The 2010 Winter Commencement Ceremony will take place on Saturday, February 20, 2010 in Salt Lake City, Utah, at Kingsbury Hall.
Please visit the WGU Commencement site at www.wgu.edu/commencement for detailed information about the commencement ceremony, hotel accomodations, and to order your regalia (cap and gown).
CALL FOR 2010 STUDENT COMMENCEMENT SPEAKERS The WGU Commencement Committee seeks four outstanding graduates to speak at the winter commencement ceremony. WGU graduates who wish to be considered for a student commencement speaker role need to fill out an application, prepare a draft speech outline and obtain a letter of recommendation from a WGU mentor. The application is available for download at www.wgu.edu/commencement. The deadline to apply for student speaker is Monday, December 28, 2009.
**Student speakers will be provided with airfare and hotel assistance.
Important Deadlines
Monday, December 28, 2009 - Student Commencement Speaker Application
Saturday, January 2, 2010 - The last day for cap and gown ONLINE orders. After January 2, you may only call to place an order. Orders received after January 2, 2010 will be charged a $10 late fee. Visit www.wgu.edu/commencement for order information or call 800-854-7464, ask for Annette Frank (university rep) ext 56594.
Monday, January 11, 2010 - Graduation Application Deadline and Commencement Ceremony RSVP deadline.
Graduation Application Deadline. Only students who have completed their program requirements need to apply for graduation. The commencement program will only include the names of graduates who apply for graduation by the application deadline of Monday, January 11, 2010, by 5:00 PM Mountain Time.
Register to attend the Commencement Ceremony. Register at www.wgu.edu/commencement to participate in the commencement ceremony. Registration closes January 11, 2010. Students who missed the previous commencement are welcome to register and walk at the 2010 Winter Commencement Ceremony.
WGU Winter Mixer. All students are invited to attend the 2010 WGU Winter Mixer on Friday, February 19, 2010. This event is a great opportunity to meet mentors, graduates and other students. RSVP at www.wgu.edu/commencement.
Book your travel and lodging reservations: It is always better to book travel and lodging arrangements as far in advance of your travel date as possible to help secure better pricing. WGU has set aside a limited number of rooms at a discounted rate in three hotels (Residence Inn Cottonwood, Chase Suites Hotel - Salt Lake City, and Hilton Garden Inn - Sandy). Please visit the commencement page for more information.
Purchase your cap and gown at the Jostens web site: The last day to place your ONLINE order or phone order is Friday, January 2, 2010. Orders placed after this deadline will be charged a $10.00 late fee.
For further commencement information contact us at: Telephone: 1-866-895-9660 ext. 2085 E-mail:
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Web: www.wgu.edu/commencement
The iModules Scholarship Program is accepting applications for the 2010-2011 school year. Now in its third year, the iModules Scholarship Program will provide eight individual scholarships to students enrolled in secondary or higher education institutions that are iModules clients.
Established in 2008 to support education, the iModules Scholarship Program annually awards individual financial scholarships to students enrolled in secondary and higher education institutions that are current iModules clients. Western Governors University is a client of Imodules, which is going to host the brand new alumni web site.
This year, iModules is providing a total of eight scholarships in the amounts of five $1,000 and three $2,500 scholarships. This is an increase over the six provided last year.
Western Governors University marks another milestone this month. Enrollment at the non-profit, online university has surpassed 15,000 students. New students in September alone (WGU students can begin their studies at the first of any month) exceeded 1,400. This rapid growth (more than 43% in just 2 years) is taking place in undergraduate and graduate degree programs in all four of the university's colleges: Business, Healthcare Professions, Information Technology, and Teaching.
"The phenomenal growth we're seeing at WGU is the result of a number of factors, including the current economic conditions," said WGU's Vice President of Marketing and Enrollment, Patrick Partridge. "Many of our new students have been affected by the recession and are earning their degrees to 'retool' for new careers. WGU makes sense for them because we offer degrees in high-demand fields such as education and healthcare. Our competency-based academic program offers the flexibility to fit study into their busy schedules, and it allows them to use their prior education and experience to accelerate their progress. In addition, our tuition is very affordable, about half that of other online universities."
WGU students and alumni are invited to become a fan of the official Western Governors University Alumni Facebook page. If you're a Facebook lover, make sure to add this one. To become a fan, login to your Facebook page, type "Western Governors University Alumni" into the search field found in the upper right hand corner of the site, and "search." Once you see the official page listed, click the link that takes you to the site.
Once on the page, click the "Become a Fan" button. The fan page will keep you updated on WGU events, current news, and allows you to show your WGU pride.
Western Governors University has launched a new scholarship program for employees and owners of small businesses who want to complete their bachelor's degrees online in Business. The Small Business Leadership Scholarship provides up to $3,000 toward tuition at the online university for as many as 30 qualifying students.
"Small businesses are vital to the U.S. economy," said Patrick Partridge, WGU Vice President of Marketing and Enrollment.
"To help them compete with larger companies, these businesses need employees who have completed their degrees from a high-quality college or university. WGU is committed to help these businesses and their employees meet their goals by offering rigorous degree programs that prepare employees for work in the real world. This scholarship program will allow more employees of small businesses that cannot offer tuition reimbursement, the opportunity to finish their bachelor's degrees."
Martin Palma started working for WGU two years ago. He graduated from the University of Utah with a master's degree in Public Administration and a bachelor degree in Business Management. He has participated in Salt Lake County and the State of Utah as community facilitator for immigrant families and a community advocate on local issues. He has also worked as an academic career advisor for five years at a local community college. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in education.
About his experience at WGU, Martin says, "I love to mentor students and provide developmental advising which includes educational planning and strategies to address academic difficulties. I see my job as a tool that helps develop student success skills and labor force preparedness. In the end, its an intrinsic reward to watch a student succeed in higher education."
The 2010 Winter Commencement Ceremony will take place on Saturday, February 20, 2010 in Salt Lake City, Utah, at Kingsbury Hall. 
iModules Launches Scholarship Program for 2010
Martin Palma started working for WGU two years ago. He graduated from the University of Utah with a master's degree in Public Administration and a bachelor degree in Business Management. He has participated in Salt Lake County and the State of Utah as community facilitator for immigrant families and a community advocate on local issues. He has also worked as an academic career advisor for five years at a local community college. He is currently pursuing a doctorate in education.