Public Affairs Living-Learning Community

What are they saying about SSPALLC?

"SSPALLC...inspire[s] the development of an academic community that...appear[s] to truly engage students with each other and with the issues of the day. We have no doubt that…SSPALLC [is] 'succeeding'."

-- National Study of Living Learning Programs

"[In comparison with living-learning programs at other universities in the U.S.] Florida State has one of the more rigorous connections between classroom experiences and the residential experience, and that might be one reason why the outcomes we see at Florida State are truly exemplary."

-- Matthew Soldner, University of Maryland

"You really get to make a lot of connections that are good for your future; [SSPALLC] makes the most of your major and your freshman experience."

-- Susannah Hall, SSPALLC resident (2007-2008) & FSU International Affairs major

Welcome to the web site of FSU's Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community (SSPALLC)

Click on the radio above to find out why FSU's Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community is attracting national attention. This 3.5-minute radio program aired on March 28, 2008.

View the FSU Headlines TV program on the Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community. This 2-minute program aired in May and June of 2008. (The video also provides a sneak preview of DeGraff Hall!)

About the Community

The Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community (SSPALLC) is designed to help its residents advance their interests in the world around them, complementing the educational mission of FSU with special courses and frequent events and activities that are open only to members of the Community. Community residents benefit from the resources of a large university (world-renowned faculty, a variety of course offerings in more than one hundred departments and other academic programs, academic and cultural activities almost every night, and a large and diverse student body), while also enjoying the benefits of a small college (close contact with a small community of students, small class sizes, and regular interaction with university faculty and staff).

The Community is intended for students with an interest in the social sciences, and draws from the rich resources of the University, the College of Social Sciences, and Tallahassee to create a unique learning environment. The central mission of SSPALLC is to educate students for citizenship in the community, state, nation, and world. If you're interested in understanding and impacting society at the local, state, national, and global levels, then this is the community for you!

In order to fulfill this mission, the Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community has three central components: Community, Coursework, and Events & Activities.

1. Community

SSPALLC residents benefit from living in a close-knit, supportive community of people with similar interests. New students interact with others who are interested in the world around them, including majors and professors in FSU's social science departments (Economics, Geography, Political Science, Public Administration, Sociology, and Urban & Regional Planning) and related disciplines. With this foundation, SSPALLC residents go on to achieve academic success in the social sciences and become leaders in student and community organizations.

DeGraff Hall

SSPALLC residents live in conveniently-located DeGraff Hall, which opened in Fall 2007

2. Coursework

All Community residents enroll in the one credit-hour Public Affairs colloquium, in both the Fall and Spring semesters. Because it is limited to residents in the Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community, this seminar extends the sense of community within the program, by bringing the students together in the classroom as well as in their daily interactions in the residence hall. More details about the Public Affairs Colloquium are available on this web site's Courses page.

Community members also are required to take one of the one-semester in-house seminars that are offered each Fall semester by individual departments within the College of Social Sciences. These courses, which are taught in a classroom located in the residence hall, help build a sense of community among participants as well as providing a smaller class size and more personalized learning environment than is found in most classes open to first-year students. Each class is limited to twenty students and is taught by a full-time FSU faculty member. More details are available on this web site's Courses page.

inside comp

Living-Learning Community Students in the DeGraff Hall Lounge

3. Events & Activities

Throughout the year, special events and activities related to the social sciences and public affairs are scheduled for Community members. These range from presentations by FSU scholars and local or state political figures, to lectures by visiting national and international political dignitaries and journalists, to discussions of current events led by local experts. Recent years have also seen presentations on some of the many opportunities available at FSU for students interested in the social sciences. See the Events & Activities page for examples of some of the events that the Community has hosted in past years.

About this Web Site

Site Index

This web site includes ten pages with information about the program for current or prospective participants. Each of these pages can be accessed from the navigation sidebar, located on the left side of the screen at the top of each page:

Home Page: This page. A description of the Social Science & Public Affairs Living-Learning Community, including a summary of its mission and its major components, as well as an index to the web site.
Admissions: Information on applying for admission to the Community.
Contact Us: Contact information and brief biographies for faculty and staff associated with the Community.
Courses: A list of all courses associated with the Community, including both the colloquium that all residents are required to take and the smaller in-house courses that are offered each semester.
- Previous in-house courses: A list of courses offered in past years.
Events and Activities: An introduction to the many events and activities that are associated with the Community.
- Past years: an archive of events from past years.
FAQs: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about the Community, including sections aimed at both potential applicants and current participants.
Public Affairs Resources: A compilation of useful online resources related to public and international affairs, ranging from departments in FSU's College of Social Sciences to web sites on local, state, national, and international affairs.