Are you ready to transform the way students engage in residential life? It’s time to move beyond traditional models and embrace an approach that’s driving real results—Know, Connect, Empower (KCE).
TCU welcomes you to visit our campus and learn about a new model for student housing. Our field has long believed we provide more than just a place for students to sleep, and over the past 30-40 years, we have developed models that focused on wellness, student development, living-learning, and residential curriculums. All of these models can produce a wonderful housing experience for students. However, in the past 10+ years, TCU has been building a new model, based on theories of belonging and community development. This new model also draws on a community model in use for more than 20 years in a southeastern community. This model focuses on intentional relationship-development within the residential experience. Come and learn about the KCE (Knowing, Connecting, and Empowering) model, the success we are seeing on our campus – and how to implement this model on your campus! Sessions will focus on the history of our model, the theory and framework for the model, data, and tangible action items for your Housing and Residence Life team to transform our students and communities.
Join us for an inside look at how this relationship-driven model is reshaping communities, increasing student participation, and improving retention. The impact speaks for itself: –Students are more connected— leading to stronger communities and higher retention rates. –Staff are more motivated—experiencing greater job satisfaction and a renewed sense of purpose.
The 2025 KCE Symposium was attended by 30 institutions, many who decided to adopt the model on their campus for the 25-26 school year. The symposium featured presentations by TCU staff and the University of South Carolina staff. USC adopted KCE for the 24-25 school year and had amazing results in year one! The 2nd annual KCE Symposium will be led by TCU and USC Housing and Residence Life staff, and we hope to have special presentations by some of our colleagues who adopted KCE this year. As one of our 2025 participants told us, “KCE is the future of residence life.” We believe this is true, and we invite you to come to the 2026 symposium and learn all about this model.
Through intentional relationship-building, KCE helps teams:
- Know students on a deeper level
- Connect them to peers and resources
- Empower them to take ownership of their experiences
If you’re looking for a proven way to build caring relationships and change our residential experience, attend the second annual KCE Symposium on June 3 – 5, 2026, at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas!
Accommodations/Travel
As a KCE Symposium participant, you will not only learn about the model; you will live it (for three days). We will provide rooms in one of our suite-style halls where you will live with other participants – all in your own private rooms, with an XL Full-sized bed. The symposium will begin at 9:30am on Wednesday, June 3, and end at 1:30pm on Friday, June 5. To ensure a smooth experience, please plan to arrive on Tuesday, June 2, and depart on Friday, June 5, after 2:00 PM. This will allow you to fully participate in all scheduled sessions and networking opportunities.
It might be warm in early June, but it will be cool and comfortable in the symposium meeting room(s). Please pack accordingly with casual attire and layers for cool, air-conditioned spaces inside. If you drive in, we will have parking. If you fly in, we encourage you to consider Uber/Lyft to get to campus. There are also airport shuttles at both DFW and Dallas Love airports. More information on travel is coming closer to May.