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Only a few years after the emergence of the internet, in the mid-1990s, Washington State University Global Campus started a student government for its online students. The group has existed for so long that virtually no current employees know exactly when or why it was established, but mentions of the body in archived newsletters from 1996 indicate that it was sometime around then, Debra O'Donnell, Washington State's director of enrollment management and student services, said via email.
More than two decades on, many universities offer their online students a chance to participate in student governments. But Washington State's government just for its online students remains an outlier.
“It was kind of a surprise to me,” said Kelly Dunn, president of the Global Campus's student government. During her tenure, which concludes when she graduates in May with a degree in psychology, Dunn has pushed to secure reimbursements for mental health and personal hygiene.
Washington State's group, while operating mainly online, has the same purpose as any campus government -- student representation, said David Cillay, vice president of the Global Campus. But it also offers students, whose college campus is usually their living room or the local library, a sense of community.
“The group provides representation for our online students. They’re able to bring their concerns and opportunities to the administration to talk about,” Cillay said. “We want to give the same type of opportunities you’d have on a physical campus.”
All Global Campus students are eligible to run for a vacant position on the student government: president, vice president, treasurer, secretary and senator. Once elected, students can head one of three committees -- student resources, technology and student involvement. Students sign up to run through CougSync, the college’s management website. Candidates can campaign in their classes (with the instructor's permission), on social media and in a virtual town hall, where students are invited to attend and ask questions. After the campaign season wraps up, the college sends Global Campus students an email with a link to vote for their preferred candidate.
“Generally the involvement is something that we need more of,” said Berto Cerrillo, associate director of student involvement at Washington State's main campus in Pullman, who oversees Global Campus's student government. “But it’s getting momentum.”
To communicate day to day, the government’s officials talk over email and text message. Meetings are held every two weeks on Blackboard Collaborate’s video messaging platform. Representatives occasionally meet at restaurants or public spaces -- recently, several members met in Vancouver, Wash., to discuss an upcoming event. Online campus representatives are also included in a meeting, held a few times a year, with student governments from all five WSU campuses.
Student leaders have helped give Global Campus students access to many services that were once reserved for in-person students, such as childcare and technology. Under Dunn, the government secured a reimbursement of $400 for each Global Campus student to see mental health professionals. Also, the body obtained a $150 reimbursement for personal hygiene, like soap, shampoo and feminine products. To receive a reimbursement, students purchase a service or an item and then submit a form with the receipt attached. Dunn worked with advisers, the access center and other campuses to include the Global Campus in Washington State’s funding for these reimbursements.
The government is also working to facilitate in-person events at Washington State University for Global Campus students, to foster a stronger connection to the university and classmates, Dunn said. Earlier this month, the student government hosted an all-day “rendezvous” event for global campus students in Centralia, Wash., near the Pacific coast. The event offered workshops and a resource fair for students and activities to occupy children.
The government’s interim vice president, Kara Lane, who is finishing up her business management degree at the Global Campus this May and plans to begin a master’s in strategic communication two days later, will start as student government president this summer. Lane began on the student government last May as a senator and chair of the student resource committee.
“I thought it would be good for me to get involved and help students discover what’s available,” Lane said.
Different Ways to Provide a Say
Washington State's online student government remains unusual, though other online institutions have some forms of student representation. The University of Maryland University College, an online-only postsecondary institution, has a global student advisory council that is elected by its remote students -- 50 percent of whom are connected to the military (usually students are on active duty or are related to someone who is). The council, governed by a set of bylaws and a constitution, is made up of 12 representatives, eight of whom live overseas, in Europe or Asia. Representatives who live outside the U.S. have ties to the military, according to Robert Ludwig, assistant vice president of media relations.
Penn State World Campus also set up a student advisory board in 2016 to communicate with the student affairs office. However, instead of running, students apply for the board and are selected by university administrators. The board has been hugely popular among students. Ashley Adams, who conceived the idea, said she was stunned when she received about 400 applications.
“We expected 20,” Adams, World Campus's student affairs director, admitted. “It was very clear to me that World Campus students wanted to be engaged in the same way that their peers were.”
This year, the board includes 35 undergraduate and graduate students living in the U.S. and overseas. The board meets once a month using a video communication platform, Zoom. Members also meet monthly on their respective committees -- academic affairs, clubs and organizations, engagement, governance and campus relations, and marketing and communications.
Since its inception, the board has introduced several initiatives, including a series of “day in the life” blog posts describing the everyday routines of World Campus students, representing the online college on Penn State government associations, and offering advice in the hiring process for student-facing employees.
World Campus students apply to serve on the board in January and begin terms of up to two years in March.
Due to the popularity of the advisory board, last year World Campus started a student ambassador program. Currently there are 70 ambassadors who meet virtually four times a year. Applications for this program are accepted on a rolling basis.
“The student ambassador program allows for students to sort of get their foot in the door. They’re able to engage in more varied ways,” Adams said.
Several online-only colleges have no student government at all. Walden University, for example, does not have a representative body, according to Tamara Chumley, executive director of external relations. Chumley didn't respond to an email asking why. However, the college does have several student organizations, including an assortment of professional fraternities.
Some universities with online programs give students studying at a distance the opportunity to be involved in student government. The University of Illinois, Springfield, has an online student senator position on its student government. The college has a fairly significant cohort of online-only students: 1,681 of a population of about 5,000 study remotely, according to Derek Schnapp, director of public relations. And A. T. Still University, a private graduate college located in Missouri, has three online students this year who report to the student government.
The remote representatives are invited to the campus twice each year. Student involvement in the online caucus has “ebbed and flowed” since its inception a decade ago, said Mykel Estes, director of student life. The college will choose to hold an election based on the number of interested students, Estes said.
