Watauga Residential College, founded in 1972, takes its inspiration from the colleges at Oxford and Cambridge: we combine living and learning in a seamless experience involving faculty and students alike.
Watauga is a residential college founded at Appalachian State University in 1972. We take an interdisciplinary, experiential approach to fulfilling Appalachian's general education requirements . Students live in the Living Learning Center (LLC) as they complete the two-year program.
The program was founded as Watauga College, but renamed in 2008 as Watauga Global Community. In 2014, we became again Watauga Residential College, thus emphasizing both our history and our curricular aims.
Watauga College was first based in Watauga Hall, then for decades was housed in East Hall, a large U shaped dormitory on the east end of Campus. The dorm was known campus wide as having the largest rooms of any dorm on the Appalachian campus, yet it was one of the oldest dorms on campus. Upon the completion of the Living Learning Center in 2004, Watauga College relocated to the LLC.
Watauga was based on a British model of higher education. The LLC includes a room for a faculty member in residence, and students and faculty engage in problem-based learning experiences, take meals together, and participate alongside each other in co-curricular activities.
