A newly formed support group called Graduate Organization for Support and Help began this Spring Semester at Ohio University to target and recruit graduate students from all departments.
GOSH — which meets every two weeks at United Campus Ministry, 18 N. College St. — is a safe place for graduate students to share stories, concerns and needs while facilitating problem-solving tendencies with other graduate students, said Bill Rucker, founder and president of GOSH and a master’s candidate for plant biology.
Rucker said he is developing his organization organically and in his own way to see what generates.
GOSH is currently not associated with GSS, but GSS President Joel Newby said he is aware of the organization.
“I’m currently watching their progress before making any attempt in (affiliating),” Newby said in an email. “I wish them the best and hopefully they can succeed in their goals.”
Involvement with GSS could help GOSH in two ways, Rucker said.
“One, as an access to resources such as communication tools and money and two, to help GOSH’s continuity from year to year,” he said.
Rucker said he hopes the organization will develop into a mentor/mentee program, where new graduate students can work with more-experienced students.
Aside from simply sharing stories, concerns and needs, students can provide advice to the mentees or seek direction from the mentors.
As a graduate student studying French, Megan Helgeson said “(GOSH) sounds like a good idea in theory. The graduate students in my French master’s program and I have said that we feel like we’re in a bubble sometimes … We often forget that there are many other graduate students on campus in many other disciplines.”
In addition, Helgeson said she likes the idea of not having weekly meetings, as graduate students are very busy.
“If the organization communicated the resources available to us or upcoming events for graduate students via email, for example, I believe the information they’re trying to get across would reach a much wider audience,” Helgeson said.
With 20 to 25 members currently, GOSH hopes to expand their membership in upcoming meetings.
“We hope to create enough value so that people want to come,” Rucker said, “If graduate students want to do it and keep it going year after year, then we can be successful.”
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