News and Releases

News Releases

Naugatuck Valley Community College Opens Spring Semester with Virtual Orientation Focused on Student Resources

February 16, 2021

Karen Blake, Director of Student Activities, led a campus-wide collaboration to produce a series of virtual orientation modules that presented interactive information in a convenient, accessible order for new and returning NVCC students. Blake described the initiative as "coordinated technology developed to support effective communication of important student information that is usually presented when the students attend on-campus orientation events. We are driven by the need to keep our students informed and engaged in the process of starting a new semester or even a new career in college for the first time.”

NVCC’s 4-Cubed Orientation consisted of modules that were emailed to students daily beginning January 12, 2021 and continued for four days. The modular series featured welcome messages from NVCC CEO, Lisa Dresdner, Ph.D., Dean of Student Services, Sarah Gager, and Dean of Academic Affairs, H. Justin Moore, Ph.D.

Each module provided students with valuable information, including “how to” steps for activities like setting up and accessing college email, using technology that faculty will use in the classroom, guidance on support services available, and fun activities in which to participate! "TECH TALKs" and virtual training sessions are being offered on an ongoing basis by the staff in NVCC's Academic Center for Excellence (ACE), and each module also featured a feedback survey to enable the College to align support services with student needs.

Commenting on the virtual orientation, NVCC CEO Dresdner noted, “I am grateful for the hard work of this team of dedicated NVCC employees, led by Karen Blake, in envisioning and creating a virtual orientation for our new and returning students. The modules provide NVCC students with the foundational knowledge needed to succeed as online and in-person students and share the valuable student success resources we provide to all students at NVCC.”