1 p.m.

In celebration of International Education Week, the Education Abroad office will host a virtual panel discussion with returning students who have participated in the program. Students will share their experiences choosing and funding their programs, living abroad and the challenges and rewards of their study abroad journey. Questions: https://global.vcu.edu/international-ed-week/. Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Stephanie Tignor at abroad@vcu.edu or visit https://vcu.zoom.us/j/92123756557#success.

11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

The VCU Writing Center will examine examples of strong, successful personal statements as well as less successful ones and offer the tools needed to write the best statement. The Zoom link is hosted on the center's events page at the following URL.

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

12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Brittany Hunt, an Indigenous woman and member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina, founded the American Indian Urban Education Division of UNC-Charlotte. She will discuss the realities of current Native life and how she decolonizes and indigenizes education at a talk hosted by VCU's Office of Multicultural Student Affairs. Register (required) at the following URL.

For more information, contact Tiana Ingram at ingramtd@vcu.edu or visit https://linktr.ee/vcuomsa.

3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Poetry has long been used as a tool of self-expression. As this historic semester comes to an end, Multimedia Teaching and Learning Librarian Oscar Keyes and poet/event specialist Gregory Kimbrell will lead a collaborative poetry activity using Google Docs. No poetry expertise required. The event will be hosted by the VCU Libraries Workshop. Details are available at the following URL.

For more information, contact Gregory Kimbrell at kimbrellgg@vcu.edu or (804) 393-2951 or visit https://www.library.vcu.edu/about/events/2020-2021/wednesdays-in-the-workshop.html.

5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The VCU Honors College will host Jeremy Hoffman, chief scientist at the Science Museum of Virginia, for a Berglund seminar. Hoffman will discuss why low-resource communities of color around the U.S. are consistently and disproportionately exposed to urban heat islands. He will explore redlining as a plausible explanation for this inequity as well as the implications of these findings in the face of a changing climate.

For more information, contact Jared Johnson at jajohnson4@vcu.edu or visit https://www.facebook.com/events/307139867226732/.

5 p.m.

In celebration of International Education Week, the Global Education Office will host Cultural Conversations from Around the Globe. VCU international students will deliver presentations about topics related to their cultural background and personal experiences. The session will include a discussion about cultural topics and current events related to the participants’ presentations. Complete the form at the following URL to receive the Zoom link.

For more information, contact Nichole Dorton at nldorton@vcu.edu or visit https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeDBl0AxVeRlOwRuN6aUQtb9hSPRQbkKGEquc-KcqxHzvA8Ow/viewform.

Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

VCU's School of Education will host an online informational session on its M.Ed. in Special Education - Concentration in Early Childhood program. Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Cheyanne Brown at browncl27@vcu.edu or (914) 310-3287 or visit https://vcu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUod-ysrjsqHNCB3m1arsGzWxk66tZCb1FK.

Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020 from 1 p.m. to 1:50 p.m.

Leslie Cohen-Gee, assistant professor, Focused Inquiry, and Lynanne Jamison Yndestad, New Student and Family Programs, will speak at a virtual workshop hosted by You First at VCU. Having conversations with family about life in college can be challenging as a first-gen student whether you are returning home for break or discussing the ups and downs of online learning from home. Join the discussion about navigating some of these difficult conversations and get some tips for finding support. Questions: https://youfirst.vcu.edu/. Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Elizabeth S. Bambacus at bambacuses@vcu.edu or (804) 827-3927 or visit https://bit.ly/YouFirst111920.

Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020 at noon

Learn more about VCU's Evening MBA program at a webinar hosted by the School of Business. This 45-minute online presentation will include an overview of the program, curriculum and admissions process. Questions: Call (804) 828-4622 or email gsib@vcu.edu. The Zoom link is https://vcu.zoom.us/j/97113459392. Register at the following URL.

For more information, contact Austen Gouldman at gouldmana@vcu.edu or (804) 828-6408 or visit https://business.vcu.edu/about-us/events/graduate-studies/webinar/evening-mba-program-webinar-111920.

Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020 from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers at VCU will hold its final meeting of the semester online. Topics will include the drone the group is building for national competition, continuing work over break, how those interested can join and goals for Spring 2021. RSVP at http://cglink.me/r893269. Register at the following URL for the Zoom link.

For more information, contact Adam Sweere at sweerea@mymail.vcu.edu or (540) 841-2707 or visit https://vcu.zoom.us/j/99304876351.

Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020 from noon to 1 p.m.

Ericka Boone, Ph.D., director, Division of Loan Repayment, National Institutes of Health Office of Extramural Research, will speak at a Health Behavior and Policy Seminar. Questions: https://hbp.vcu.edu/news/. Register for the Zoom link at the following URL.

For more information, contact Mary Johnson at johnsonme6@vcu.edu or (804) 628-3443 or visit https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJcudOGhrTwoG9DNkMuYjs2YI6s4VvcoOIP5.

Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020 from 9 a.m. to noon

VCU Environmental Health and Safety will hold online training for those who handle dangerous goods. Register for the class through BioRaft for Zoom information.

For more information, contact Barbara Back at bjback@vcu.edu or (804) 241-0197.

Join the VCU Health Promotion and Well-Being Center (The Well) in collaboration with Recreational Sports via Zoom each week on Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. for a 15-20 minute group guided meditation. This will be a live audio stream. A different guided meditation is practiced each week and is suitable for all levels of practice. This week the link has changed to: https://vcu.zoom.us/j/98641905732.

For more information, contact Mia Liadis at liadisa@vcu.edu or visit https://thewell.vcu.edu/programs/resilience-lab/.

The Safety and Protection of Minors Policy applies to all programs and activities involving non-enrolled minors and are sponsored by the university or conducted by other organizations on VCU’s campus, including camps, clinics, workshops, conferences, shadowing and virtual programming. All programs/activities must be registered at least 30 days in advance, complete necessary background checks and take appropriate policy training prior to the start of programming.

For more information, contact Charles Johnson, Mary and Frances Youth Center, at youth@vcu.edu or visit https://community.vcu.edu/mfyc/youth-safety/.

Recreational Sports winter break hours will be Nov. 30-Jan. 24. Family Hours will be all hours of operation during the Winter Break. All facilities will be closed Dec. 24-Jan. 3, with early closing on Dec. 23. Winter break hours can be found at the following URL.

For more information, contact Amanda Simmons at alsimmons@vcu.edu or visit https://recsports.vcu.edu/facilities/hours/.

Many VCU community members may leave campus for Thanksgiving and return in January. The VCU Police Department encourages students, faculty and staff on both campuses to secure spaces, valuables, vehicles and bikes accordingly. Locking up residential and work spaces can deter theft. Those who will be away from campus for an extended period of time should consider taking home all valuable items, including gaming systems. Additional safety preparation tips are available at the following URL.

For more information, contact VCU Police Crime Prevention Team at crimeprevreq@vcu.edu or (804) 828-1209 or visit https://police.vcu.edu/stay-safe/holiday-safety/.

VCU’s School of Medicine requests proposals about educational research or innovations in health professions education at VCU. Visit the following URL to submit scholarly proposals, due Jan. 6. Areas of interest include diversity and inclusion, online engagement and fostering wellness. The symposium will be March 23-26, 2021 at noon and is sponsored by the VCU College of Health Professions; Schools of Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy; and the Office of Inclusive Excellence.

For more information, contact Katherine Henderson at katherine.henderson@vcuhealth.org or visit https://go.vcu.edu/vcuhses.