Eli bulletin board fall 13

Welcome I N S I D E T H I S

I S S U E :

ELI Smarthinking 1

ELI Spotlight:

Back In Time

2

Transferring

101

2

Fall Into ELIfe 3

Library Resources

To Help You

Succeed

3

ELI Fall Common

Reader Program

4

Are Your Career

Plans In FOCUS

5

ELI Student Life 6

F A L L 2 0 1 3 V O L U M E 4 , I S S U E 2

ELI Bulletin Board

News from ELI to you!

The ELI Bulletin Board is

published by the Extended

Learning Institute of

Northern Virginia

Community College to keep

the ELI community informed

and connected.

We welcome comments

and contributions from

students, faculty, and staff.

Contact [email protected]

for details.

E X T E N D E D L E A R N I N G

I N S T I T U T E

www.nvcc.edu/ELI

703.323.3347

1.888.4DL.NVCC

Smarthinking has a new look! If

you are not familiar, Smarthinking

is the online tutoring service that

Northern Virginia Community

College has made available for

FREE to its students enrolled in

courses offered through the

Extended Learning Institute (ELI).

Smarthinking provides tutoring in

a variety of subjects, some

available 24/7.

(Smarthinking’s hours of service)

The current Smarthinking Student

Handbook is available under

Academic Resources in your

account.

Accessing Smarthinking: You

may access Smarthinking directly

from your online course site in

Blackboard. No additional

username or password is need-

ed. Simply log into Blackboard,

select “Tools” and click on the

NOVA ELI Smarthinking link.

With Smarthinking you can find

help with the following

disciplines:

ELI Smarthinking

WRITERS WANTED

may have. Best wishes for the

rest of your semester and we

hope to see you in the spring!

–ELI Staff

Hello ELI Students,

We hope everyone is having a

wonderful Fall Semester! We

encourage you to take a look

through this issue of our

newsletter to learn more

information about what is

happening with ELI. Spring

Semester is around the corner

so we encourage you check

out the 2014 registration dates

and to contact your advisor as

soon as possible for advising

assistance. Please visit our

website at http://eli.nvcc.edu/ for

more information regarding

our resources and services.

Our dedicated staff is here to

assist you with any needs you

Math: Basic Math, Algebra, Geometry & Trigonometry, Single Variable Calculus, Statistics Advanced Statistics, Math beyond Calc II Reading & Writing: Reading Comprehension, Pronunciation, Vocabulary Building, Essay Critique, Grammar & Mechanics, Pre-Writing, Research Strategies, Proper Documentation Science: General Chemistry, Organic, Chemistry, Biology, Intro to Anatomy & Physiology, Physics Business: Accounting, Macro & Microeconomics, Intro to Finance ESL: ESL Writing Center, Math in English/Spanish Spanish: Spanish Essay Center, Grammar, Questions Computers and Technology: IT Support Word, IT Support Excel, IT Support Access, IT Support Power Point, IT Support Windows7 Click here or additional information and sample sessions.

P A G E 2

E L I B U L L E T I N B O A R D

Your time at NOVA will go by fast. So, it’s never too early to begin transfer planning. The more research you do now, the smoother the transfer process will be later. Start by considering the

following:

Do you know where you want

to go yet?

Do you know what major you

will pursue when you

transfer?

Do you intend to obtain a

degree at NOVA?

Do you know if you are in a

college-transfer track

program?

How will you pay for your

education?

The Virginia Education Wizard

offers a number of resources to

assist you in obtaining your

education goals. The Transfer

Planner provides you a step-by-

step guide, from assessing your

preferred career through

attending orientation at your new

college or university.

NOVA has agreements with

most of the 4-year institutions in

Virginia, as well as several

outside of Virginia. Some

agreements are called

Guaranteed Admissions

Agreements; which means as a

NOVA student, you are offered guaranteed admissions to a

variety of four-year colleges and

universities when you meet the

requirements of the written

agreement between NOVA and

that college. There are also

general Articulation Agreements

that define the way courses,

programs, or entire categories of

programs transfer to another

institution; and may include

admission guarantees. You can

view the list of GAAs and AAs

via NOVA’s transfer webpage.

It is important to read the

agreements carefully, so you

know what specific requirements

you will need to meet. NOVA

also has a great webpage that is

all about Guaranteed Admission

Agreements!

Check out the four-minute video:

NOVA Guaranteed Admission

Agreements.

Once you have identified

potential transfer institutions,

make time to visit them and

speak with an admission

representative, take a campus

tour, attend an information

session, etc. This will help you get

a feel for the environment to see

if it would be a good fit for you. If

you are planning to transfer to an

online program, attend an

information webinar and

test-drive a course, if available.

If you want to learn more, NOVA

also hosts a variety of transfer

events; such as college visits,

transfer fairs, and webinars. The

events calendar provides a list of

upcoming events.

By Kim Burkle, ELI Counselor/Instructor [email protected]

Transfer Planning 101

ELI Spotlight: Back In Time

FOLLOW US!

Read the

Student Blog,

ELIFE

Like NOVA

ELIfe on

Facebook

Follow us on

twitter!

@NOVAELIfe

PLAN HEAD!

Spring 2014 Semester

Jan 13 - (1st 16, 12, 8, 4-week )

Class start date

Jan 21 - (1st 8-week session)

Refund date

Jan 25 - (1st 12-week session)

Refund date

Jan 30 - (1st 16-week session)

Refund date

Feb 3 - (2nd 8-week session)

Class start date

Feb 8 - (2nd 12-week session)

Refund date

Feb 9 - (1st 4-week session)

End Date

Feb 11 - (2nd 8-week session)

Refund date/ First assignment due

Feb 15 - (1st 8-week session)

Last withdrawal date

Feb 22- (3rd 12-week session)

Refund date/ First assignment due

Did you know that ELI began

offering courses in January of

1975? Dr. Betsy Tebow, Art

History Professor at the

Annandale Campus and former

ELI Professor, shares her

experiences teaching at ELI

before ipads, email, and even

computers were around!

“I have fond memories of the "pioneer days" of ELI. I'd barely started teaching on the Annandale campus when I found myself assigned to writing and producing a TV series on American Art. I was fortunate to work with a brilliant co-author who had moved from teaching at NOVA to a position at the Hirshhorn and with a talented director. We were three 25 year olds, still wet behind the ears, but daring enough to

take on the challenge.

I taught a course using 2-1/2 hour video lessons that resulted for over a decade and their institutions around the country also purchased them and used the textbook I co-authored under my maiden name, Lang, with Mary Ann Tighe, published by McGraw-Hill. (I was even sent to San Francisco to meet with some of the teachers who would be using it). Videos were the cutting edge technology for ELI at the time and, ELI produced several video courses in NVCC's studio in the CT building at the

Annandale Campus.

Students sent in their assignments via United States Postal Service. We communi-

cated on telephones! ELI moved a few times to various buildings at the Ravens-worth area of Fairfax County, but retained a friendly, welcoming environment and the opportunity to interact with colleagues from other disciplines and campuses. Looking back, as I prepare to hang up my remote control and retire, ELI was a highlight

of my NOVA experience.”

ELI Staff would like to thank

Dr. Tebow for being one of

the innovative faculty involved

with ELI’s beginnings, and

helped evolve classes to what

they are today!

P A G E 3 V O L U M E 4 , I S S U E 2

airbrush tattoos and a

caramel apple dipping. The

event also sponsored a

service project along with the

Friends of Homeless Animals

(FOHA) shelter. FOHA is a

non-profit, no-kill shelter that

focuses on the rescue and

placement of

homeless dogs

and cats in the

Northern

Virginia and

Washington

DC area. FOHA relies on the

support of volunteers and

donations from the public to

continue our rescue efforts.

With this in mind, students

had the opportunity to take

make pet beds and toys from

scrap fabric provided. These

items will be given to the

local FOHA shelter location

in the Northern Virginia area.

Students enjoyed

expressing their

creativity for a great

cause!

This event also served as

a great opportunity for

our current ELI students

to meet face-to-face

with ELI staff.

ELI staff

enjoyed

interacting

with our Loudoun

Campus students

and thank everyone

who stopped by the

event.

A special thank you to

the Woodbridge

Student Life Office for

providing us the

opportunity to host this

event on their campus!

ELI’s annual Fall Into ELIfe

event was held on

Wednesday, October 9th

from 11-2pm at NOVA’s

Woodbridge campus with a

great turnout!

Over 150 students, faculty,

and staff came out to visit our

ELI staff, learn more about

online learning at NOVA, and

participate in our food, fun

and activities!

Several members of our ELI

student services staff were

present to engage with

participants and share

resources provided to

students taking online

courses. Staff represented ELI

counselors, student success

coaches, financial aid,

orientation, and student life.

ELI provided fun and engaging

activities including

Fall Into ELIfe At The Woodbridge Campus

here to see available databases by

subject.

Websites: Of course, the internet

is available almost everywhere. But

how do you know if a website has

reliable information? Use the 5 W’s

to Determine Good Information.

e-Books: Search for e-books right

from the library catalog,

or see all of our e-book

collections.

Databases: Find full-text

newspaper, magazine, and

journal articles using

library databases. Click

Attention ELI students!

Do you know about all of

the NOVA Library

resources that are

available to you? Check

out the NOVA Libraries

website to access the

following resources from

home:

Library Tips To Help You Succeed

Continued on page 5

Interested in learning more about the FOHA

organization and how you can help the movement?

Click

HERE

NEW!

Learn more

about ELI

events HERE!

P A G E 4

E L I B U L L E T I N B O A R D

ELI Fall Common Reader Program This fall, ELI held the 3rd

annual Common Reader

Program. The goal of

the ELI Common

Reader Program is to

engage first-time online

students through the

shared experience of

reading a “common

reader” book

throughout the fall

term.

This year, the ELI

Common Reader team

selected the book, No

Impact Man, by Colin Beavan.

The book follows author

Colin Beavan as he swore off

plastic and toxins, turned off

his electricity, went organic,

became a cyclist and

ultimately tried to save the

planet with his wife and young

daughter in tow. As a family,

they tried to make no impact

on the environment for the

year. They documented the

project through a blog,

book and

movie.

Five

hundred

first-time

students

enrolled in

ELI courses

at NOVA were invited to

participate in the 2013

Common Reader program.

We followed an eight-week

curriculum on the Common

Reader blog,

where students

could participate

in at home

challenges and

comment on

ideas they have

about living a

sustainable life.

We visited the

Washington

Nationals

ballpark for a guided tour

and learned more about the

LEED certification standards

and process that went into

building the park.

Nationals Park was

the nation’s first

major professional

stadium to become an

energy-saving green

building and receive

LEED certification by

the U.S. Green

Building Council.

We were excited to partner

with Annandale Student Life

and the NOVA Sustainability

Office to invite Colin Beavan

to speak with students and

community members. Colin

spoke at the Annandale

Campus on Thursday,

October 17, 2013 as a

culminating event for the

Program. The NOVA Green

Club was a big supporter in

the event and helped

market the

program to

students and

the

community.

ELI students

who are

interested in

being part of

the planning

committee for

the 2014 ELI

Common Reader can email

us at [email protected].

Stay tuned through the

spring semester for more

information on next falls

program!

P A G E 5 V O L U M E 4 , I S S U E 2

Select a major based on

your interests and aspirations

Discover occupations

matching your personal preferences and attributes

Map out your career plans,

present and future

Make informed career decisions

FOCUS 2 is free for NOVA

students. Access the system at NOVA’s Career Services

website.

Simply click on the “FOCUS 2” button, create your free

account, and begin your exploration.

Also check ELI’s webinar

schedule for offerings of the

Exploring Career Options

As fall comes to an end and

spring quickly approaches, now

is a good time to think about

where you are on your career

path.

Are you attending NOVA to

pursue a certificate or degree,

but unsure about what career

options might be available to

you? Have you decided on a

major, but have difficulty

answering the question –

“What can I do with a major in

_____? Do you need to fine

tune your skills or add to your

skill set in preparation for a

career change? Learn more

about career options by utiliz-

ing FOCUS 2, an online

interactive self-guided career

and education planning system

that can help you:

webinar. This 45

minute webinar will

focus on using

various online resources to

research career options. The

relationship between programs

of study at NOVA, college

majors, and career options will

be discussed. Resources

presented will provide

information on nature of work,

educational requirements, job

outlook, and wages.

Are Your Career Plans In Focus?

Library Tips To Help You Succeed (cont.)

Did you know that ELI is on

LinkedIn? Click the below icon to

visit our page and find great articles

and resources on career planning.

Tutorials: Access short

videos on many topics

including how to search the

library catalog, searching

library databases, and more.

We’re adding new videos all

the time, so we’d love

suggestions! Go to our NOVA

Libraries YouTube channel.

Social Media: Stay

connected to NOVA Libraries

through Facebook and

Twitter

ELI Library Staff: As an ELI

student, you have your own

dedicated library staff to help

you navigate library resources

remotely.

For some library resources,

you will be prompted to login

before accessing them. Login

with your MyNOVA username

and password. This is the same

username and password you

use sign into your classes.

Contact us at

[email protected] with any

questions!

P A G E 6 V O L U M E 4 , I S S U E 2

ELI Student Life

T H A N K Y O U T O A L L W H O C O N T R I B U T E D T O

T H E E L I B U L L E T I N B O A R D !

Are you interested in learning more about

Student Life events happening with ELI?

Click on the image (to the right) to visit our

Virtual Student Union.

It’s been exciting fall semester for ELI student life or ELIfe! ELI has hosted student activities and events for students both

virtually and in-person to help online students develop stronger connections to ELI, to NOVA, and to each other. Some of

these student life events included Our first annual ELI Open House, ELI fantasy football tournament, health and wellness

pedometer challenge, ELI’s Common Reader Program, Leadership Mason Conference and the annual Fall Into ELIfe event.

Don’t miss our events coming up:

Native American Heritage Month- Follow us through social our social media sites and our Virtual Student

Union as we celebrate the histories, cultures and contributions of American Indians.

Social Media Headshots— November 19th & 20th: In conjunction with National Career Development Month,

stop by our office and get a free headshot taken to use for your social and professional media sites.

Preparing for Finals Webinars– Are you ready for Finals Week? ELI can help you prepare! This session will focus on topics and strategies to help ease anxiety and help you study smart such as: Early preparation, planning

your approach and taking the exam.

Spring 2014 Calendar of events coming soon!

For more information on these and other activities and events through ELI, Visit our events page on our Virtual Student Union.

We hope to connect with you at future events!

Want to be notified by

email about our

upcoming events? Email

[email protected] for

more information!