Representatives from several renowned universities such as Purdue and Cornell claimed seats in the Hughes-Trigg Ballroom East/Central on Oct. 16 – some attendees with Starbucks in hands and others speaking with colleagues. By the time 9 a.m. approached, the muffled chatter in the room decreased as the attendees came to focus on the reason why they were at SMU: to host a forum on the residential commons system.
This year from Oct. 16 to Oct. 18, SMU hosted the 2nd Annual Residential College Symposium despite only implementing its own Commons system last year. SMU welcomed 105 attendees from 25 different schools, including the University of Macau in China, Baylor University, Washington University in St. Louis, and others.
The event kicked off with opening keynote speaker Shanti Parikh, a faculty fellow at the Thomas Eliot Residential College at Washington University in St. Louis.
Move away from "programs" to "platforms of transformation" that demonstrate a particular way to engage -Dr. Shanti Parikh