Advising & Org Help Support

The Division for Student Affairs and our campus partners provide a variety of advising and support resources to registered student organizations. Advisors provide support and guidance to your organization, its leaders, and its members on a range of topics from student organization policies and processes to conflict mediation, officer transition, fundraising, and recruitment. 

Staff Advisors and Org Help serve as primary points of contact for most student organization support needs. Organizations may also choose to work with additional GW faculty and staff members or external advisors to receive additional support related to their special interest. 

Org Help is the collective term for a wide variety of resources offered by the Division for Student Affairs  to support registered student organizations and their leaders. Org Help includes a team of staff members and student coordinators trained on the most common policies, procedures, and issues that impact student organizations. 

Org Help is the primary advising resource for Silver Line and select Orange Line organizations. These organizations will find Org Help listed as the “Staff Advisor” on their Engage roster.

Regardless of Pathway, Org Help is also the primary point of contact for:

• Contracts, MOUs, Certificates of Insurance (COI), 
• Financial transactions
• Domestic travel requests and travel arrangements

Org Help Advising

Located in the University Student Center Room 433A, student organizations are invited to drop in at their convenience with student organization questions. The Org Help Advising desk is open Monday through Friday from 12:00 - 5:00 pm (6:00 pm on Thursday) during the academic year. 

If the hours do not fit your schedule or you prefer to meet virtually, email orghelpgwu [dot] edu to schedule a meeting.

Common drop-in topics include using Engage, member recruitment and retention, conflict management, event planning and contracts, and policy questions.

Org Finance

The Org Finance team reviews and processes all Engage purchase requests and books organization travel reservations, including hotels and transportation. They also assist with the vendor registration process for guest speakers, performers, and other service providers.

Org Finance offers in-person and virtual meetings by appointment. Additional drop-in hours are available from 1:00 - 3:00 pm on Fridays in University Student Center 433A.

Staff Advisors are GW staff members trained and assigned to an organization by the Division for Student Affairs. Staff Advisors are affiliated with departments and academic units across the university. All Staff Advisors receive training on student organizations policies and procedures and leverage their own knowledge and experience to provide guidance and support to organizations. Some advisors also have a connection to an organization through their positional responsibilities and provide additional expertise or department guidance. 

Organizations can view Staff Advisor assignments in the organization's Engage roster. If your group does not have an assigned individual, the name will read "Org Help." This means that the organization should seek support during Org Help drop-in hours or contact orghelpgwu [dot] edu. 

Red Line, Blue Line, and select Orange Line organizations are assigned to an individual Staff Advisor.  

Advisors are not an elected leader of the group and should act accordingly, providing support, recommendations, and guidance with the purpose of furthering the goals defined by the students in the organization and ensuring safety and compliance with policies. Advisors, both internal and external to the university, working with a student organization in any capacity shall not direct, coerce, or otherwise exert undue influence over an organization’s or individual student’s activities and conduct.

Organizations with concerns about the conduct of an advisor should contact the Division for Student Affairs at orghelpgwu [dot] edu or submit a report via EthicsPoint managed by the Office of Ethics, Compliance, and Risk. 

Staff Advisors, Org Help Advising, and Org Finance work together to support all registered student organizations. Below is a table that outlines the most comment processes and organization support needs. If you’re ever in doubt, start with your Staff Advisor or Org Help and they can help point you in the right direction.

* For some organizations Org Help is also the Staff advisor. This applies to Silver Live and select Orange Line organizations. Advisor assignments can be found on the Engage roster.
** Contact orgfinancegwu [dot] edu with questions about finances and purchase request 

Faculty Advisors

Faculty Advisors are organization-selected individuals who provide additional support to an organization based on subject matter expertise. 

Student organizations are welcome to seek out a faculty member, or other university staff member, who specializes in their area of interest should this be beneficial. This is particularly helpful to organizations formed around a specific topic area that may be academically or professionally related. 

Organizations are not required to have a faculty advisor and the Division for Student Affairs does not assign faculty advisors. Faculty Advisors should be added to an organization’s Engage roster and be assigned the “Faculty Advisor” position template.

There are specific policy and process-related duties that only a Staff Advisor or Org Help are responsible for overseeing with a student organization (e.g., contracts, conduct, travel coordination) that would be outside the purview of the Faculty Advisor role. The Division for Student Affairs offers training on these topics should a Faculty Advisor wish to serve both roles. In the case that the Faculty Advisor does not also wish to fill the roles of Staff Advisor, it is important that the organization maintain open lines of communication with both advisors.

External Advisors (Non-GW)

Organizations are permitted to have external, non-GW advisors or coaches, paid or unpaid. Coaches and other individuals that are paid must be contracted and registered as a vendor with GW via iSupply.

Organizations with external advisors must indicate this affiliation during the annual re-registration process and upon request. 

Organization leaders will receive regular communication through the Org Help Newsletter. During the academic year, newsletters are typically sent monthly and for timely announcements. 

Unsubscribing from or failure to read the newsletter or other email announcements is not an excuse for missed deadlines or failure to comply with instructions or annual requirements. If you are not receiving these emails, contact orghelpgwu [dot] edu for assistance on updating your contact information or resubscribing to the newsletter.