In partnership with the Hope Center for College, Community and Justice, Northern Virginia Community College will host the 5^th annual #RealCollege conference at NOVA’s Alexandria campus.  With the support of a national advisory committee and the generosity of the initial donors like ECMC Foundation, American Cancer Society, and the Lumina Foundation – the conference is a call for the communities to act on the real needs facing today’s college students in an effort to secure students’ basic needs.

Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab, Founder of The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice, and a Professor at Temple University spearheaded the nationally renowned research to address obstacles to higher education, famously known as #RealCollege.  As she frequently continues the dialogue for student success, it has led her to being featured in high-profile speaking engagements such as The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, SXSW and PBS NewsHour about her work.

In the fall of 2019, NOVA led the community college discussion by hosting Dr. Sara Goldrick-Rab for a ‘Student Needs Symposium’.  The ‘Symposium’ addressed that 70% of two-year college students face housing or food insecurity.  Further challenges for students included; accessibility to resources, child care, transportation, and mental health.  For 2021, NOVA becoming the host for the conference will pivotal in a time that student needs will be at the forefront of discussion. 

“In a time when uncertainty is high, NOVA has been at the forefront of getting resources to students in a dire time of need as the nation deals with COVID-19, said Dr. Frances Villagran-Glover.  Hosting #RealCollege at NOVA in 2021 means that there can be time for a real assessment and discussion of lessons learned from the pandemic for methods of change in long lasting policies and partnerships to get better resources for student success”. 

Media Contact: Hoang Nguyen | 240. 620.9652 | hdnguyen@nvcc.edu