11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Purchase a 2026 Dogs on Call calendar and show your support for the therapy dog teams that visit patients and staff at VCU Health and students at VCU. All sales will take place at the Main Hospital (1250 E. Marshall St.), Floor 1 Box Office near the floor compass. Sales are contingent upon stock, this is the final sales date for this year: today, Thursday (Dec. 18). All sales are 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Calendars are also available for purchase at the Three Bears Gift Shop (MCV), the Fish Bowl Gift Shop (Community Memorial Hospital) and the Hummingbird Gift Shop (Tappahannock).

For more information, contact Center for Human-Animal Interaction at chai@vcuhealth.org or (804) 628-2532 or visit https://chai.vcu.edu/.

11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Alzheimer's Association will host a Memory Café at VCU Health Hub, 1330 N. 25th St., Suite A. Join for a social space for those with early-stage memory loss to connect, while care partners gain support and information. The bonds formed in Memory Cafés often last throughout the continuum of the disease and become additional support for those involved.

For more information, contact VCU Health Hub at vcuhealthhub@vcu.edu.

3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

The Health Hub now holds weekly Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings on Thursdays at 1330 N. 25th St., Suite A. Meetings may include readings from AA literature, personal stories of recovery and open discussion guided by the Twelve Steps. All who have a desire to stop drinking are welcome, regardless of background or length of sobriety.

For more information, contact VCU Health Hub at vcuhealthhub@vcu.edu.

6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Have a passion for children? Want a high-impact career? Want to champion social justice? Fuel dreams? Dedicate your life to making a difference while getting a fully paid education? RTR Teacher Residency is for you. RTR is a teacher residency program in the VCU School of Education that equips passionate future teachers with the tools to teach for change. Learn more at this informational session. Questions: Visit https://connect.soe.vcu.edu/portal/soeinfosessions Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Sabrina L. Evans at evanssl4@vcu.edu or (571) 294-4115 or visit https://connect.soe.vcu.edu/register/RTRDec18th.

Monday, Dec. 22, 2025 at 7 p.m.

Cheer the VCU men's basketball team as they play Rider University at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. Secure your seat at the following URL.

For more information, contact Tavian Elliott at elliottt2@vcu.edu or visit https://vcutickets.evenue.net/event/B25/08.

Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

VCU's Office of the Provost-Faculty Affairs will host New Faculty Orientation via Zoom. The focus will be on mapping effective practices for successful career trajectories, learning and accessing VCU resources and creating meaningful connections with VCU colleagues. New faculty are encouraged to join and register by Monday, Jan. 5. Please register even if you plan to attend part of the orientation. Register at the following URUL.

For more information, contact Michele Murray at mmurray2@vcu.edu or visit https://forms.gle/czUCsLcjz4WunNzD6.

Grade sheets are now available on faculty eServices. Grades are due by noon today, Thursday, Dec. 18, at which time grade entry will no longer be available. It is imperative to meet this deadline to complete all-end-of-semester processes prior to the winter closure. Faculty may choose to use the feature to upload grades from an Excel file into eServices or use Canvas Grade Passback to push grades into Banner. Faculty may only access grade sheets for courses to which they have been assigned.

For more information, contact The Office of the University Registrar at rar@vcu.edu.

Timely Care is a web-based service for all employees that includes 24/7 on-demand crisis support, 12 free scheduled telehealth sessions with a mental health professional, self-care content and more.

For more information, contact VCU Employee Health at EHS@vcu.edu or (804) 628-2594 or visit https://counseling.vcu.edu/faculty--staff/support-for-faculty-and-staff/.

RecWell facilities will operate on Winter Break hours through Saturday, Jan. 10. Spring semester hours begin Sunday, Jan. 11. Visit the following URL for full facility hours.

For more information, contact Scott Steiner at recwell@vcu.edu or visit https://recwell.vcu.edu/facilities-and-hours/.

This learning community is designed for both staff and faculty (tenure track and term) to come together to discuss opportunities, strategies and techniques for addressing First-Gen and Asian American and Pacific Islander inclusiveness in their courses and programs. With an awareness and understanding of the issues and challenges that First-Gen and AAPI students often experience, and the unique strengths they bring to these situations, the Faculty Learning Community will explore ways to develop awareness about and generate strategies to support First-Gen and AAPI students through their scholarship, teaching, service and/or programming activities. Regular attendance and engagement in our efforts will earn each participant $250 in professional development. This learning community will meet in person on the following Thursdays in 2026 from 2:30-3:30 p.m: Jan. 22, Feb. 5, Feb. 26, March 19, April 2 and April 16. Questions: Contact Ellen Carpenter at the following email address or Michelle Yee at yeem@vcu.edu. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Ellen Carpenter at emcarpenter@vcu.edu or visit https://forms.gle/27RSU8YJEKXoA3sYA.

VCU's Division of Community Engagement invites faculty and staff to showcase their board service, association involvement and work group memberships in the university's partnership database. These roles demonstrate VCU’s commitment to leadership and community partnership. Collaboratory, the university’s platform for documenting community-engaged and public service activities, helps to capture the full breadth of VCU's collaborations and collective impact. See the submission form at the following URL.

For more information, contact Tani Washington at washingtot8@vcu.edu or visit https://forms.gle/qqBpDfF8rMGQUYFx7.

As part of the Health Humanities Lab and the Office of Health Initiatives ongoing collaboration, partners are sought to provide models for faculty, units and community partners to incorporate material from the recently launched History and Health: Rural Health series of online learning modules into courses, trainings or professional development opportunities. Fellows will also create new modules related to providing health care in rural areas that can be added to the series. The Fellowship will take place over the Spring 2026 and Fall 2026 semesters. Apply by 5 p.m. Dec. 19 2025 at https://forms.gle/2CqSD7FZSBMgp84Y7

For more information, contact Logan Vetrovec at lavetrovec@vcu.edu or visit https://healthinitiatives.vcu.edu/.

December is designated as Safe Toys and Gifts Awareness Month, focusing on preventing injuries by choosing age-appropriate toys, checking for choking hazards (small parts, magnets, button batteries,) avoiding projectiles and ensuring proper fit for safety gear (helmets). Thousands of preventable toy-related injuries occur annually, so this month serves as a reminder to prioritize safety alongside fun when selecting gifts, especially for children.

For more information, contact VCU Employee Health at EHS@vcu.edu or visit https://www.myprivia.com/sites/default/files/2024-11/grape_Toy-Safety-Tips.pdf.

The VCU Cashiers Office at 1015 Floyd Ave., Grace Harris Hall, will close early at noon on Friday, Dec. 19 for Winter Break. All transactions should be delivered no later than 11 a.m. on Dec. 19 to ensure proper and timely processing. The office will reopen at 9 a.m. Monday, Jan. 5.

For more information, contact James Ed Stables, Senior Manager Cashiering Operations at jestables@vcu.edu or (804) 828-4365.

Meet hundreds of job-seeking students and recruit staff for your department at the seasonal and part-time job fair hosted by VCU Career Services in the University Student Commons, Richmond Salons, 907 Floyd Ave. Registration is discounted at $50 and includes lunch. Sign up to reserve your spot before registration closes on Thursday, Jan. 8. This fair is for student jobs off- and on-campus; a part-time job posting on Handshake is required to participate. Register at the following URL; select the nonprofit rate and the discount will be applied before invoicing.

For more information, contact Aimee Selleck at selleckap@vcu.edu or visit https://tinyurl.com/VCUSPTJobFair26Emp.

In observance of VCU's winter closing, the Monroe Park Campus and MCV Campus customer service offices will be closed from Monday, Dec. 22 to Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. Regular office hours will resume on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. If you have any pending parking-related needs, email parking@vcu.edu before the closure to ensure prompt assistance. RamsXpress will not run from Monday, Dec. 22 to Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. Service will restart on Monday, Jan. 5. RamRide service will operate a limited shuttle on Dec. 25, Dec. 31 and Jan. 1, 2026. On these days, RamRide will serve stops at the Larrick Center and Sanger Hall from 4:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. All subscribers needing to come to campus these days may park in D Deck, N Deck and Eighth Street Deck. From Dec. 22 to Jan. 1, RamRide will not serve the O Lot or A Lot Main Street Station. During this time, subscribers should park in the following locations: O Lot subscribers should park in the Eighth Street Deck located at 659 N. Eighth St. A Lot (Main Street Station) subscribers should park in N Deck located at 615 N. 10th St. Your license plate and/or VCU ID card will grant you access to the alternate parking decks during this period. If you encounter issues entering or exiting, press the “i” butto

For more information, contact Olivia Truban at parking@vcu.edu.

Starting with the first pay period in January 2026, the value of group life insurance (provided to all eligible employees) will be included in each of your 24 pays throughout the year (instead of the whole amount added once at the end of the year, as has been done to date). This adjustment helps employees avoid potential tax liability at the end of the year, as taxes will be spread more evenly across all paychecks.

For more information, contact VCU Payroll Services at payroll@vcu.edu or (804) 828-0740.

The Translational Research on Eating and Affect (TREAT) Lab is recruiting adolescents and young adults assigned female at birth (aged 12 to 25 years) for a brain imaging study to understand risky decision-making in individuals who have concerns about their body shape/weight, or overeat, purge, use laxatives, diet severely or exercise excessively. We are also investigating these processes in individuals without a psychological disorder. There will be compensation for participation. For more information, contact the TREAT Lab at treatlab@vcuhealth.org or 804-827-4174, or visit https://redcap.vcu.edu/surveys/?s=48YEAYT8MK33E8EJ.

For more information, contact Kelsey Hagan, Ph.D., PI at treatlab@vcuhealth.org or (804) 827-4174 or visit https://redcap.vcu.edu/surveys/?s=48YEAYT8MK33E8EJ.