ReelAbilities Film Festival: Northern Virginia coming to you March 10-18. Powered by the J, ReelAbilities Film Festival: Northern Virginia is part of the largest film festival of its kind dedicated to representing the lives, stories, and creative expressions of people with different abilities. We are proud to share our 2018 festival line up and invite you to be part of these special stories.

ReelAbilities strives for inclusion and offers many accommodations. All films are captioned or subtitled (unless otherwise noted) and all venues are wheelchair accessible. We also offer audio description, open captions, and ASL interpretation for select events upon advance request. Need accommodations? Contact the J’s Cultural Arts office .

Join the online community at facebook.com/ReelAbilitiesNV and please help spread the word.

Are YOU planning to graduate in May? The deadline to apply is March 1st! Not sure where to start?

View the recording of Crossing the Finish Line: NOVA Graduation Preparation Program (video opens in a separate window)!

This 17-minute video to obtain information on what you need to graduate from NOVA and plan for transfer or prepare for employment.

You will learn how to:

• Verify the remaining requirements of your program
• Apply for graduation and attend commencement
• Financially prepare for your last semester at NOVA and your new institution. 

Learn about the information you will need to graduate from NOVA and plan for transfer or prepare for employment. Questions? Visit the NOVA Graduation Website or contact a NOVA Online Counselor at NOVA OnlineCounselors@nvcc.edu!

Democracy Builders:  2018 Lightning Talks Information

We believe that informed civil discourse has an essential and relevant role in a democratic society.  We invite you, our NOVA students, to prepare a “lightning talk”—a five-minute speech suggesting how you would increase informed civil discourse in our society.  You may address specific current critical and/or controversial topics, at local, regional, state, or national levels.  Be creative and dream big.  Tell us how you would re-invent our social structures and processes to promote thoughtful, informed, and respectful discussion of issues.  Representatives will be selected from NOVA campuses, and the final competition will be held on April 19, 2018 at 6pm.

Eligibility Criteria:

• You must be in good academic standing at NOVA and be currently enrolled for 3 or more academic credits in the Spring 2018 semester

Topic:            

• Promoting Informed Civil Discourse in a Democratic Society

Speech Requirements:

• A five-minute speech
• A 10 slide powerpoint that advances automatically every 30 seconds.
• Your original work
• Standard attribution of quotes, citations, etc.
• If selected, you must be available to give your talk on Thursday, April 19^th, at 6pm.

You will submit your slides to your campus’ Lighting Talks Committee before your presentation.

Evaluation Criteria:

Innovation & Usefulness – Ideas presented are innovative, unique, and creative; practical and useful.

Persuasive & Well-Delivered – Message is delivered in a highly articulate and persuasive manner; overall presentation is polished, non-verbal delivery conveys enthusiasm and professionalism.

Presentation – Visual aid is relevant and interesting; enhances overall message.

About Democracy Builders: The Loser-Savkar Democracy Builders competition was established by NOVA Chemistry Professor Reva A. Savkar, and NOVA Professor Emeritus Robert C. Loser. Reva A. Savkar, born and raised in the world’s largest democracy (India), has been teaching at NOVA for more than three decades. Robert C. Loser, born and raised in the world’s second largest democracy (USA), recently retired after three decades at NOVA. They believe that democracy depends on an informed citizenry actively participating in decisions, and that civil discourse is an essential part of this process.  They created this contest to spark innovations, foster ideas, and stimulate meaningful discourse.

The essay, including the cover page, must be submitted via your official NOVA student email account to lsdemocracybuilders@gmail.com

This week marks the premier of Marvel’s Black Panther, but this is not just any other Marvel movie. This marks major milestones in the movie industry.              Before we look at how this movie is making an impact, do you know the origins of Black Panther?

Who are the Black Panthers?

Also known as the Black Panther Party, were a political party founded in 1966 to challenge police brutality against the African-American community in the United States. Black Panther Party founders Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panthers in the wake of the assassination of black nationalist Malcolm X and after police in San Francisco shot and killed an unarmed black teen named Matthew Johnson.

Why were they so important to African-American history in America?

The Black Panthers were part of the larger Black Power movement, which emphasized black pride, community control and unification for civil rights. The Black Panthers started a number of popular community social programs, including free breakfast programs for school children and free health clinics in 13 African American communities across the United States. The Black Panther Party officially dissolved in 1982.

Why is the Black Panther movie making in impact?

It’s a movie about what it means to be black in both America and Africa—and, more broadly, in the world. This also is also a movie featuring an African-American director as well as a predominately black cast. Its themes challenge institutional bias and its narrative includes prismatic perspectives on black life and tradition.

Are you going to see the Black Panther movie? What are your thoughts?

Learn more from the resources below:

Black Panthers

The Black Panthers: Revolutionaries, Free Breakfast Pioneers

The Revolutionary Power of Black Panther

Happy Valentines day! This is typically the day we honor and celebrate the loving relationships with have in our lives. Whether you are in a romantic relationship or not, this is a great opportunity to reflect on any relationships you do have in your life.

Do you know what it looks like to have a healthy relationship? What are some things one can do to cultivate better relationships with others?

Here are a few tips:

Empathy: The most successful relationship dynamics are when each person involved in the relationship has a strong sense of empathy. Empathy basically means that you are consciously thinking about how another person might feel and acting respectfully and thoughtfully accordingly. Empathy is the foundation and core of any successful relationship.

Compromise and Fairness: All relationships should have some feeling of reciprocity. This means both parties in the relationship do not feel like the relationship is one sided or uneven.  People who consistently take from others and expect people to give and bend over backwards for them are people who jeopardize relationships  of real substance.

Boundaries: If you find yourself in a friendship/relationship with someone who has little or no empathy, is not thoughtful or emotionally generous, is flaky, does not compromise, or only asks for things of you when they need something from you, put up a boundary and either distance yourself from the person or end the relationship entirely. There is no point in having relationships that make you feel bad, drain you and leave you resentful.

Learn more tips about healthy relationships by visiting these resources:

6 Ways to Cultivate Better Relationships for More Happiness

How to have a Healthy Relationship with Social Media

NOVA Sexual Assault Services is celebrating Healthy Relationships this week in February. This event highlights all healthy and positive things in any type of relationship. To know more about the events or to find out more about Sexual Assault Services contact SAS directly at nova.sas@nvcc.edu or 703-338-0834.

Join students from across the College for the second annual Student Life Diversity Conference hosted on the Loudoun campus on Friday, February 23rd from 8:30am-4:00pm.  This years conference theme is Boldly NOVA; Creating Inclusive Communities.

By participating in this conference, our goal is to help you achieve the following:

• identify leadership characteristics to inform how to lead self and others
• compile best practices to use in creating inclusive communities
• understand the multiple dimensions of diversity and inclusion and how our background and related experiences inform our roles within the NOVA community.

This is a unique opportunity to learn more about leadership, diversity, and inclusion topics to become a better leader.

Register for the conference here: Leadership & Diversity Conference Registration form.

Please reach out to NOVA Online Student Life (elistulife@nvcc.edu) with any questions.

GET TAX HELP & FILE YOUR TAXES FOR FREE!

Open to all NOVA Students & their Families with an annual household income of $64,000 or less. Eligible NOVA employees also welcome.

Register Today as Space is Limited!

IRS-certified volunteers will help ensure you receive the maximum tax refund and help determine if you are eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit and other Educational Credits. All taxes are prepared and filed electronically using TurboTax or other software. Volunteers do not file taxes for you, but assist you in understanding and submitting your online application. Students can attend workshops at ANY campus. Taxes normally take about 1 hour to complete. Please plan appropriately. We will not begin a new tax return 30 mins before a workshop ends.

 *International students cannot file taxes with us online. If you are an international student and you need help or have a question about your taxes, please attend the workshop. However, you will be informed that a paper tax return must be submitted.

 Alexandria Campus

FEB 5, 1-3PM (AA 477)

FEB 16, 10-2PM (AA377)

MAR 5, 5-8PM (AA377)

MAR 16, 10-2PM (AA377)

APR 2, 1-3PM (AA477)

APR 9, 5-8PM (AA295)

novataxprepalexandria2018.eventbrite.com

Annandale Campus

FEB 5, 5-8PM (CM124)

FEB 23, 10-2PM (CT116)

MAR 5, 1-3PM (CT228)

MAR 23, 10-2PM (CT116)

APR 2, 5-8PM (CM124)

APR 9, 1-3PM (CT228)

novataxprepannandale2018.eventbrite.com

Loudoun Campus

FEB 19, 3-6PM (LR249J)

MAR 19, 1:30-4:30PM (LR104)

APR 13, 10-2PM (LR249J)

novataxpreploudoun2018.eventbrite.com

Manassas Campus

FEB 9, 10-2PM (MP114)

FEB 26, 1-4PM (MP116)

MAR 9, 10-2PM (MP114)

MAR 30, 10-2PM (MP114)

novataxprepmanassas2018.eventbrite.com

Medical Education Campus

FEB 12, 5-8PM

MAR 12, 1-3PM

APR 16, 10-2PM

Room 327

novataxprepMEC2018.eventbrite.com

Woodbridge Campus

FEB 12, 1-3PM (WAS230K)

MAR 2, 10-2PM (Seefeldt 406)

MAR 12, 5-8PM (WAS230K)

MAR 26, 3-6PM (Room TBD)

novataxprepwoodbridge2018.eventbrite.com

STUDENT WORKSHOP – TAX REFUND: WHAT IS IT AND WHAT DO I DO WITH IT?

Attend this workshop hosted once at each campus with NOVA’s Financial Professional & Coach, Diana Yacob. Learn about your tax refund, what it is, and how to make the most of the money you get back. Meet Diana and her background here: https://blogs.nvcc.edu/wssn/financial-educationcoaching/

Alexandria Campus – Friday, February 16, 2018, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM, AA 377

Annanadale Campus – Friday, February 23, 2018, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM, CT 116

Loudoun Campus – Friday, April 13, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM, LR249J

Manassas Campus – Friday, March 30, 2018, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM, MP 114

Medical Education Campus – Monday, March 12, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM, Room 327

Woodbridge Campus – Monday, March 26, 2018, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Room TBD

Register: NOVAmoneymanagementworkshops.eventbrite.com