10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Juniors and seniors can participate in the VCU ring sales event at the Student Commons outside the P.O.D. Market Jan. 23-26 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Browse the official ring collection, learn about interest-free payment plans and ensure your ring arrives in time for the ring ceremony and graduation. View options and place an order at the following URL. Updates: Check RamsConnect.

For more information, contact Sarah Ramkey at ramkeysm@vcu.edu or visit https://www.balfour.com/VCU.

11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

This workshop will provide an overview of the various assignment types in Canvas, as well as centrally supported tools that can be used in Canvas assignments. Register at: https://training.vcu.edu/course.aspx?processFlag=2&itemID=18310 The Zoom link is https://vcu.zoom.us/j/2324828315?omn=87046311162

For more information, contact Jon Reed at reedjj@vcu.edu or visit http://learningsystems.vcu.edu.

2 p.m.

Learn how to use the tools you need to write your best statement. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Trey Burnart Hall at hallbr@vcu.edu or visit https://writing.vcu.edu/calendar/.

2 p.m.

Learn more about VCU's Peace Corps Prep program at a session in Room 3127, 912 W. Grace St. Gain skills in this free certificate program in cultural agility and to prepare for the Peace Corps or any other globally focused career. Apply at the following URL.

For more information, contact Kelly Richard (Global Education Office) at richardkj@vcu.edu or (919) 816-5318 or visit https://global.vcu.edu/students/community/peacecorpsprep/.

3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Are you a Pell Grant Recipient? Interested in studying or interning abroad? Apply for the Benjamin A. Gilman Scholarship, which awards up to $5,000. Join VCU Education Abroad in the SGA Senate Chambers, University Student Commons, 907 Floyd Ave., for a writing workshop to help maximize your chances of receiving a nationally competitive scholarship. This is a hybrid event; if you cannot join in person, join via Zoom at the following URL.

For more information, contact Alex Levy at levya@vcu.edu or (804) 828-5794 or visit https://bit.ly/3QQw4G7.

4 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

Are you fascinated by creating solutions to complex problems? Have you always wanted to start a business or nonprofit? Learn about the da Vinci Center's undergraduate certificates. Learn exactly what a certificate is and the center's programs in product innovation and venture creation. Find out about classes in human-centered design and how they fit into your academic plans. Register at https://connect.business.vcu.edu/register/Ugrad-Info-Jan-23

For more information, contact VCU da Vinci Center at davincicenter@vcu.edu or visit https://davincicenter.vcu.edu/news--events/.

5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Join the Financial Success Center in Room 108, James Branch Cabell Library, 901 Park Ave., for any quick personal finance questions. Register at the following URL. (Registration is not required.)

For more information, contact Jessica Forrest at finsuccess@vcu.edu or visit https://connect.business.vcu.edu/register/?id=2418ff7c-0b33-43e4-87ff-50983d9ca887&utm_source=telegram.

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024 at 10 a.m.

Nibir K. Dhar, Ph.D., will give a talk titled the “Future of Infrared Technology: Research, Workforce and Education” via Zoom as part of the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative’s Central Virginia Node spring speaker series. Dhar specializes in semiconductor research and electro-optic and infrared applications. Questions: Visit cci-cvn.org.

For more information, contact Zahra Ndirangu at ndiranguzw@vcu.edu.

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024 from noon to 1 p.m.

VCU's Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research and the Department of Biostatistics will present via Zoom a lunch research seminar. Roy Sabo, Ph.D., associate professor, biostatistics, will discuss the most common study designs used in health sciences research. The presentation will include the characteristics, goals, benefits and limitations of each design and potential adaptations. Questions: http://www.cctr.vcu.edu Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Pamela Dillon, Pharm.D., research liaison, at pmdillon@vcu.edu or visit https://vcu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMsf--gqDoiGNw0QSjXvDftOjj_muXLlRCb.

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024 from noon to 1 p.m.

Join the VCU School of Nursing Office of Research, Scholarship and Innovation for a lecture to be presented by Paula Sherwood, Ph.D., RN, CNRN, FAAN. Sherwood, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing, focuses her research on bio-behavioral outcomes in neuro-oncology caregivers and has conducted multiple federally funded descriptive and interventional research projects in this area. The lecture will be in room 1011, School of Nursing, 1100 E. Leigh St., and also via Zoom.

For more information, contact Caitlin Hanbury at cshanbury@vcu.edu or visit https://tockify.com/vcuson/detail/86/1706115600000.

Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024 from noon to 12:45 p.m.

VCU's Graduate School will host a series of virtual informational sessions to share details regarding the 27th Annual Graduate Research Symposium. The symposium is open to graduate students of all disciplines to share research with the broader VCU community. Students who participate in the symposium will earn a digital foundational badge in Presentation of Research. Register on RamsConnect - https://vcu.campusgroups.com/events?group_ids=36748

For more information, contact Erin Brown,, Ph.D., at embbrown@vcu.edu or visit https://graduate.vcu.edu/current-students/awards-and-competitions/graduate-research-symposium/.

Friday, Jan. 26, 2024 from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Leaders Unleashed, VCU's own free student leadership conference, will be held in the Academic Learning Commons, 1000 Floyd Ave. The keynote speaker will be Ashley Gaddy Robbins, Ph.D. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Lisa Cooper at lcooper4@vcu.edu or (804) 828-3419 or visit https://vcu.campusgroups.com/leadershipcon/rsvp_boot?id=1930152.

Friday, Jan. 26, 2024 from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

VCU's Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics will host Denise Kirschner, Ph.D., University of Michigan, for a math colloquium. She will speak in Room 1201, Academic Learning Commons, 1000 Floyd Ave. Colloquium seminars, held on select Fridays throughout the year, are broad audience presentations intended to introduce the VCU community to the world of mathematics.

For more information, contact Laura Ellwein Fix at lellwein@vcu.edu or visit https://math.vcu.edu/events/event-items/math-colloquium-multi-scale-modeling-can-predict-factors-driving-the-immune-response-and-treatment-in-tuberculosis.html.

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024 from noon to 12:30 p.m.

Tuition reimbursement is a benefit of employment at VCU. Earn a 30-credit master's degree or 15-credit certificate from VCU Gerontology and gain professional and personal development for career and life. Gerontology is the study of aging and VCU Gerontology has a strong commitment to viewing aging as a lifespan journey. Questions: https://gerontology.chp.vcu.edu/ Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Kim Ivey at ksivey@vcu.edu or visit https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAtc-Gqpz0qG9Se1DeP1DUYdNC_zFRF71mU.

Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024 at noon

VCU's Department of Painting and Printmaking will present a lecture by Catalina Ouyang in Room 301, Murry N. DePillars Building, 1000 W. Broad St. Ouyang is a sculptor, writer and interdisciplinary artist whose practice spans themes of desire, subjugation, race, gender, resistance, healing and intersectionality. Ouyang uses organic and inorganic media often related to the body.

For more information, contact Emmy Garca at garciaem2@vcu.edu or visit https://arts.vcu.edu/event/catalina-ouyang-visiting-artist-lecture-2/.

Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024 from noon to 3 p.m.

Learn about seasonal and part-time jobs to earn while you learn. VCU Career Services will host this fair in the Richmond Salons on the second floor of the University Student Commons, 907 Floyd Ave. See what openings are available to you — and how you can gain hands-on experience and earn a paycheck while you are in school and over breaks. This event is co-sponsored by University Academic Advising and TRiO Student Support Services.

For more information, contact VCU Career Services at careers@vcu.edu or visit https://vcu.joinhandshake.com/career_fairs/45897.

Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024 at 11 a.m.

Join VCU President Michael Rao for the State of the University Address in the lecture hall (Room 303) at James Branch Cabell Library, 901 Park Ave. Seating is limited and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. Questions: Visit the following URL.

For more information, contact University Events at UNIVevents@vcu.edu or visit https://go.vcu.edu/sotu.

Are you thinking about internships but concerned about summer costs? Apply for VCU's Internship Funding Program. Register at https://vcu.joinhandshake.com/events/1421767/share_preview for the virtual information session that will be held Feb. 14 from 2-3 p.m. (recording available after this date). Apply for an internship between Feb. 7-April 1 at the following URL.

For more information, contact Jeanette Hickl at jwhickl@vcu.edu or visit https://careers.vcu.edu/resources/internshipfundingprogram.

Join VCU's Transfer Center for Transfer Tuesdays in Room 250, James Branch Cabell Library, 901 Park Ave., from 1-3 p.m. Come to this open study session to work on whatever you need to and meet other transfer students. These Tuesday sessions will continue throughout the spring semester.

For more information, contact Elizabeth Heck at ebheck@vcu.edu or visit https://transfer.vcu.edu.

The Research on Excessive, Persistent and Emotion-Based Actions and Traits (REPEAT) Lab at VCU is conducting a brain imaging study to understand how decision making differs between adults with anorexia nervosa, obsessive-compulsive disorder and no history of a psychological disorder. Participants will be compensated for participating in the study. Contact the lab at the following URL.

For more information, contact REPEAT Lab at repeat@vcu.edu or (804) 828-2658 or visit https://tinyurl.com/25wnkh7z.

A draft of the new Foreign Gifts and Contracts Reporting Policy is available for public comment until Tuesday, Jan. 30. Go to the following URL and click on "Policies Open for Public Comment" to view the draft policy.

For more information, contact Jason Block at blockj2@vcu.du or visit https://policy.vcu.edu.

VCU students who open an account through the following link will receive an initial $25 deposit. And those who meet with a Financial Success Center coach before May 1 will receive an additional $25.

For more information, contact Amy Pridemore at finsuccess@vcu.edu or visit https://memberconnect.vacu.org/#/anonymous-configurable-product?loanType=ACCOUNT_OPENING&productId=FEPSav&promoCode=VCU.

VCU Wellbeing Lab invites students to join the research assistant team. Contribute to the lab's research studies on the effects of online stress reduction training on VCU students' emotional well-being, as well as on making high school education more engaging for students. Research assistants are in charge of participant recruitment and day-to-day communication with participants and participant interviews. Apply at the following URL.

For more information, contact Luka Djajakusuma at djajakusumal@vcu.edu or visit https://forms.gle/5Ss8Bg9wwFXjznpY8.

Be part of VCU's AYA Research Team's ongoing study. We're discussing race-conscious parenting with expecting Black parents and those raising Black children (ages 1-5). Explore how racial factors shape parenting through five interviews every six months, involving both parents and brief check-in questionnaires. Compensation will be provided for interviews and questionnaires. To join, complete the survey at the following URL. Share this opportunity with your network as well.

For more information, contact Shawn Jones, Ph.D., at ayaresearchteam@gmail.com or visit https://forms.gle/pVCKFkT6RrMMzX249.

Individuals between the ages of 18 and 30 who identify as Black or African American are invited to participate in a research study examining the effect of acute and chronic stress on cardiovascular and inflammation responses to an acute mental challenge. Raffle drawings for financial compensation will be conducted. This study will take place at 500 Academic Centre on VCU’s Monroe Park Campus. The principal investigator is Lee Franco, Ph.D., Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences.

For more information, contact Healthy Heart Lab at healthyheart@vcu.edu.

Would you be interested in helping to assess the effectiveness of prepared AI prompts to support students in career planning and setting SMART goals? Fully complete a two-survey study on AI mentoring to receive a $100 gift card. Spots are limited. See the survey at the following URL.

For more information, contact Chi-Ning Chang, Ph.D., at changc10@vcu.edu or visit https://forms.gle/EZfApm5SJSx3o13h9.

This study is seeking individuals between the ages of 18 and 35 years who have GAD or symptoms of GAD. The purpose of this research study is to examine the effect of GAD symptoms on blood vessel function during acute exercise and in response to exercise training. This study will be conducted at 500 Academic Centre on VCU’s Monroe Park Campus. The principal investigator is Ryan Garten, Ph.D., Department of Kinesiology and Health Sciences.

For more information, contact Ryan Garten at rsgarten@vcu.edu.

The VCU Wellbeing Lab invites you to participate in a research study on two stress reduction programs for undergraduate students. VCU investigators seek to understand how two online stress reduction programs affect students’ mood and stress-related behavior. Compensation is available. Sign up for the study at the following URL.

For more information, contact Polina Beloborodova at vcu.stress.reduction@gmail.com or visit https://beloborodp.wixsite.com/stressreduction.