In Honor of Martin Luther King Day

Northern Virginia Community College is closed today, January 20, 2014

If you would like to participate in a volunteer activity, in honor of this day, please click here for information or scroll down and read our blog posted on January 16 and January 17.

 

ELI Open House

ELI will be hosting an Open House on Wednesday, August 28 from   5:30 – 7:30 at our new facility in Fairfax. Drop in for a great opportunity to meet faculty, staff and fellow students while learning information about support services available to help you successfully complete your online course(s). Food and raffle prizes will be provided! For more information, please contact elistulife@nvcc.edu

“The first 50 people to RSVP will receive an ELI prize pack. RSVP here.”
We hope to see you there!

School & Life

As the summer semester nears just around corner, we, as students, must now incorporate our daily responsibilities with the addition of the demanding attention that comes with our academics regimes. Outside bettering our future with education today, there is a different variety of individuals who attend college, online or over the internet.  Each of these individuals has their own set of routines, responsibilities, lifestyles, and different reasons for why they choose to continue their studies. Now whatever those other variables may be, the end result we all share when it comes to attending college is to learn new material, pass our courses, and be successful.  Now, that may sound good on paper, but put in practice, you have things under control, until eventually you become overwhelmed and lose focus. Personally, I work extremely early mornings 5 days a week for the receiving department of a company, typically from 3 am to 11 am.  I can’t drive so I rely on my mother, father, friend, girlfriend, or a family friend to pick me for work.  When I get home, after work, I do a number of household chores.  In high-sight, it looks like a really agonizing life, but, day in and day out, I tell myself that that this process is only temporary; it is a phase of my life. I enjoy helping my family and take pride in doing things to help them so that they can relax after having a stressful day.  Seeing them happy, even slightly over something as silly as having the dishes put away, really makes a difference.

Perhaps you’re not in this situation at all. But maybe you can relate to this or see some insight into my story because in the end, it is how you view every little thing in life that will give you a positive prospective. You have the decision to make things stressful, tiring, and boring.  In order to survive, you have to adapt and adjust. Whatever your student/life situation is, think about what’s most important, more important, somewhat important, and important.   You have to have a driving force, something that makes you want to successes and that you visualize – even during the hardest of tasks.  You need to prioritize the responsibilities you have in life.  It is with moderation that you need to also balance socializing, maintain a healthy lifestyle, and other activities.  By doing this, you will be able to maintain a balance between school and life.

Omid Najafpoor, Student Blogger

Tools for Success: Joining a Professional Association/Organization

Make an investment in your future and consider joining a professional association or organization. Membership in a professional association and/or organization related to your major, is a good way to enhance your educational and professional growth.  Not only will membership look impressive on your resume, it will also provide opportunities to grow and develop in your field.  In fact, to encourage student membership, organizations will often offer a reduced membership fee, just for students!

Looking for a way to invest in your future that will further your leadership skills, personal and professional growth?  Do not underestimate the benefits of membership.  As you become involved with a professional association or organization, you will have opportunities to:

·       Enhance your awareness of current trends and best practices in the field

·       Attend annual local and national conferences and network with other professionals

·       Learn about potential employment, internship and volunteer opportunities

·       Participate in professional development and gain skills and professional certifications

·       Gain up-to-date information through newsletters, blogs and monthly publications

·       Receive access to message boards and list-serves

·       Obtain priority and (sometimes) discounted conference registration

Professional organizations are more than just a resume builder.  They are a great way to give back to the community and engage with other professionals in the field that share a common goal. Join today and build your leadership skills by volunteering at events and attending meetings.  Give back, grow and develop in your profession and join the world of professionals. 

To help locate an association or organization in your field, visit this link and begin your search!   (This link does not provide a comprehensive listing; however, it will get help get you started to locating the plethora of associations and organizations that may align with your field and interests.)   

Honoring Martin Luther King: National Day of Service

In honor of Martin Luther King’s birthday, NOVA will be closed on January 21, 2013.  To honor this day, President Obama has designated January 19, 2013 as a National Day of Service. To that end, NOVA will be participating in the National Day of Service and students, faculty and staff are invited to participate in NOVA’s  4th Annual NOVA SERVES: MLK Day of Service.

The service event will take place on Saturday, January 19 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Alexandria Campus. This year’s event will consist of assembling 20,000 food kits in partnership with the Stop Hunger Now organization.  This is a perfect opportunity to give back in honor of MLK as well as to join the movement to end hunger in our lifetime!  Plan to attend and help NOVA reach our goal to package 20,000+ meals.

Working together we can create a world without hunger. To register go to: http://goo.gl/5vqST  (T-shirts will be provided to the first 250 volunteers.)

If you are unable to participate in NOVA’s, MLK Day of Service, there are a number of alternative volunteer opportunities.  Volunteer Fairfax will be partnering with Points of Light and Target to put on a signature national service project in Washington, D.C. linking the vision of Dr. King with inauguration events and engaging political leaders, celebrities, and the community in service and dialogue.  10,000 volunteers will gather at the DC Armory and, throughout the course of the day, pack 100,000 toiletry care kits filled with necessities for deployed U.S. Service Members, Wounded Warriors, Veterans, and First Responders.  For more information on this effort, please visit Volunteer Fairfax.  

If you are unable to participate in events on Saturday, Volunteer Fairfax and other organizations have other volunteer opportunities that may fit your schedule.

“Alternative” College Breaks Increasing in Popularity

A small group of students at Bowdoin College in Maine turned their winter break from classes this year into a grand adventure.  Through an Alternative Winter Break program, a group of students gave up a week of their winter holiday to help homeless, refugee and immigrant communities in Portland, Oregon.  Living in meager accommodations, these students worked with English language learners in downtown Portland to bridge communication gaps, help with instruction, and generally serve as a supporting presence in local shelters. The 12-hour a day volunteer work was exhausting but rewarding, and led some students to begin volunteering with local community organizations regularly, or study issues of social injustice through their assignments in college.

Options for local volunteer work in the D.C. metro region abound.  However, if you would like to couple a travel adventure with your volunteer work, you might take a look at the options for an Alternative Spring Break with the United Way.  Giving back to our world while getting to see other parts of the country is a “win-win” scenario for many college students.  Consider joining the trend!

NOVA SERVES: 9/11 National Day of Service and Remembrance

SCHOOL SUPPLIES AND VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! 

For the past two years, NOVA has been involved with the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service (Operation School Supply). Over 500 students, faculty and staff from each campus have been involved in these activities. This year, on Sept. 11th from Noon-3:00pm, at the Alexandria Campus, students, faculty, staff and community members will be assembling school supply kits for needed school children in Iraq, Afghanistan and Haiti. In partnership with Operation International Children (OIC), these school supply kits will be personally delivered to the children by our US troops.

To gear up for 9/11 National Day of Service, several campuses will be participating in blood drives as well as "Act of Kindness” activities during the week prior to 9/11. View the flyer for complete details.

School supplies needed:

• blunt-­end scissors
• pencils
• small pencil sharpeners
• large erasers
• 12—inch ruler with metric markings
• box of colored pencils
• packages of notebook paper
• composition books    
• folders with inside pockets
• zippered pencil pouch

Drop off locations:  Any campus library or deliver on the day of the event.

To volunteer on 9/11, please RSVP to hneikirk@nvcc.edu by Sept 9th. (T-shirts will be provided.)

For more FIND US ON FACEBOOK AT: NOVA SERVES: 9/11

EVENT SPONSORS INCLUDE:
Volkswagen
NOVA Fortnightly 

Advertising, Inc.

ELI's Habitat for Humanity Work Day

ELI staff, faculty, and student volunteers with future homeowner outside the Perry Hall site. (Photo credit: Rachel Krempasky, Habitat for Humanity)

On April 27th, a group of staff, faculty and a student from ELI spent the day volunteering with Habitat for Humanity of Northern Virginia at the Perry Hall site in Arlington. The group, organized by ELI Student Life, and led by ELI mathematics Professor Richard Semmler, spent the day caulking windows and outside walls in the 12 unit structure. “It was a wonderful experience!” said Carol Turner. “The work was fulfilling knowing that the cold air would not come through the cracks.”

The group broke for lunch and got to know Abraham Habteab, a future homeowner selected for a unit at Perry Hall. Abraham, originally from Eritrea, Africa, is a taxicab driver in D.C. He is the sole breadwinner for his wife and two small children (2 and 3 years old). They are currently living in a one bedroom apartment in Arlington and dreamed of the day when they could have more room; never did think that some day they might be able to own their own home. Abraham worked hard just to become one of the approximately 300 applicants eligible as a future homeowner. He made it through the cuts down to 20 and finally to being one of the very lucky 12 families who were selected. Now he has to put in 500 sweat equity hours helping to build his and the other families’ dream house. He donates what little extra time he has on his one day off to put in those needed hours. Abraham was grateful to the NOVA volunteers who contributed about 75 hours towards his 500 sweat equity hours. Abraham’s gratitude made the volunteers feel much pride.

Kristin Shriver (ELI Student Success Coach) noted, “This was a great hands on experience! It is rewarding to know that NOVA’s commitment to give back to the community, along with my hard work, is going to help someone’s dream come true. It was especially gratifying to work side-by-side with the future home owners all day.”

Bob Loser (ELI Instructional Designer) said, “I have admired Habitat for Humanity for a long time but I’m too shy to volunteer on my own so I’m happy that there was an opportunity like this. What I enjoyed the most was working with Abraham and getting to know Niraj (our student volunteer) and my fellow co-workers in a different environment. It was a great change of pace from our usual—working with our hands instead of only with our heads.”

Nantana Wongtanasirikul (ELI Instructional Designer) remarked “It was a thrilling experience to be part of such a wonderful group of people to help build a dream house. Although our accomplishments were few, every single contribution counts towards this big task.”

Student Niraj Khanal and Professor Reva Savkar. (Photo credit:
Nantana Wongtanasirikul)

Student volunteer Niraj Khanal appreciated the opportunity to learn about Habitat and get to know some of his professors and ELI staff. He noted, "It really was one of the productive days in my life for a good cause."

Professor Reva Savkar said “What we are doing is just a drop in the ocean but drop by drop is what makes up the ocean. We are getting so much more than what we are doing to help.”

The group also learned more about Professor Semmler’s work with Habitat for Humanity. For the past 16 years, Semmler has supported the organization both through his labor and through financial donations. He spends nearly every Saturday volunteering at Habitat sites and has donated a total of $270,750. He has also helped build 70 homes for 70 families. In fact, the news media have been intrigued by Semmler’s generosity because they haven’t been able to find another philanthropist who not only gives his money away but also donates his time working side by side with the people he helps.

Needless to say the experience was inspiring and rewarding for all who participated. Read more about the NOVA-ELI Work Day from the Habitat for Humanity of Northern VA blog.

Surviving Discouragment

Last week I missed a deadline in my class because I locked myself out of BOTH my house and my car at a critical time. I felt incredibly stressed because of the event already, and that stress became much more intense as I then had to search for a place to scan my receipt from the locksmith so I could attach it to my email with my request for an extension. The next day, I received a failing grade on an assignment in another class that I thought I had done really well on. By that point I was seriously thinking about just giving up and starting over next semester.

What made the difference between continuing in my classes rather than quitting was support from my friends and family—my support network. My best friend listened patiently as I recounted the events of my really bad day. My husband reminded me that I often learn a lot from the first few assignments in a class and that that always helps me do better on later assignments and tests. My sister reminded me of the reasons I gave when I shared with her that I was going to take college classes while working full time

It is often support from the people around us that makes it possible for us to push through challenges and frustrations to succeed in our classes. If my husband had been discouraging and confirmed my gripes that I would never recover from those first poor assignments—If my sister had said “I told you that you shouldn’t have taken classes while working” instead of reminding me of my hopes and dreams—If my friend hadn’t had time to listen to my troubles and help me calm down from them, then the outcome could have been very different.

Sometimes, healthy support networks like this just pop up around you. Sometimes, though, you have to build and cultivate them deliberately to increase your chances of succeeding. For the next several weeks, I’m going to blog about how to develop a healthy support network.

In the meantime, I would love to hear examples of how your friends and family have made a difference in either helping you or hindering you in reaching your goals. What do you do when someone around you is discouraging?

Make MLK Day a Day On! Not a Day Off!

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is: 'What are you doing for others?'"

--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Mark your calendars... January 17, 2011 will mark the 25th anniversary of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. federal holiday. Since many schools and workplaces have MLK day off it has been designated as a National Day of Service, a chance for everyone to take a few hours to give back to those in need rather than just taking a day off. The MLK Day of Service is a part of United We Serve, the President's national call to service initiative.

NOVA has identified seven community organizations in the Northern Virginia area and established “NOVA Serves” to help connect students, faculty, and staff with local nonprofits that need our help this January 17th. You can join the NOVA community by putting together school supply kits for children in Iraq and Afghanistan, working at a thrift shop to benefit Habitat for Humanity or lending a hand at a food distribution center to support local needy families. For more details and to register for a NOVA Serves event go to: www.nvcc.edu/mlk.

If you can't volunteer on MLK Day, you can still help out by donating school supplies that will be assembled into kits for children in Iraq and Afghanistan. Again, check the NOVA Serves page for a list of school supplies that can be dropped off to any campus Student Activities Office (or at ELI). And for those of you residing outside Northern VA, you can easily find volunteer opportunities in your area at Serve.gov.

We hope you all will join us in making MLK Day a day on, not a day off.

Charity Fashion Show at Annandale

On April 21 a charity fashion show took place at NOVA's Annandale campus to raise funds for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. "NOVA News Now" provides a neat E! style presentation of the show on NOVAaccess at YouTube. Check out the dedicated efforts of fellow NOVA students.

Free E-waste Recycling

In commemoration of Earth Day, Cox is hosting its second “Electronic Waste Recycling Event” on Saturday, April 24, 2010 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Lot K at the George Mason University. This event is free and open to the public throughout Fairfax County. Accepted e-waste include old, unused or broken electronic devices such as computers, televisions, cell phones and other household or office devices powered by plug or battery. The E-waste Recycling Event is an initiative of Cox Conserves in partnership with the George Mason University and Synergy Recycling. Visit http://www.blogger.com/www.synergyrecycling.com to learn more about the e-waste recycling process.

NOVA's First Annual Day of Service

NOVA’s First Annual National Day of Service was held on Monday, January 18. People across the country and abroad devoted their day to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by participating in volunteer activities to strengthen their communities and bridge social and cultural barriers.

At NOVA, approximately 200 students, faculty, and staff (including ELI!) took the day to help those in need. Over 300 school supply kits were put together to be sent to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan to distribute to school children in need. Watch this video to see the good work of those that volunteered in action!

Learn more about the ideals behind this nationwide movement at the MLKDay website. National Day of Service is just one day, but you can find service opportunities near your home and abroad throughout the year at Serve.org.

A Chance to Give Back

Have you heard of the National Day of Service? Since many schools and workplaces have a day off on Martin Luther King day (January 18), the day has been designated as a National Day of Service, a chance for everyone to take a few hours to give back to those in need rather than just taking a day off.

NOVA has several opportunities for those of you who live in the Northern Virginia area to participate in this day, from putting together school supply kits for children in Iraq and Afghanistan to working at a thrift shop to benefit local children in foster care. Interested in learning more and signing up to help out? Visit NOVA's National Day of Service website for more information and to register for the volunteer opportunity of your choice.

Wise Words

Anne Frank wrote, "How wonderful it is that nobody needs to wait a single moment before starting to improve the world."

What can you do today to improve the world?

Help Make NOVA More "Green"

NOVA is part of the Virginia Community College System (that's what the "vccs" stands for at the end of your student email address), and right now the whole VCCS is working on a "green" initiative, trying to find ways to make all the things we do a bit more environmentally friendly.

If you'd like to help give the VCCS some ideas on this issue, please take their brief, 7-question multiple-choice survey here.

You can also share more ideas by visiting the VCCS Going Green Blog. There are already dozens of comments from students around the state, sharing their suggestions about improving the environmental sustainability of their schools. Take a look and share your thoughts!