By Kelsey Kendall
From clubs and activities to engaging, hands-on learning, 凹凸视频 students, faculty and staff have much to look forward to as the community dives into a new academic year.
The University is introducing new resources and services鈥痶his semester鈥痶hat students and faculty and staff members can utilize for transportation, wellbeing and academics.
How can Monarchs get around?
Beginning this week, Monarch Transit, the University鈥檚 shuttle service taking students, faculty and staff where they need to go on- and off-campus, has launched the Campus Connection Route. This new service line will travel between 凹凸视频鈥檚 main campus, Norfolk State University and Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences Joint School of Public Health at 凹凸视频.
The route has stops at the Perry Library at 凹凸视频, Lyman Beecher Brooks Library and E.L. Hamm Fine Arts Building at Norfolk State and Lester Hall at the Eastern Virginia Medical Center.
The new service promotes 鈥渋nterconnectivity鈥 to the three campuses following the Eastern Virginia Medical School integration with the University last year, said Zachary Pearce 鈥11, associate director of operations for Transportation and Parking Services.
鈥淥ne of the big things our department pushes for is mobility,鈥 Pearce said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at solutions to help get students and employees where they need to be without the reliance on (their own) vehicles.鈥
Following the Campus Connector Route鈥檚 launch, Transportation and Parking Services is accepting feedback from the Monarch community. Please reach out to monarchtransit@odu.edu to share comments. Information regarding other routes on campus can be found on the Monarch Transit website or on the Transloc app, available as a free download through the or .
What鈥檚 new in the bookstore?
凹凸视频 campus stores have expanded student access to physical and digital course materials and streamlined the process for faculty to select resources for their classes.
Barnes & Noble will now manage all retail and online operations of the University Village Bookstore, Medical Campus Bookstore and the Webb Center Monarch Market.
Shoppers can expect to see a wider selection of Monarch apparel, gifts and supplies from brands such as the University鈥檚 sideline partner Under Armour and others like Champion, 鈥47 Brand, Vineyard Vines, Tommy Bahama and Peter Millar.
Did you miss the news over the summer?
New food delivery robots have rolled onto campus to bring some of your favorite food and drinks right to you. 凹凸视频 is one of three Virginia universities to offer this service, which is a partnership between Grubhub and Starship Technologies.
The robots can deliver from seven campus eateries: Chick-fil-A (Webb Center and University Village), Starbucks (Webb Center and University Village), Panera Bread, Qdoba and Steak 鈥楴 Shake. The campus community can have food and drinks delivered by these autonomous vehicles anywhere on campus within minutes.
Additionally, the new 凹凸视频 Safe app offers enhanced safety resources to students, faculty and staff. Some of its tools include the 鈥淚鈥檓 OK鈥 feature, which allows the user to share their location and a message saying they are safe in the event of an on-campus incident to friends or family. The Safety Companion or Share a Trip Home features enable users to let their friends, family or campus police know they made it home safely by sharing their locations. Emergency and key contacts are also included in the app, as well as emergency guides and other support resources.
Monarchs can access the app 鈥 available for free download through the or 鈥 using their MIDAS login.
Where did these offices move?
Students looking for internship opportunities can find the Monarch Internship and Co-Op Office at 1007 Webb Center. The newly expanded space helps students connect with opportunities to develop skills outside of the classroom through work-based learning. The office is also home to the Professional Attire Wardrobe, or PAW, where students can find career-specific clothing for interviews. They can also find the Monarch Humanities Internship Academy there.
The Office of Undergraduate Research found a home in the Perry Library. Students are welcome to visit and learn more about how they can get involved in research even as undergraduate students. The space is in room 1317, and students can learn more by reaching out to ureasearch@odu.edu or follow @odu_uresearch on Instagram.