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Closing or Delay Notices
NOVA uses a color-coded system to communicate any operating status updates to our faculty, staff and students.
In the event of a college-wide or campus-specific closure or delayed opening, the decision will be announced on the home page of the NOVA website and a text alert will be sent to cell phones that are registered with NOVA Alert. News of college-wide closures or delayed openings may also be found on local TV and radio stations.
Individuals may call the College Call Center with questions at 703.323.3000. Please do not call College Police for closing information; this may delay and/or interrupt critical information flow and decision making.
If the College closes early due to inclement weather, students, faculty and staff may be provided with specific times they can leave. This will help to ensure a safe and orderly departure from buildings and campuses.
Code Red: College Closed
- NOVA is closed with no remote or in-person instruction or services.
- All services offered at off-campus locations, such as military installations, are closed.
- Designated (essential) employees are required to report as directed by supervisors.
Code Yellow: College Open / Buildings Closed
- NOVA is open but all buildings closed for in-person use. Buildings are locked with access restricted to designated (essential) employees only.
- Instruction and college services are open for remote delivery only.
- In-person classes and services are remote, not cancelled.
- All online courses continue as scheduled.
- Designated (essential) employees are required to report as directed by supervisors.
- Non-designated (non-essential) employees who are eligible to telework are expected to work during authorized building closures to ensure continuity of operations.
- Non-designated (non-essential) employees who are not eligible to telework are not expected to work during authorized building closures.
- If non-designated (non-essential) employees have no telework agreement but are directed by management to telework during an authorized closing, the supervisor may allow this as long as the employee has the necessary tools that meet system security standards to telework.
Code Green: College Open
- Designated (essential) employees are required to report as directed by supervisors.
- NOVA is in normal operating conditions.
- All classes and services continue as scheduled.
Delayed Opening
- NOVA opens at 11 a.m. for in-person services and courses. Services are not offered in-person or remotely until the college opens.
- During delayed openings, employees able to telework or work remotely are expected to maintain their normal work schedules.
- In-person classes due to begin before the college opening are cancelled.
- In-person classes due to begin after the college opening are held as scheduled.
- All online courses continue as scheduled.
- All services offered at off-campus locations, such as military bases, are closed until the college opens.
Early Closing
- NOVA closes early and moves to a Code Red status.
- If the College closes early due to inclement weather, faculty and staff may be provided with specific times they can leave. This will help to ensure a safe and orderly departure from building and campuses.
Locked/Closed Campuses
Please Note: Doors will be locked one hour after the College closing time.
Delayed Opening Door Access
If the College opens at 10:00 a.m., doors will be unlocked at 9:00 a.m. While doors are locked, no access to campus and non-campus buildings are permissible.
Closure Door Access
If the College closes at 4:00 p.m., doors will be locked at 5:00 p.m. Doors will unlock one hour prior to the College’s opening time.
Announcement Broadcasts
If inclement weather forces the cancellation of classes or requires the College to have a delayed opening, announcements will be made on these local radio and TV stations:
| FM Radio | Television Stations |
|---|---|
| WAMU 88.5 | WRC Channel 4 |
| WFLS 93.3 | WTTG Channel 5 |
| WASH 97.1 | WJLA Channel 7 |
| WITH 99.5 | WUSA Channel 9 |
| WTOP 103.5 | NOVA-TV Channel 19, 25, 37 or 59 (check the local cable listing for your area) |
| WRQX 107.3 |
Continuation of Instruction
In the event of an extended closing, faculty are required to notify their students their backup plan for instructions.
At the start of every semester, faculty are expected to communicate to students and to their Dean, their alternative approach to continue teaching and learning during emergency closures lasting more than a day. Faculty must also provide their Dean with a copy of their syllabi explaining their approach to continuing instruction during emergency closures. Examples of alternative teaching and learning approaches include utilization of Canvas, video conference, email, conference calls, special topics research, discussion, etc. Faculty must announce their alternative delivery approach to the class as soon as possible after the College is closed. The alternative delivery approaches specific to the course should be documented in the course syllabi.