6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

With finals right around the corner, STEM in Art will host a holiday gingerbread house competition in the SGA Senate Chambers, University Student Commons, 907 Floyd Ave., with hot chocolate, snacks and a prize for the winning team.

For more information, contact Aleah Nguyen at nguyena51@vcu.edu.

9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Pangea Chat, a Richmond-based language learning startup, will be in the Global Education Office, 912 W. Grace St., showing its web and mobile application to students and getting their feedback. In exchange for 15 minutes of testing the app, Pangea Chat will be giving out coffee and $10 gift cards to Panera.

For more information, contact Khue-Joy Dao at daokv@vcu.edu or visit https://pangea.chat/.

Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

VCU's Staff Senate Accessibility and Inclusion Working Group will sponsor free CPR and AED Training. Although this training will not come with a certificate, it is open to all students, faculty and staff. Two classes, each an hour long, will be held in the second-floor lobby, Academic Learning Commons (MCALC), 1000 Floyd Ave. Register for the 1 p.m. class at https://www.compressandshock.org/event-details/robins-hope-1 Register for the 2 p.m. class at https://www.compressandshock.org/event-details/s-c-a-r-s

For more information, contact Abigail Zaremba at apzaremba@vcu.edu or (804) 828-1072.

Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Grace and Holy Trinity Epicopal Church will present its fourth annual caroling in Monroe Park and holiday market. The market will feature local vendors, River City Wood Fire Pizza food truck, JC Desserts, ornament painting, photos with Santa in his Model T and children’s activities starting at 3 p.m. A brass quintet will begin at 4:15 p.m. with caroling following at 4:30 p.m.

For more information, contact Mary Wells at wellsma4@vcu.edu.

Monday, Dec. 9, 2024 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Purchase a 2025 Dogs on Call calendar and show your support for the therapy dog teams who visit patients and staff at VCU Health and students at VCU. Additional sale contingent upon stock: Friday, Dec. 13, VCU Health Stony Point Lobby, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Purchases can also be made online and mailed to you at www.support.vcu.edu/event/CHAI_Calendar

For more information, contact Karl Dorn at chair@vcuhealth.org or (804) 628-2532 or visit https://chai.vcu.edu/.

Monday, Dec. 9, 2024 from noon to 1 p.m.

VCU's C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research will host a Discovery Dialogues seminar to be presented by Katarzyna Tyc, Ph.D., assistant professor, biostatistics, via Zoom. Questions: Visit 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/tZMucO6opjwiGd1zm957h7SgqsPvN4wZ003p.

Monday, Dec. 9, 2024 at 2 p.m.

Learn the basics of AI and how to craft a prompt. Develop effective strategies for understanding Large Language Models. Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

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

Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2024 from 11 a.m. to noon

This workshop will cover entering final grades, configuring Incomplete sections and getting your Spring 2025 courses ready. The event is sponsored by Academic Affairs and Technology Services. The Zoom link is https://vcu.zoom.us/j/82451912323

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

Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024 from noon to 1 p.m.

How can you best be an advocate for yourself to obtain information and resources necessary to meet your developing career goals? This session is designed particularly for junior faculty, but all faculty, house staff, senior graduate students and postdocs are welcome. The workshop is the first in a series designed to support early career faculty. Topics have been selected based on a 2024 needs assessment of early career faculty. This series is presented by the School of Medicine and will be held in the James W. and Frances G. McGlothlin Medical Education Center (MMEC), Room 3-101, 1201 E. Marshall St. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Ashli Harris at Ashli.Phillips@vcuhealth.org or visit https://vcuhealth.libcal.com/event/13527195.

Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024 at 7 p.m.

The VCU School of Education's Child Development Center on the VCU Monroe Park campus has immediate full-time child care openings for children 16 months to 5 years old. Questions: http://cdc.soe.vcu.edu Register for the cirtual open house at the following URL.

For more information, contact Tessa NeSmith at nesmithtr@vcu.edu or (804) 828-7377 or visit https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSftIyLhicC_T0CQiVZwcYhWoh1tWxxyc9D5jkKPiO07Stj_bQ/viewform.

Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025 at 9 a.m.

The Institute for Transformative Leadership is calling on all VCU and VCU Health faculty and staff to level up their leadership skills by joining the Transformative Leadership Spring 2025 Cohort Program starting Jan. 21 and 22. This free, seven-week Zoom-based series offers practical leadership principles that can be applied in your work and personal lives all through a supportive community. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact ITL Team at ITL@vcu.edu or visit http://tinyurl.com/ITLCohortS2025.

Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025 at 9 a.m.

This course equips new and experienced supervisors with the tools and strategies to enhance their effectiveness and boost team performance. Questions: Visit https://pmg.vcu.edu/professional-development/ffs/

For more information, contact Deb Taminger at dktaminger@vcu.edu or visit http://GEHLI.vcu.edu.

The Virginia minimum wage will increase to $12.41 per hour on Jan. 1, 2025. On that date, all university employees currently making less than this amount will have their hourly rate raised to $12.41. No action is required from employees or managers. Employees may view their employment information, including wages, through eServices. Contact your HR Professional with any questions or concerns.

For more information, contact VCU Human Resources at askhr@vcu.edu or visit http://hr.vcu.edu.

VCU's Division of Community Engagement offers $25,000 in funding through the Thriving Communities Research Pilot Grant Program. Apply by March 14, 2025 to support community-engaged research that fosters equitable partnerships and addresses societal inequities. Learn more and access the RFP (request for proposal) at https://community.vcu.edu/faculty/thriving-communities-pilot-grant/

For more information, contact Division of Community Engagement at dcegrantsinfo@vcu.edu or visit https://community.vcu.edu/faculty/thriving-communities-pilot-grant/.

Human Resources will present "How to Retire With the Virginia Retirement System" for VCU employees. These sessions are open to VCU employees only, not VCU Health System employees. Register for an upcoming session at https://bit.ly/3NqLY7a. For more information, create a service request at https://go.vcu.edu/hrsupport or call the following number.

For more information, contact VCU Human Resources, Benefits Administration at benefits@vcu.edu or (804) 827-1723 or visit https://hr.vcu.edu/current-employees/benefits/a-z-list-of-benefits/retirement/planning-resources/.

Did you know VCU offers a choir for every student? Whether you're a seasoned singer or just love music, there’s a place for you in VCU's choirs. Make friends, find your voice and experience a semester of music-making. Enroll in Commonwealth Singers (APPM358, CRN30105) Choral Arts Society (APPM359, CRN30106) or Vox Concordia (APPM378 CRN30122).

For more information, contact Christopher Hansen, Ph.D., Director of Choral Activities, at hansenc3@vcu.edu or (910) 280-4865 or visit https://arts.vcu.edu/academics/departments/music/ensembles/vocal-ensemble/.