Inspire Blog Category: Self Care & Support

Ecampus Aligns with OSU’s New Student Onboarding Experience

Enrollment and growth continue to be important priorities at Oregon State University and across higher education. While many factors influence a student’s decision to enroll, the experience students have as they transition into the university remains a critical part of retention, engagement, and long-term success. For Ecampus, onboarding is more than a single event or orientation module. It is a coordinated effort that involves teams across the university working together to help students navigate the various pieces. From admissions and transcript evaluation to advising, student support, and academic colleges, each interaction contributes to a student’s sense of confidence and belonging. Building a Shared Vision A few years ago, as part of the Prosperity Widely Shared initiative, Oregon State University set … Ecampus Aligns with OSU’s New Student Onboarding Experience
by · November 2, 2026

Five Ways Faculty Can Support Online Student Mental Health

In May 2026, OSU became the first Health Promoting University in Oregon, officially adopting The Okanagan Charter, an international, collaboratively drafted vision that calls on institutions of higher education to incorporate health-promoting practices at every level and create supportive environments that encourage and inform health knowledge across campus. As part of this effort, over the past two years Oregon State University’s Student Mental Health Improvement Initiative has worked to gather information about student mental health across the Corvallis campus, OSU-Cascades, and Ecampus. Sponsored by the Health Promoting University Core Group, Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS), and the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), the initiative brought together faculty, staff, and campus partners to examine how institutional practices influence student well-being. … Five Ways Faculty Can Support Online Student Mental Health
by · September 21, 2026

End of Term – Time for Reflection and Self-Kindness

Once the term begins, you and your students enter into a full motion of course activities—getting connected with one another and moving along the education journey together. Then, when you realize it is the end of the term! I have heard many instructors saying things like “I can’t believe how fast this term has gone!”, “It’s already week 10, and I don’t know where time went!” And with the term at its conclusion, it is an opportunity to debrief, reflect, and take time for self-kindness, for both instructors and instructional designers. Debrief A debrief is an activity that helps close out the course development project. A debrief can help instructors more intentionally discuss how the course development process worked in … End of Term – Time for Reflection and Self-Kindness
by · January 14, 2026

Welcoming Online Students

One of my favorite design strategies is to make a small adjustment that delivers a big impact. When it comes to creating a welcoming online course, certain small adjustments can do just that and go a long way in warming up the online classroom. But first, let us look at why online courses ought to be welcoming and then what it means to be welcoming in the online space. Why Welcoming Students Is Important First, why is it important to design a welcoming course? According to the OSU Ecampus Online Teaching Principles, which are supported by research and endorsed by Quality Matters, it is recommended to “[m]ake facilitation choices that support diverse students and make each student feel welcomed and … Welcoming Online Students
by · February 24, 2025

Behind the Buzzword: Creating Belonging for Online Students (part 1 of 2)

“Belonging is a universal human need that is fundamentally linked to learning and well-being. It describes an individual’s experience of feeling that they are, or are likely to be, accepted and respected as a valued contributor in a specific environment.”            Structures for Belonging: A Synthesis of Research on Belonging-Supportive Learning Environments Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a helpful framework when discussing belonging, which falls in the middle, at level three, just above the basics for survival (level one: air, water, food, shelter) and safety (level 2: health, employment, family, security).  Image from Wikimedia Commons Have you heard the word belonging recently in reference to students and employees? At OSU, it seems to be popping up … Behind the Buzzword: Creating Belonging for Online Students (part 1 of 2)
by · January 8, 2024