Western Governors University (WGU) is a private, nonprofit, online American university based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The university was founded by 19 U.S. governors in 1997 after the idea was formulated at a 1995 meeting of the Western Governors Association. The university uses a competency-based learning model, with students working online. Scott D. Pulsipher is the current university president, having joined WGU on April 11, 2016; WGU's first president, Robert Mendenhall, is president emeritus and remains a member of WGU's Board of Trustees. WGU's accreditation is through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NCCU), the NCATE, the CCNE, and the CAHIIM.
A September 2017 federal audit concluded that WGU was not complying with the institutional eligibility requirement that limits the percentage of regular students who may enroll in correspondence courses. According to the audit, many courses do not offer regular and substantive interaction with an instructor and, therefore, do not meet the regulatory definition of distance education. The Department of Education is reviewing the audit. The school disputes the tentative findings.
History
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WGU was officially founded in 1997 in the United States by the governors of 19 U.S. states. It was first proposed by then-governor of Utah Mike Leavitt at the annual meeting of the Western Governors Association in June 1995. It was formally proposed the following November, and in June 1996 each signing state governor committed $100,000 toward the launch of the new competency-based university. While the seed money was provided from government sources, the school was to be established as a self-supporting private, nonprofit institution. In January 1997, 13 governors were on hand to sign the articles of incorporation formally beginning the new university.
In 2001, the United States Department of Education awarded $10 million to found the Teachers College, and the first programs were offered in Information Technology. In 2003, the university became the first school to be accredited in four different regions by the Interregional Accrediting Committee. In 2006, the fourth college, the College of Health Professions, was founded, and the school's Teachers College became the first online teacher-preparation program to receive NCATE accreditation. In 2010, the first state-established offshoot WGU Indiana, was founded by Mitch Daniels, governor of Indiana, and the school reached 20,000 students for the first time. In 2011, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided $4.5 million for WGU Indiana and the creation of WGU Texas and WGU Washington.
On January 8, 2013, Bill Haslam, governor of Tennessee, announced the creation of WGU Tennessee. On January 28, 2013, Governor Jay Nixon of Missouri, in his annual State of the State address, announced the founding of WGU Missouri, creating the fifth state-based subsidiary of WGU. And on June 16, 2015, Governor Brian Sandoval of Nevada launched WGU Nevada, the sixth state-based WGU. The subsidiaries of WGU share the same academic model, faculty, services, accreditation, tuition, and curricula as WGU and were established to give official state endorsement and increased name recognition to WGU in those states, as well as qualifying students of those affiliates for state-based aid. WGU does not maintain physical campuses for these institutions.
As of December 31, 2017, the university had 91,436 currently enrolled students, and more than 100,000 people had graduated from the institution. The average age of the WGU student is 37 according to the Columbus Dispatch article written in 2017.
Governance
WGU is governed by its Board of Trustees and numerous state governors. The Board of Trustees provides corporate governance over the university. The Trustees set policy for the university, and serves as WGU's legal owner and final authority. Overall the Board of Trustees hold the institution's resources in trust and are responsible for making sure that the resources are being used efficiently and effectively.
Board of Trustees Composition
Governors of Member States as of 2018
Academics
WGU is composed of four colleges, each offering bachelor's and master's degree programs. As of October 2014, 55 bachelor's, master's, and post-baccalaureate degree programs, as well as teacher endorsement preparation programs, were offered among the four colleges.
Terms consist of six-month "rolling" semesters, which start for individual students on the first of every month. Classes are assigned unique terms lasting six weeks but students may proceed at their own pace. Many classes have "cohorts", or students working in the same general time frame, to facilitate online meetings and discussions, though students in any given cohort progress to the next course as soon as they are able to prove their knowledge. Course mentors provide both group and individual instruction as well as moderating online discussions.
In numerous publications WGU has been named a military friendly institution.
Colleges
WGU offers online bachelors and masters degree programs through the following colleges: These colleges include:
Rankings
WGU is unranked by US News and World Report's 2017 edition of best colleges.
In 2015, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) rated WGU's secondary teaching program its #1 best value in teacher education and the National League for Nursing named WGU's College of Health Professions a Center of Excellence. In 2014, US News, in its academic rankings of teacher education programs in conjunction with NCTQ, ranked WGU #1 in the nation for secondary teacher education among both online and traditional universities. In 2013, WGU was named one of the 50 most innovative companies in Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies Issue, ranking #28. In recent years, WGU has been the nation's top producer, in terms of numbers of licensure graduates, of science and math teachers. WGU has also received the 21st Century Award for Best Practices in Distance Learning from the United States Distance Learning Association on multiple occasions.
Methodology
WGU has competency-based programs for completing degree and certificate requirements. Competency-based programs allow students to demonstrate through assessments that they have acquired the set of competencies (levels of knowledge, skill, or ability) required for a particular degree or certificate. WGU is the first accredited school to use the competency-based approach, driving a growing trend toward competency-based higher education. Former United States Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan has stated, "While such programs [like WGU] are now the exception, I want them to be the norm."
All aspects (with the exception of demonstration teaching for teacher licensure programs and clinical experiences in the pre-licensure program for nurses) are completed entirely online. The university states that "learning resources come in a variety of forms, including textbooks, web-based tutorials, simulations, [and] online classes." The university doesn't develop its own courses, but instead licenses course modules from commercial providers such as Pearson and McGraw-Hill.
Performance-based assessments are normally completed by submitting written assignments through an online service. These submissions are checked for integrity by comparing them for unique content across thousands of other documents submitted at WGU and other universities, as well as documents available online. The objective assessment component is a proctored exam. Exams are usually taken online and monitored by a proctoring company such as ProctorU or Examity using a university-provided webcam. There are no open-book exams.
Admissions
WGU has a multi-step admissions process. Admissions requirements differ depending on which academic program the student chooses to attend. Many programs require either an associate degree from an accredited college or a specific amount of related, verifiable work experience in the field in which a student wishes to study. The school does not require SAT or ACT scores for admission. Undergraduate programs require the student to possess a high school diploma or GED and pass the school's Collegiate Readiness Assessment, and admission into all programs requires an interview with a WGU Enrollment Counselor to determine if the competency-based approach is the best fit for the individual student.
Graduation rate
The Department of Education lists the graduation rate at WGU as 26%. This rate tracks the graduation of first-time, full-time college students, which is less than 1% of all WGU students. The internally-tracked graduation rate for all students as reported by the university is 49%.
University governance
As a private, nonprofit university, WGU is governed by a board of trustees that consists of state governors, educators, and business and industry leaders. In addition, the university's National Advisory Board consists of leaders from private corporations and foundations which support the university. Current members include Google, Microsoft, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and AT&T among many others. Each satellite school also has a local Chancellor and Advisory board from within the state. Course competencies are defined with input from third-party councils made up of business, academic, and industry leaders, who guide the university in determining what a successful graduate in any given degree program must know to be a valuable employee.
The university has no physical campus and does not participate in intercollegiate sports.
Faculty
WGU's disaggregated faculty consists of student mentors (faculty members who advise and guide a student throughout his or her entire degree program), course mentors (subject-matter experts who advise, tutor, and guide students through specific courses), program faculty (who oversee course content), and evaluation faculty (who evaluate/grade assignments). The university has more than 2,000 faculty members, most of whom work full-time (the exception being part-time assessment evaluators).
Affiliates
In addition to being founded by governors, several states have affiliated online schools. Though state funding in some instances was used for the creation, each school is self-supporting through tuition and donations and overseen by the WGU board along with a local state chancellor and advisory board. The online campuses WGU offshoots offer the same programs and curricula as the national WGU student body receives, and accreditation is through WGU.
WGU Indiana
WGU Indiana is WGU's first satellite school, created on June 11, 2010 by executive order of then-governor Mitch Daniels. At its founding, Daniels stated "Today we mark the beginning of, in a real sense, Indiana's eighth state university". With this partnership, WGU Indiana is approved for Indiana state grants and scholarships offered through the State Student Assistance Commission of Indiana (SSACI). Students graduating from Ivy Tech, the state's community college system, can take advantage of an articulation agreement which allows them to transfer all credits, waive the application fee, and receive a 5% discount on tuition. The school is based in Indianapolis. Dr. Allison Barber is the school's chancellor.
WGU Washington
WGU Washington was created February 26, 2011 with the passing of House Bill 1822. It was signed into law by Governor Christine Gregoire. Washington state's previous governor, Mike Lowry, was one of the founding governors of the university. A bill passed in April 2013 will make students eligible for state grants like in-state schools. A transfer agreement allows students who graduate from state community colleges to receive a 5% discount. The founding Washington Chancellor was former Bellevue College President Jean Floten. Floten retired in 2017. Richard Cummins, Ph.D., who was President of Columbia Basin College, became the current Chancellor in April 2017.
WGU Texas
Governor Rick Perry of Texas founded WGU Texas in August 2011 with Executive Order RP 75. Perry's predecessor George W. Bush was one of the founding governors of the university. The creation was supported by Rep. Dan Branch, Republican leader of the House Education Committee and Sen. Judith Zaffirini, Democratic Chair of the Senate Education Committee. It called for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Texas Education Agency and Texas Workforce Commission to help with its founding. The state school will have an Advisory Board appointed by the governor and be based in Austin. Dr. Steven Johnson is the current Texas Chancellor.
WGU Missouri
Governor Jay Nixon first announced the creation of WGU Missouri in his annual State of the State address in January 2013. He signed Executive Order 13-04 officially starting the new school. He stated "(Missouri) has great opportunities for higher education, and I'm proud to say we've just added one more. WGU Missouri." It was created using funds from Federal Community Development Block Grants and a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The school has an advisory board and its own local chancellor, Dr. Angela (Angie) Besendorfer. Students are eligible for state grants. It is based in Jefferson City.
WGU Tennessee
Governor Bill Haslam announced the creation of WGU Tennessee in January 2013.
The initiative was part of his "Drive for 55" plan to bring the college graduation rate of the state up to 55%. The school was started with a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and $5 million in one-time state funds. Students are eligible for state financial aid. The school, based in Franklin, has a local chancellor, Dr. Kimberly K. Estep, and advisory board.
WGU Nevada
Governor Brian Sandoval created WGU Nevada by proclamation and a memorandum of understanding with WGU, launching the sixth WGU online campus on June 16, 2015. It was created with a $2 million grant from United Student Aid Funds and required no startup funding from the state. At the time of the launch, WGU had more than 900 students and more than 850 alumni in Nevada. Dr. Spencer Stewart was named chancellor of WGU Nevada.
WGU North Carolina
North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest announced WGU North Carolina along with WGU President Scott Pulsipher, launching the seventh WGU online campus on October 5, 2017. The establishment of WGU North Carolina was authorized by the North Carolina General Assembly and the Governor in October 2015. The state appropriated $2 million and the University raised $5 million from committed contributions by Strada Education Network, Golden LEAF Foundation, and Dell Loy Hansen, a private donor. Catherine Truitt will lead WGU North Carolina.
Accreditation
WGU is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Because of its unique founding by 19 governors whose states encompass several regions, WGU was the first and only university to date to be reviewed and awarded accreditation by four differing regional accreditors.
In 2006, the WGU Teachers College became the first exclusively online school to receive accreditation from the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).
In May 2009, WGU's nursing education programs were accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The initial accreditation, which had a five-year term, was awarded following a process that included a site visit as well as a review of WGU's nursing curriculum. In May 2014, CCNE extended WGU's accreditation through June 2024. "Western Governors University Earns CCNE Accreditation for Another 10 Years".Â
In 2011, WGU's B.S. in Health Informatics degree received accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM). The accreditation is granted after extensive reviews based on industry-developed standards.
Federal audit
An audit by the Department of Education's Office of Inspector General, released on September 21, 2017, "concluded that Western Governors University did not comply with the institutional eligibility requirement that limits the percentage of regular students who may enroll in correspondence courses" and that "at least 69 of the 102 courses were not designed to offer regular and substantive interaction with an instructor and, therefore, did not meet the regulatory definition of distance education." Consequently, the audit found that most courses at the University fell short of the required standards for Title IV of the Federal Financial Aid Act as outlined in a 1992 law that defines financial aid eligibility. The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Inspector General recommended that WGU repay the federal government more than $712 million.
The spokesman for the Department of Education said in a statement to the Salt Lake Tribune that they were reviewing the Inspector General's report, while also saying "the innovative student-first model used by this school and others like it has garnered bipartisan support over the last decade."
President Pulsipher stated that WGU strongly disagrees with the audit findings, and that the OIG does not understand WGU's innovative teaching model and showed a rigid and flawed approach when conducting the audit.
Tuition
In 2018, tuition for WGU is $3,190 per six-month term for most undergraduate programs. Tuition is charged at a flat rate per six-month term, regardless of the number of courses taken or credits completed.
Alumni Association
The Western Governors University Alumni Association is the official alumni association for Western Governors University. This organization runs a number of programs to assist and engage with their graduates. As of January 2018, there were over 98,000 total alumni for Western Governors University.
Notable Alumni
- Andre Barnett, 2012 presidential nominee of the Reform Party of the United States
- Hiram Bertoch, American author, best known for writing An Otter's Guidebook To Being Obnoxiously Happy
- Gregg Hale, former guitar player for the British band Spiritualized
- Paul Ray, member of the Utah House of Representatives
- Amy Summers, current delegate with the West Virginia House of Delegates
References
External links
- Official website