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Sixth College

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Coordinates: 32°52′50″N 117°14′32″W / 32.8804748°N 117.2421702°W / 32.8804748; -117.2421702
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Sixth College
UC San Diego
Coordinates32°52′50″N 117°14′32″W / 32.8804748°N 117.2421702°W / 32.8804748; -117.2421702
MottoCultivating curious minds to tackle the complex challenges of our times
Established2001 (Sixth)
Former namesConan O'Brien College
StatusUndergraduate, liberal arts
ColorsSixth Teal   
ProvostLakshmi Chilukuri
Deans
Dean of students
Diane LeGree
Dean of academics
Christine Fraser
Resident dean
Anthony Jakubisin
Undergraduates4,262
Core courseCulture, Art, and Technology (CAT)
Major eventsFestival: Chocolate Festival, Kuncocshun, Spirit of the Masters
Residential AreaNorth Torrey Pines Living & Learning Neighborhood (as of Fall 2020)
Websitehttps://sixth.ucsd.edu

Sixth College is the sixth and currently, as of April 2025, the third-newest[Note 1] college of the University of California, San Diego. It was established in September 2001. Sixth College's core writing program, Culture, Art and Technology (CAT), is a five-course sequence that integrates writing skills into multidisciplinary classes to examine the intersections of culture, art, and technology.

Name

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Sixth College is named after the order of the college because it is the sixth undergraduate college at UC San Diego. As per university tradition, it uses a numerical name until it gets a proper name. In 2005, the name "Richard Atkinson College" was considered, to be named after Richard C. Atkinson. Atkinson is a professor Emeritus of Cognitive Science, former chancellor of UC San Diego, and former President of the University of California. However, he withdrew his name from consideration.[1] The College was briefly named Conan O'Brien College for one day on April 20, 2012 to commemorate their tenth anniversary.[2] While students often unofficially propose names for the college, the naming process is currently postponed indefinitely, with the current provost stating she would like the college to be named after a "Woman of Color who has contributed to technology."[citation needed] However, frequent controversies when creating namesakes after people may have resulted in UC San Diego campus administration and leadership to have a shift in attitude that is more reluctant towards naming other, more recently opened colleges (particularly those currently still using a numbered system), especially after people, which is particularly notable as Sixth College, originally opened in September 2001, is still yet to be named more than two decades later as of April 2025. Additionally, the reluctance to name newer and future buildings after people, as is tradition in the past, which is also noticeable in the naming of the NTPLLN buildings, has been officially confirmed during a naming committee meeting of the Pepper Canyon West (PCW) buildings (built on the site of the former, demolished Camp Snoopy, which used to host Sixth College) intended to house additional transfer students, then under construction, in summer 2023, when the naming criteria was shared among attendees (including one student member, who served as the Warren College Student Council (WCSC) Transfer At-Large Representative during the proceeding (2022-2023) school year), which stated that, among others, the buildings should not be named after people at all, but rather use positive, abstract or conceptual themes, which is also visible in and similar to other newer developments around campus. For example, as a result, the two towers of the PCW development were named Rya (North Tower) and Vela (South Tower). The reasons given for this guidance and policy during the naming meeting was due to the controversies that often arises from naming after people, since people are complex, multifaceted, and imperfect.

Ethos and philosophy

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Sixth College prepares students to become effective global citizens who engage creatively and ethically with the complex issues facing the world in the 21st century. Through the college's academic and co-curricular programs, students learn to become innovative, aware, and interconnected. The college draws its creative inspiration through the interdisciplinary examination of culture, art and technology. Core academic programs develop skills in both traditional and emergent media literacy, emphasizing essential writing fundamentals as well as the latest forms of digital communication.[citation needed]

The core sequence in culture, art and technology develops students' abilities to explore the richness of intellectual and academic multiplicity, write effectively, ask and examine difficult questions, work with multiple media and sensory experiences, collaborate in teams, consider ethical issues, develop digital literacy, and explore art and technology in a cultural context.[citation needed]

Extending beyond the classroom, Sixth College educates the student as a whole person. The college community understands the importance of student life in education, and works to integrate academic development with personal growth, community service, interpersonal experience, conscious communication, and ethical behavior. The totality of Sixth College is a digital educational ecology that fosters new forms of thought, expression and community for a new millennium.[citation needed]

Experiential learning

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Sixth College is committed to experiential learning on many different levels.

The Practicum is a unique upper-division requirement that promotes civic engagement and global consciousness, and embodies the college's commitment to active, experiential learning. It is designed to assist students in preparing their professional portfolios and refining their presentation skills as they prepare to enter the post-graduate world.

Beginning in 2012, Sixth College has hosted the biannual Experiential Learning Conference. Sixth College is also the only college at UC San Diego with an explicit upper division Practicum requirement which can be satisfied by many different types of experiential learning opportunities including: study abroad programs, study at UCDC, various types of service-learning in the community, directed research with faculty members, internship programs, and specially-designed independent study programs.[3]

The paramount aim is to provide a learning community that is nurturing and stimulating, while equipping students to face the challenges that lie ahead.[4]

General education

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In addition to the Culture, Art, and Technology (CAT) core writing program, all Sixth College students are required to take on an upper division Practicum course, unique to all the colleges at UCSD. The program requires students to enroll in courses that demand a hands-on approach to education while making valuable contributions to communities both locally and abroad. Students must choose a 4-unit course, program, internship, or research opportunity for their Practicum Project that develops both their academic and professional skills.

Along with the Practicum, every student is required to complete Sixth College's upper-division writing course, CAT 125. This course gives students the opportunity to reflect upon the relationship between their service and their coursework, and to increase their mastery of the written and spoken word.

Student life

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The student council at Sixth College is known as SCSC. This Sixth College Student Council heads the many committees that are responsible for many major Sixth events in the academic year. These include Spirit of the Masters (Arts Committee), CHAOS (Culture Committee), Kuncocshun (Festival Committee), Winter Game Fest (Tech Committee), and Spirit Night (Spirit Committee). The SCSC also has positions for members of the Sixth College Judicial Board.[5] Students at Sixth College are often referred to as "Sixthers," both within and outside of Sixth College in the greater UC San Diego campus community.

Other student organizations include Action Vibe, Community Board (Co-Board), Sixth College Television (SCTV), The Sixth Sense (an investigative journal), Sixer Tritons and Recreation for Transfers (START), and Video Production Club (VPC).[5] Sixth College also has an ambassador program, for students who strive to increase Sixth College students' sense of belonging and connectedness to the community.[5]

Sixth College's former dining hall and markets, at its old site in Pepper Canyon and Camp Snoopy (now partially demolished and used to house transfer students) before its move in 2020, were known as Foodworx. Sixth Place and Market, a convenience store, is located nearby.

Academic Buildings, On-campus housing, and Other Facilities

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The courtyard of the old Sixth Apartments, now Pepper Canyon Apartments.

On-campus housing is available at Sixth College for two years. The original Sixth College dormitories are located near Pepper Canyon Hall, and are now used for transfer student housing. These dorms are nicknamed "Camp Snoopy" as the trees, central lawn, and cabin-like dormitory buildings all contribute to the appearance of a youth summer camp. The dorms are arranged in multiple two-story buildings, with approximately sixty students per building (thirty per floor). Each floor is further divided into two suites, each consisting of five rooms and a common room. A shared bathroom connects the two suites. Each building also features a kitchen and study room for use by residents of that building.[6]

The other former on-campus housing option are the old Sixth's apartments (sometimes referred to by their old name from when they were part of Fifth College, "Pepper Canyon Apartments").[6]

Sixth College has been moved twice within UC San Diego's Campus since its establishment in September 2001, first to the Pepper Canyon area and Camp Snoopy (where some remnants like the street naming, e.g. Sixth Ln, still exist) (Camp Snoopy has since been demolished after Sixth's move to NTPLLN, but Pepper Canyon East and Matthews Apartments are now serving transfer students before their eventual replacement). Finally, in 2020, the college transitioned to then-newly opened facilities in a different part of campus, the North Torrey Pines Living and Learning Neighborhood (NTPLLN) (which has been planned to be the eventual home of Sixth College since before its construction), built on former parking lots (Muir Parking Lots P207 and P208, which closed permanently on June 18, 2018 to allow for its construction)[7][8][9][10], on Ridge Walk (overlooking the coast) immediately north of Muir College. The transition process was staggered due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with some students living in the completed facilities, and the remaining buildings were expected to finish construction later than expected, by 2020 or early 2021.[11] As of 2021, the transition to NTPLLN has been fully completed and all students at Sixth College now live at the North Torrey Pines living & learning community.

Sixth College also hosts a number of Living-Learning Communities (LLC's), including, as of April 2025, among others, the Multicultural Living-Learning Community for students of various backgrounds (mainly students of color) and the African Black Diaspora LLC for students of African descent, which is open for any student with a housing contract to apply for (during their housing application) and allows non-Sixth College and transfer students, who typically live in specific transfer housing areas rather than and regardless of their assigned colleges of registration, to select a room in Sixth to participate in these programs, which offer some light extra programming and activities related to their theme, if their applications are selected.[12] Additionally, Sixth College also currently hosts Gender Inclusive Housing, which is open for all students at UC San Diego to opt-into on their housing application/forms on the campus-wide HDH housing portal, as well as the OASIS LLC designed specifically for first-generation college students from under-served high schools who are already participating in the OASIS Program, including OASIS Summer Bridge, to live together in order to continue building their supportive relationships from earlier in the program and receive support and advice from each other as well as student staff (e.g. the RA in charge of the OASIS LLC program/floor(s)).[13][14][15] Due to the extra capacity and room space, as of 2023, Sixth College also houses overflow students from Marshall, which is running even lower on capacity in their already usually smaller facilities with less rooms/spaces (pre-construction) due to construction and closure/demolition of current facilities, Muir, and other areas on campus as capacity constraints around campus require. However, the LLCs and other housing programs (e.g. Gender Inclusive Housing) (including which ones are offered by HDH on a campus-wide level, the ones which are hosted at Sixth, and their locations within Sixth) and overflow housing may be fluid and may change or vary.

An image of the Kaleidoscope building at the North Torrey Pines living & learning community, the new residence halls of Sixth College.

Commuter life

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Sixth College has several resources for commuters. Sixth College commuter students have unlimited access to the Commuter Center located in Pepper Canyon Hall, which features lockers, WiFi, and kitchen facilities. Sixth College also has a commuter student organization known as Commuters in Action, or CIA. Each quarter, Sixth College also hosts Commuter and Transfer social events.[16]

Notable events

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Conan O'Brien during his visit to Sixth College in 2012.
Mayim Bialik during her visit to Sixth College in 2015.

On April 20, 2012, late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien visited Sixth College in honor of its tenth anniversary. To celebrate the occasion, and in the absence of a permanent name, Sixth College renamed itself to Conan O'Brien College for the day of April 20.[17]

On May 27, 2015, actress Mayim Bialik visited Sixth College in honor of its thirteenth anniversary.[18]

Experiential Learning Conference

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The Experiential Learning Conference is a biannual event occurring in early Winter quarter (late January), and is free and open to the public. The first conference was organizers by former acting Provost Jim Lin and Director Diane Forbes Berthoud, and hosted jointly by Sixth College and Warren College on January 26, 2012, in the Cross Cultural Center located in Price Center East. The theme of the inaugural conference was Education in Action: Mobilizing the next generation for social reform.[19] Over 165 presenters participated in panels,[20] with representation from multiple universities in San Diego and across the UC Community. Notable presenters included David Kirsh and Lev Manovich.[19]

The second conference was sponsored by Provost Dan Donoghue, organized by Director Diane Forbes Berthoud, and hosted by Sixth College. The event was held in Price Center West as well as the Cross Cultural Center on Friday, January 31, 2014.[21]

The keynote speaker was Mizuko Ito, who gave a special noon session talk on 'Connected Learning.' Other notable presenters included Associate Vice Chancellor Barbara Sawrey, Michael Trigilio, STEM and STEAM programming, Elizabeth Losh, K. Wayne Yang, Teddy Cruz, Bud Mehan, Michael Cole, Ashley Trinh, and Mirle Bussell.[22]

The third conference was sponsored by Provost Dan Donoghue, organized by Director Diane Forbes Berthoud, and hosted by Sixth College. The event was held in the Cross Cultural Center on Thursday, March 31, 2016.[citation needed]

Commencement

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UC San Diego hosts separate graduation ceremonies for each undergraduate college. Sixth College has had such commencement speakers as:

Notes

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  1. ^ The newest college established may not necessarily have/use/occupy the newest facilities/buildings, as new colleges keep getting established and new facilities keep getting built/re-built, and at times, colleges can and do move around campus to different facilities for various reasons (despite the order/time of establishment of the college), such as in the case of Sixth. One example of this is the fact that Sixth College's current facilities are newer than the ones that Seventh College occupies and utilizes (North Campus, formerly The Village for transfer students), despite the fact that Seventh College was established after Sixth.

References

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  1. ^ "The Naming of Sixth College". adminrecords.ucsd.edu. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  2. ^ "Conan O'Brien Advises Students to Navigate Tough Economy by Following Their Passion". today.ucsd.edu. Retrieved 2023-07-20.
  3. ^ "Practicum". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  4. ^ "Provost's Welcome". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  5. ^ a b c "Get Involved". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  6. ^ a b "Virtual Tour of Sixth College". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  7. ^ [https://adminrecords.ucsd.edu/Notices/2018/2018-5-9-1.html "CONSTRUCTION ALERT � North Torrey Pines Living and Learning Neighborhood: Start of Construction"]. adminrecords.ucsd.edu. 2018-05-09. Archived from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18. {{cite web}}: replacement character in |title= at position 20 (help)
  8. ^ Coston, Ethan Edward (2018-06-18). "Muir Parking Lot Closes for North Torrey Pines Living Learning Center Construction". The Triton. Archived from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18.
  9. ^ "UC San Diego North Torrey Pines Living Learning Neighborhood Summer 2018 - Fall 2020 Construction" (PDF). UCSD NTPLLN Project and Construction Info and Overview Presentation. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18. {{cite web}}: line feed character in |title= at position 13 (help)
  10. ^ "UCSD Extended Studies - Foreign Languages (Facebook Post)". www.facebook.com. 2018-06-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18. {{cite web}}: |archive-url= is malformed: flag (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ "North Torrey Pines Living Learning Neighborhood Capital Project -". UC San Diego. Archived from the original on 2023-12-02. Retrieved 2020-11-30.
  12. ^ "UCSD opens housing based on race, sexual identity". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  13. ^ "Living Learning Communities". hdhughousing.ucsd.edu (UCSD HDH Undergrad Housing). Archived from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18.
  14. ^ "Living Learning Communities". sixth.ucsd.edu. Archived from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18.
  15. ^ UC San Diego Housing Dining Hospitality (HDH) Undergrad Housing (2024). "Learning all about Living Learning Communities At UC San Diego" (PDF). LIVING LEARNING COMMUNITIES. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2025-04-18. Retrieved 2025-04-18.
  16. ^ "Commuter Students". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  17. ^ "UC San Diego's Sixth College Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Special Guest Conan O'Brien" (Press release). ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  18. ^ "'The Big Bang Theory's' Mayim Bialik Shares Experiences as an Academic, Actor and STEM Advocate". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  19. ^ a b "ELC 2012". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  20. ^ "UC San Diego Ventures Outside Classroom for Experiential Learning Conference" (Press release). ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  21. ^ "Experiential Learning Conference". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  22. ^ "Experiential Learning Conference". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  23. ^ "Commencement". ucsd.edu. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
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