Dorchester Hall, formerly known as International House or I-House, offers an exciting living experience, rich in cultural diversity and academic enhancement. Students from more than 30 countries and the United States, representing a variety of cultural backgrounds, come together to form an international community. These undergraduate residents share a common desire to build bridges of cooperation and understanding between cultures.

Residents of Dorchester Hall form the Dorchester Hall Council to realize the purposes of Dorchester Hall to the best of its ability. These include, but are not limited to, fostering a strong spirit of community among Dorchester residents, encouraging cross-cultural communication both within the house and throughout campus, and promoting internationalism on the campus and in the community at large. To this end, the Dorchester Hall Council organizes a multitude events both within Dorchester Hall and on campus at large, ranging from movie nights to International Dinner to Cultural Explosion - a multicultural arts and entertainment festival on campus.

Visit the Dorchester Hall Council site at: http://www.dorchesterhall.org

Dorchester Hall is also home to two new and innovative living-learning programs: Global Communities and the Jiménez-Porter Writer's House. Located at the center of campus, Dorchester Hall offers a unique international environment. Global Communities, directed by Kirsten Dabelko and Marcus Schaper, focuses on intercultural competencies, while the Jiménez-Porter Writer's House provides students with an environment to hone their creative writing skills.

Visit the Global Communities site at: http://www.umd.edu/globalcommunities

Visit the Jiménez-Porter Writer's House site at: http://www.arhu.umd.edu/admissions/writershouse.html