GCA HISTORY & MISSION

In 1999, the School of Communication Studies (SCS) Graduate Student Alliance (GSA) was formed as a means of building community among graduate students of the newly formed SCS. Along with building community, GSA also intended to offer graduate students a forum for voicing issues and concerns free from faculty or administrative intervention. As the SCS became more established and the students assimilated into one program, the focus of the organization has expanded to incorporate professional and academic development. To achieve these new objectives, the active body voted to apply for formal recognition from the University in 2000. Official recognition was granted in Spring 2001, gaining GSA representation on the Graduate Student Senate, as well as a budget of funds supplied by the University. In Spring 2003, the active membership voted on a new name for the organization, Graduate Communication Association, better reflecting the vision of the organization.

Today GCA is expanding on the original goals of providing professional and academic enhancement and by developing connections with other organizations on campus and continuing to foster community building, not only in the SCS, but also across the University. In future years, our goal is to gain membership from the entire graduate community to establish the organization as a respected and active organization on the campus of Bowling Green State University. In keeping with the original intent of the organization, GCA is a student-centered organization committed to providing a space for graduate students to come together.