LARC Director Trace Yulie.
This year, the UC Irvine Learning and Academic Resource Center (LARC) is proud to celebrate 50 years of fostering student academic success, collaboration, and community. “Milestones are like birthdays, and this is a big one that feels special,” says Trace Yulie, Director of the LARC. “UC Irvine is growing and changing, and so is the LARC. The department has evolved a great deal in the past 50 years, and it’s genuinely exciting to see what we will accomplish in the coming years.”
Since 1975, the LARC has dedicated itself to promoting educational success for UC Irvine’s undergraduate student population. The LARC offers services such as supplemental instruction tutorials, drop-in tutoring, academic learning skills workshops, individual consultations, and leadership development opportunities.
Trace Yulie has served as Director of LARC since 2014. Throughout their 11-year tenure, the LARC has evolved in meaningful ways to better serve UC Irvine’s diverse student body. “During my time here, I’ve overseen significant changes in our mission, our staffing, our learning support model, and even the location of LARC.” They continue, “The department has been enhanced in a number of ways, and I’m proud of the work our team does to serve students.”
Training and Developing LARC Leaders
The cornerstone of LARC’s mission is the Tutorial program run by LARC Leaders. LARC Tutorials target historically difficult, large lecture courses that can be enriched by additional academic support. LARC Leaders are high-achieving students who lead Tutorial sessions, offering supplemental instruction to and fostering learning communities for the students enrolled in these demanding courses.
In addition to attending course lectures, LARC Leaders receive training focused on small-group instruction and evidence-based strategies to encourage critical thinking skills and independent learning. This ensures that LARC Leaders are intimately familiar with the course content and can facilitate discussions that address student needs.
Diego Kiyoshi Menendez (Aerospace Engineering) was a LARC Leader for the 2024-25 academic year who will be returning to his position this Fall. The training that Diego received helped him connect with his fellow Leaders as they learned teaching strategies, shared what they experienced during sessions, and worked together to develop appropriate responses to student challenges:
LARC Leader Diego Kiyoshi Menendez.
“A big part of our training was having Leaders share specific issues they’d been having in their sessions, such as a student being too shy to speak, a student who needed extra help, or a student who answered more than their share of questions. We’d then discuss how we’d been dealing with these issues and collaboratively advance towards solutions that work for each of us individually. Many times, when one Leader presented a challenge, other Leaders would point to different approaches that fit their style. This was great because it helped us develop multiple tools to handle different challenges.”
Notably, the development opportunities LARC offers its Leaders do not end once they complete their initial training period. Many returning LARC Leaders, like Diego, have the opportunity to hone their skills even further by mentoring new Leaders. Diego explains:
“This Fall, I’ll be a subject area mentor and sit in on the sessions led by other physics and math LARC Leaders to observe their teaching. I’ll be able to offer them constructive feedback on what they are doing well and what they could do to improve their tutorial sessions even more. I hope to pass along many of the nuances of teaching that I’ve learned from my experience as a LARC Leader.”
For Trace, the extensive training the LARC offers its Leaders is one of the key reasons that LARC Tutorials are so successful and popular with undergraduate students. Fostering a culture that unites hands-on experience, collective problem solving, and continual development for Leaders is also one of Trace’s proudest accomplishments as Director:
“LARC Leaders and the students they serve are the heart of our department. They deserve the very best support and transferable knowledge we can offer. LARC Leaders foster an incredible community for first- and second-year students in some of UC Irvine’s most challenging coursework, and year after year, they go on to become scholars and professionals of excellence. It may not be widely recognized, but the quality of our leadership development is central to our success and what we offer the campus.”
The 2024-2025 cohort of LARC Leaders poses for a group photo.
Research-Backed, Collaborative Learning Environments that Foster Academic Excellence
One of the things that sets LARC Tutorials apart from other academic support resources is that they are tailored to meet the needs of students enrolled in some of the largest courses on campus. “The courses that LARC supports have hundreds of students, and it can be difficult to get all your questions answered or get additional help,” Diego explains. “When working with LARC, students work in small groups of peers, which gives them the space to ask questions and work through the material at their own pace. The small group setting means that it’s okay to stop and talk to the people next to you and make sure you’re confident with the current step before moving on to the next. You also get to make friends and study buddies that will be there for you even after leaving LARC.”
According to their vision statement, “[the] LARC connects ‘what to learn’ with ‘how to learn’ in a student-centered, collaborative learning experience.” The peer-based nature of LARC Tutorials is a testament to the pedagogical research that underlies the LARC’s mission and ideology—namely, research that shows that students reach higher levels of academic understanding when engaged in social and active learning. To that end, a typical tutorial consists of peer-to-peer active learning activities such as presentations, games, and group discussions that foster both a welcoming learning environment and comprehension.
The LARC’s approach provides benefits beyond improved grades. Learning in community teaches students how to form connections and communicate more effectively. It also helps students develop their critical thinking and problem-solving skills as they work together to tackle challenging concepts. The collaborative learning environment encourages students to take an active role in their educational experience and empowers them with learning strategies that they can apply to their academic and professional endeavors.
Student feedback on the effectiveness of LARC Tutorials is further testament to the program’s success:
“I love the community that has been created between me and my peers and how caring and supportive my leader has been. She has truly made me feel safe to ask any questions and has helped me understand the material so much better than at the beginning of the quarter.” (2023-24 Student evaluation)
“I like how the smaller classroom settings encourage me to stay on top of the work and allow me to meet other students who are going through the same class experience as me. Additionally, both of my LARC Leaders have been such sweet, understanding people to get to know, both through the instructor/student dynamic and as students who are going through the struggles of growing up. I genuinely feel that the LARC has motivated me to work harder and helped me feel less alone in my freshman year.” (2024-25 Student evaluation)
“LARC is one of the best resources the campus has to offer. It makes you feel less scared about your classes and exams. It gives you a change of mindset on your study skills and your own personal abilities/skills. If it weren’t for LARC, I definitely would not feel as confident about passing some of my classes.” (2020-21 Student evaluation)
LARC Resources to Support Student Learning
In addition to group tutorials, the LARC provides personalized support for students looking to improve their overall approach to learning. LARC’s professional staff offers one-on-one academic coaching sessions to introduce students to proven learning strategies that boost comprehension and long-term retention. These sessions also encourage students to develop healthy study routines that help them balance learning with wellness, self-reflection, and positive mindsets.
LARC coaches also host several workshops throughout the year that introduce different study strategies—such as spacing, retrieval, dual coding, and interleaving—and explain the science behind why these strategies work. The LARC also maintains a blog that offers advice and resources for incoming students. With posts detailing how students can find academic support on campus, avoid burnout, prepare for exams, manage their stress, and much more, the blog is a great starting point for students preparing for the academic year or who aren’t sure where to turn for help.
Celebrating 50 Years
To commemorate 50 years, the UC Irvine community is invited to celebrate with the LARC team. “The LARC will host a 50th Anniversary celebration in October to kick off the year, followed by some mini celebrations for our alumni, students, faculty partners, and staff,” says Trace.
Celebrations will not interrupt the LARC’s commitment to growing and evolving. Trace shares that the LARC is making key changes to ensure their services and resources are accessible for all students:
“This year, LARC Tutorials will be moving to ZotPASS, which is a tremendous opportunity to improve student access and engagement and to improve our understanding of what students need to be successful. We’re also looking forward to building stronger partnerships with other programs on campus to extend the benefits of our training to their tutors.”
To learn more about LARC services and to keep up with the latest news and updates, visit the LARC website or follow them on Instagram or Facebook. The LARC is located on the third floor of the Anteater Learning Pavilion (ALP) and is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm. Students can access LARC services via ZotPASS.
