CoffeeBreak is an e-newsletter distributed to Averett faculty and staff to keep them up-to-date on campus activities and information. Please send information you would like included in CoffeeBreak via this form. For the next CoffeeBreak, please submit by Friday, Jan. 22, for a Wednesday, Jan. 27, publication.

COVID Testing Event Results

The results are in from our COVID Campus Testing Event we held on Friday in partnership with the Virginia Department of Health and the National Guard. Out of 67 students tested, only one was positive, and out of 49 employees tested, only one was positive. Those two positive cases have been notified and their contacts have been traced and notified, and all of our protocols have been followed.

If you were tested and have not yet received a call from the Health Department, your test came back negative. We will continue to work closely with our partners at VDH to assess whether we hold additional testing events in the future.

COVID-19 Discussion with Kathie Tune

Register now for a COVID-19 discussion with Averett HR Director Kathie Tune. This virtual meeting will be held today, Jan. 20, at 4 p.m. via Zoom. Click here to register. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Help keep our campus community safe! Don’t forget to wear your face coverings, keep your distance and to complete a quick health self-check each day before work. Be prepared to share your green check mark with others as you share spaces as a courtesy to help make everyone feel comfortable.

As a reminder, if you receive a green check, you are clear to work on campus. If you receive the red X, please notify Human Resources and your supervisor, department or division chair immediately and forward the email you receive from LiveSafe to your supervisor, department or division chair. You should not report for in-person work if you receive the red X. For any questions or concerns, please contact Kathie Tune at [email protected].

We also continue to track the latest campus COVID-19 student and employee information and update it daily on our dashboard, which is accessible from the COVID-19 Alert webpage.

A Note from Donna Gourley

“Many thanks to the Averett family for your kind acts of sympathy during my Dad’s recent passing. Your cards, emails, flowers, thoughts and prayers have meant a lot to me and my family. Thank you.”
– Donna Gourley

Buddy Bash this Friday

Join us via Zoom on Friday, Jan. 22, at 3 p.m. as we honor Vice President for Philanthropy Buddy Rawley as he transitions into his retirement from Averett. Please see the Zoom invite from Dr. Tiffany Franks for information on how to join.

Vice President of Philanthropy Finalists Update

Thank you again to all who are participating in the campus visit process. This is a wonderful way for the finalists to experience the people of Averett and for our campus community to get acquainted with them. If you would like to review the resumes, please let Cyndie Basinger know.

Dr. Franks is hopeful that many of you will be able to attend the open session via Zoom today, Jan. 20, at 3:30 p.m. with candidate Melissa Wohlstein (Register for Zoom Meeting), and welcomes you to email her with your impression of each candidate.

Wohlstein has nearly 17 years of experience in fundraising and sales. She recently served as the associate vice president of development for the Hollins Fund at Hollins University. In this role, she developed operating procedures and policies for all fundraising activities, managed gift processing, revenue operations, strategic direction, and financial projection and analytics for prospecting revenue goals. She was responsible for prospect management, marketing materials for stewardship of donors and oversight of the advancement team.

Update: Candidate Wendell Snodgrass, who was scheduled to visit campus on Jan. 24-26, has withdrawn his candidacy for extended family reasons and will not be visiting.

Sunday Supper Held, MLK Week Continues

Averett’s CCECC and several of our community partners hosted our annual America’s Sunday Supper in celebration of MLK Week. We had over 900 attendees who joined us for crucial conversations around our theme, “From Chaos to Community.” Stacey Abrams served as our keynote speaker. To access the recording, click here.

Events for Martin Luther King, Jr. week continue:

Civil Rights Trolley Tours – Today, Jan. 20
Join us for Civil Rights Trolley Tours of Danville from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Space is limited to eight people per one-hour tour due to social distancing. Please complete this form to register. During the tour, learn about Danville’s diverse history, including the June 10, 1963 Bloody Monday demonstrations, segregation and Jim Crow era laws, Holbrook-Ross neighborhood and black-owned businesses along North Union Street.

Inmate Care Packages – Thursday, Jan. 21
Stop in the front of the MPR from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. to pack care packages for those in need. Donations of deodorant (no aerosols), white socks and full-sized chocolate candy bars will be accepted at the CCECC through Wednesday, Jan. 13.

Academic Support Tutoring

All academic support tutoring begins today, Jan. 20. Tutoring is free and offered in person for a variety of subjects, but students must schedule in advance. Students can schedule a tutoring session by following this link.

If you have any questions, please email Holly Kilby at [email protected]. An alternative email is [email protected].

*All COVID-19 protocols will remain in place during a tutoring session.

University Book Club

The Averett University Book Club will continue to meet in 2021 and we would love for you to participate! Our first meeting of the year will be virtual on Thursday, Jan. 21, at 4:45 p.m. Join us by clicking here. We meet for approximately one hour. The book club is open to ALL faculty, staff and students. There is no assigned book as we each share what we are reading. If you have questions, please feel free to email Penny Hudson, GPS student success coach; Linda Lemery, circulation manager at Blount Library; or Liz Cervantes, assistant director of GPS student services.

Student Success Center Reminders

The Student Success Center remains actively engaged in helping our students become independent scholars. As such, please remember that you can submit a Care Report (also known as an “Early Alert”) for any (and every) student for which you have a concern. These reports are submitted via Advocate.

If you need assistance navigating Advocate, please contact either Fred Betts ([email protected]) or Holly Kilby ([email protected]). Additionally, please keep in mind that success coaches remain dedicated to consistent meetings with targeted students. As well, a plethora of tutoring options remain available for students; you can review tutoring options here.

Know that we remain dedicated to partnerships across campus, so please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions you may have.

Missing Health Insurance Cards?

If you have not received your health insurance cards please be advised all have been mailed. We have been advised from CICV that the mail is extremely slow in some areas. Please click the photo at left to expand the attached flyer.

You are encouraged to sign up on the app, there you may download your cards, see claims status and other information. Also, please go to the Anthem site at www.anthem.com and register if you have not already done so.

Help Us Promote Averett Online

Help us promote Averett Online by mentioning the five key points below when talking to prospective students!

1. No application fee
2. Transfer credit evaluation
3. No ACT/SAT or GMAT/GRE required
4. The affordability and flexibility of our programs.
5. Market-ready curriculum

Stay tuned for a special gift in your mailbox soon from Averett Online!