1.3M Grant to Support Asian American Students at Northern Virginia Community College

A $1.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education will help Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) launch its new Asian Pacific Pedagogy for Equity, Achievement and Learning (APPEAL) program, intended to improve success in foundational Math and English courses as well as student retention and degree completion.

The APPEAL program will use culturally responsive pedagogy and provide tutoring, mentorship and community building through a to-be-established Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander (AANAPI) Intercultural Learning Center. The center will be on NOVA's Annandale campus in Fairfax County, Virginia, which is home to the nation's 7th largest population of Asian Americans.

“Excellence in instruction and equity in opportunity are core tenets of our work at NOVA and we are proud to announce a new way to support our AANAPI students,” said Dr. Anne M. Kress, president of NOVA. “We are grateful to the US Department of Education for funding this exciting, innovative program.”

A minority-serving institution, NOVA was one of 13 institutions to receive the grant which is part of the Education Department's Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions Program.