house programs that focus on a specific area. Like other residences, focus houses offer diverse programs on many different issues. In addition, however, a portion of house programs examine a specific field in greater depth. Student Focus Assistants live in each house--along with a Resident Fellow and Resident Assistants--and help plan focus programs. The houses serve as forums for both residents and nonresidents to come together to discuss issues related to the house focus and to meet with faculty members from the focus area. The relaxed residential setting allows students to interact informally with other residents who are interested in learning more about the focus subject. Focus houses offer a Pre-Assignment for a limited number of spaces in each house. The remaining spaces are available to any student. Students with a Pre-Assignment who are assigned to a focus house are expected to help plan and participate in focus programs and fulfill the requirements for obtaining a Pre-Assignment. Students without Pre-Assignment who are assigned to a focus house are not required to participate in focus programs, but are strongly encouraged to do so. Students may also take part in other traditional dorm activities, such as trips to the City, movie nights, IMs, and study breaks. The five focus houses are: Murray House: Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity. Adelfa House: Writing. Writing in its myriad forms occupies a central place in students’ lives at the university and then continues to demand attention in students’ lives after college. In Adelfa, the Writing Focus house, residents will be part of a community of writers exploring a wide range of writing genres, from academic and discipline-specific essays to comic writing, spoken word, songs, and plays. Faculty and guest speakers invited to the house would include professors from the Schools of Law, Business, and Medicine as well as departments such as Political Science, Economics, Philosophy, History, and English. Beyond academic forms of writing and speaking, the house will offer workshops in which residents play with language to make and perform poems, songs, stories, plays, and perhaps full-scale dramatic productions. A regular feature of life in the Writing House would be performances of writing by guests such as the Spoken Word Collective, the Robber Barons, Stegner Fellows and faculty from Creative Writing and by the residents themselves. Kimball Hall: Arts and Performing Arts. Kimball Hall is the Arts and Performing Arts Focus House. The house focuses on programs that explore topics related to how the fine and creative arts interact and relate in aspects of the performing arts. A Faculty Fellows program includes dinners, fireside chats, and desserts with affiliated faculty members interested in the creative and performing arts. Focus Assistants expand programming opportunities and plan field trips to art galleries, poetry readings, and opera, dance, musical, and theatrical performances. Toyon Hall: Sophomore Priority House. Toyon Hall offers residential programming tailored to meet the needs of second-year students. As the first Stanford house with an all-sophomore emphasis, Toyon provides two major opportunities: First is the chance to bond a major part of an entire class just as an all-frosh house does. The staff intends to begin with a strong sophomore orientation which gets everyone in the house to meet and learn something about each other. Then, continuing through the year, the house will have programming intended to encourage social interaction like camping trips, outings, dances, and the like. Toyon should be a place where all its residents can feel comfortable, relaxed, and totally at home. The second opportunity is the chance to address concerns unique to the sophomore experience: choosing careers, declaring majors, and giving academics greater attention. The house will have more interaction with faculty on a regular basis and special advising programs. Students should choose Toyon because they want to combine the social energy of their freshman year with the excitement of moving into the more serious adventures of the sophomore year. The Toyon staff wants the class of 2002 to find Toyon a wonderful place to catalyze their shared experience and creativity. Note: A priority for assignment to Toyon is issued automatically to current first-year students who list Toyon as a residence choice on their housing application. Freshman/Sophomore Residential College. The Freshman/Sophomore College, housed in Adams and Schiff in Sterling Quadrangle, is a residence for 90 freshmen and 90 sophomores who are interested in broad intellectual exploration of the liberal arts and sciences. Entering students (freshmen) have the option of living for two years in the College. As the residential complement of Stanford Introductory Studies (SIS), the College connects residential life with the mentoring and academic activities offered through SIS courses. SIS courses include Introduction to the Humanities, Freshman and Sophomore Seminars, the Science Mathematics and Engineering Core, and Writing and Critical Thinking. For more information, read the Freshman/Sophomore Residential College page. Each of these houses require projects or tasks to be completed throughout the year. Please see the following list for deatils. Theme/Focus/Co-Op Requirements 2009-2010
Cooperative living houses ask residents to preform 4-5 hours of work every week. This work usually entails cooking and cleaning as needed by the house, and students can perform a different job every week. Jobs include everything from cooking dinner to cleaning the kitchen and from vacuuming to gardening. Residents working together to complete house jobs quickly give the house a strong sense of community. Synergy and Columbae are strictly vegetarian houses hile Hammarskjold, Terra, EBF, Kairos, and Chi Theta Chi enjoy all kinds of cuisine. Dinners are usually served Sunday-Thursday. Breakfast, lunch, and midnight snacks are up to the individual, but the kitchens are fully stocked and residents often cook and socialize informally during the day. Visit http://coop.stanford.edu for more specific information. Each of these houses require projects or tasks to be completed throughout the year. Please see the following list for deatils. Theme/Focus/Co-Op Requirements 2009-2010
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