NOVA COVID-19 Emergency Aid Fund Ramp Up: Family Helping Family

As the COVID-19 pandemic descended upon the Northern Virginia area in March, the NOVA college community, under the leadership of Dr. Anne Kress, rallied together quickly. Operational planning, facilities management, security and remote instruction teams gathered on the phone and over Zoom to ramp up support for our students.

At the same time, the fund raising arm of NOVA, the NOVA Educational Foundation, partnered with Student Services and quickly launched the NOVA COVID-19 Emergency Student Aid Fund to help students most impacted by the pandemic. The Foundation Board of Directors voted to immediately donate $250,000 to kick start the Fund and asked the greater NOVA community to match it.

While an online donation website was created, volunteers from the Foundation, IT, Student Services, the Financial Stability Program and Financial Aid came together over the weekend to establish a procedure to allow students to apply online for emergency grants of $500 to support technology resources needed to complete the semester through remote learning or help with basic needs like food, shelter and medical expenses. On Monday, March 23, both the donation website and student application launched. Within 72 hours, more than 1,500 applications for aid were received. Five teams made up of three reviewers worked days, nights and weekends to review and approve applications to allow the Business Office to begin dispersing funds to student accounts.

In the first week, more than $100,000 had been raised to match the $250,000 from the Foundation and more than 850 students have been approved for aid. Special thanks go to Carlo Solano, senior software architect, for creating the application site, shepherding received requests for support and notifying students of their application status; and to Rebekah Ball, director of foundation operations, for processing grant approvals and working tirelessly with the Business and Financial Aid Offices to ensure that NOVA students received their emergency grants as quickly as possible.

At the heart and soul of the whole emergency grant operation are the reviewers who have cheerfully read well over 2,000 applications with a goal to help as many NOVA students in need as possible.

Of course, it wasn’t all hard work and no play, they had a bit of fun and created team names for themselves. Please thank them for their hard work in supporting our NOVA family!

Reviewer Team Captains: Diana Yacob and Joan Zanders
Approval Unlimited LTD Team: Jack Zegeer, team lead; with Elizabeth Hamrick, La’Tonia White and Meghan Sullivan
We Can Survive Team: Ghul Zadran, team lead; Faith Lankford and Lindsay Mills
MAJ3 Team: John Riemer, team lead; Monica Chenault and Greer Muldoon
Go Forth & Prosper Team: Leroy Allen, team lead; Robin Muse, Sarah Cioffi and Regina Sanders
Jimdijim Team: Jimmy Mauger, team lead; Diana Yacob and Jim Baer

#NOVAfamily #NOVAstrong

Kelly Persons, Executive Director, NOVA Foundation
Frances Villagran-Glover, Vice President, Student Services