eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Educational Research 2333-4770 2014-09-26 2 10 856 861 10.12691/education-2-10-3 EDUCATION20142103 article Tobin Richardson tmrichardso2@bsu.edu 1 James Stroud 2 Department of Educational Studies, Ball State University, Muncie, IN, USA Department of Elementary Education, Ball State University, Muncie, IN, USA Many factors may influence how a student experiences his or her residence community involvement. Ball State University, an institution with a history of innovative and effective housing programs, recently implemented a living-learning community comprised of students declaring majors within their Department of Elementary Education. A total of 15 participants who had resided within this living-learning community for a minimum of one academic-year were interviewed. Interviews focused on students overall experience within the Early and Elementary Education Living-Learning Community. Common themes emerging from the semi-structured interviews included participants feeling connected and comfortable quickly within their college transition, social benefit including the development and maintenance of long-term friendships, and academic benefit including better course performance and more commitment towards the field of study. http://pubs.sciepub.com/education/2/10/3/education-2-10-3.pdf living-learning community residence life college transition elementary education