WCU senior Julie Ward completed her first-year classes remotely because of pandemic restrictions. When she moved on campus as a sophomore, the accounting and marketing major from Millersville, PA, says she struggled making connections. The turning point came in spring 2022 after becoming the student representative on the University’s Council of Trustees.

“Being student trustee completely shaped and transformed my whole college experience,” Ward says.

As a voting member of the Council, Ward represents fellow students. The position also earns her a place on the Student Government Association executive board. Both roles have given her insights about campus decision-making and policies. “As a student trustee, I see many perspectives. I understand where students are coming from, but I also understand the logistics and background about why decisions are made,” she says.

Another benefit is getting to know members of senior administration, especially President Chris Fiorentino. “He comes across as very business-like but he’s actually easy to talk to,” Ward says. “He’s incredibly kind.”

At monthly trustee meetings, she reports noteworthy student events and milestones and is frequently the student representative at campus events. She spoke at the Diversity Walk dedication in 2023 and at the President’s Speakers Series that year. “I was able to introduce Erin Brockovich and meet her.”

On her trustee application, Ward wrote about her biggest accomplishment: a summer internship in the finance office at the Dutch Wonderland Family Amusement Park in Lancaster, PA. When her supervisor resigned unexpectedly, Ward, then just 18, took over his duties. They included preparing daily revenue reports for the park’s corporate headquarters in California and Spain. “President Fiorentino read that part of my application when he recommended the Board of Governors approve me as student trustee,” Ward says. “He thought it showed I took initiative.”

Ward, who also held a leadership position as vice president of operations in Delta Phi Epsilon sorority, completed two other accounting internships: one at Amazon’s headquarters in Arlington, VA, and a second at Trout CPA in Lancaster. They led to job offers and Ward will join PwC (Pricewaterhouse Coopers) as a tax associate in its Raleigh, NC, office after graduation in May.