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Published October 25, 2022

By Carrie Stetler

Rutgers University–Newark’s Honors Living-Learning Community fully opens new building to students

A new Honors Living-Learning Community (HLLC) building at Rutgers University–Newark fully opened to welcome students this fall, a major milestone in the mission to cultivate future scholars and leaders whose vast potential might otherwise be overlooked. “This building perfectly exemplifies the seamless relationship between physical infrastructure and social infrastructure,” says Rutgers–Newark Chancellor Nancy Cantor. “It demonstrates how much space and place can invite intellectual and cultural and social interaction. We wanted to make this a meeting place, a center of innovation, dialogue, debate, and collaborative learning.”

Created in 2015, the Rutgers–Newark HLLC is an intergenerational learning and residential community that enrolls scholars ranging in age from 18 to 60 who encompass a diversity of experiences, including first-generation students, transfer students, and those who are parents. Half are from the city of Newark. The program has been recognized nationally for reimagining honors programs, including the use of an in-depth holistic admissions process to identify exceptional students.

The 320,000-square-foot HLLC building on New Street can house 390 students and includes a range of learning and meeting areas designed to foster conversation. The Global Piazza between Halsey and Washington Streets features a variety of illuminated words in 20 languages and is open to the public. It will be bordered by street-level shops, eateries, gallery space, and facilities to support urban entrepreneurship.

The Rutgers–Newark HLLC program has been supported by generous gifts, including a $10 million gift from Prudential to establish the Prudential Scholars Program. Additional support for the program has come from the PSE&G Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, the Helen Gurley Brown Foundation, Fiserv, Bank of America, and the Charlotte W. Newcombe Foundation.

Veronica Torres, a junior criminal justice major, says she cherishes the nurturing academic environment of the new space. “I have never been so supported in a space as I am in this building.’’

For more, read this story about the September 22 grand opening celebration.