Archive for December, 2009

Brian Mueller presented GCU alumni and Georgia teacher Tracey Harmon with a $15,000 doctoral scholarship at the University’s Quarterly Meeting December 18. The GCU master’s in education graduate and Jamestown Elementary “Teacher of the Year” shared with GCU faculty and staff how she had overcome a difficult background to earn her degree and persevere to provide a better life for herself and her daughter. Tracey also acknowledged the support of her GCU counselors, who helped contribute to her success and desire to pursue a doctoral degree.

(Above) Faculty members Karen Carr (left) and Dr. Kay Turk (right) accept recognition from Provost Dr. Cheryl St. Arnauld and President Kathy Player. Dr. Turk and Dr. Cathryn Meegan (not pictured) both earned their doctorate degrees in 2009. Grand Canyon University is known for rigorous, values-based academic programs that challenge students to become critical thinkers and responsible leaders. Our reputation is largely attributed to our excellent faculty and academic staff, who continuously raise our standard of excellence in the classroom and as our representatives in prestigious publications and presentations throughout the country. The following is a summary of the many diverse opportunities our faculty members and leadership have participated in during 2009. Please join me in congratulating these individuals on their outstanding contributions to the academic community, and to Grand Canyon University. Dr. Cheri St. Arnauld Provost 2009 Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations Dr. Kathy Player Presentations: Player, K. (October 2009). Panel Discussion: Taking For-Profit Higher Education to the Next Level-Developing the Value Proposition. Eduventures Online Higher Education Annual Member Meeting, Boston, MA. Player, K. (July 2009). Panel Discussion: Personal Journey of Nursing Leadership. Northern Arizona State University, Flagstaff, AZ. Player, K. (June 2009). Developing Faculty and Leaders. Summer […]

On Friday, December 18 at First Southern Baptist Church, 60 graduating nurses walked across the stage as part of GCU’s College of Nursing Convocation and Pinning Ceremony. These nurses have completed their BSN degrees in pre-licensure as well as RN-BSN. This unique ceremony dates back centuries. The modern tradition followed today began in the 1860s when Queen Victoria awarded the Red Cross of St. George to Florence Nightingale for her work with British soldiers. In turn, Nightingale extended her honor to outstanding nursing graduates at the Nightingale School of Nursing at St. Thomas Hospital in London. The ceremony is considered the symbolic beginning of a graduate’s nursing career. The pin itself is a symbol of the tradition shared by nurses around the world. It is worn prominently on the nurse’s uniform throughout their career. “Every school has a unique pin,” says CON Dean Dr. Anne McNamara. “If you look at the Grand Canyon College of Nursing pin, it reflects the logo of GCU with the cross of Jesus Christ and the saguaro cactus.” The ceremony also honored ROTC nursing graduates who have achieved the standards necessary to not only graduate as nurses but also earn commissions as a second lieutenant […]

It is that time of year again when we begin thinking about New Year’s resolutions. What is it you want to accomplish in 2010? Setting goals creates a sense of purpose. Top-level athletes, successful business people and achievers in all fields use goal-setting techniques. Clearly defined goals provide long-term vision and short-term motivation. Goal setting can help you: Decide what is important to achieve in your life Separate what is important from what is irrelevant or a distraction Motivate yourself Build self-confidence, based on successful achievement of goals Add power to your goals by following the SMART mnemonic. Goals should be: S Specific M Measureable A Attainable R Relevant T Time-bound When you achieve one of your goals, take time to enjoy the satisfaction that comes with the achievement. Appreciate your successes, and evaluate the progress made towards your other goals. Your goals will change over time. Adjust them regularly to reflect growth in your knowledge and experience, and if certain goals no longer hold any attraction, let them go. For more information, or to talk about your goals, visit Career Services. We are located in the Student Union or contact 877-610-5506 or careerservices@gcu.edu. Happy New Year! Make this your […]

GCU committed to a partnership with the Native American Basketball Invitational (NABI) for 2010. The organization uses sports to encourage Native American youth to further their education with college mentor programs and scholarship opportunities. “With our focused Native American outreach, our rejuvenated men’s basketball program and our successful women’s program, this partnership is ideal in helping us broaden our relationships with the Native American communities and foster the growth of these talented athletes,” says GCU CEO Brian Mueller. NABI is the only nationally recognized NCAA certified Native American basketball tournament. The next Invitational is July 6-10, 2010. It will feature 64-80 teams of male and female, Native American student athletes from throughout the U.S. and Canada. NABI now operates under the newly formed NABI Foundation as a non-profit organization. In addition to its Invitational tournament, the organization will hold mini tournaments on reservation lands. The addition of a life skills curriculum will help the organization support student-athletes through high school and into college. “Grand Canyon University Native American programs met the unique needs of our athletes,” says NABI Foundation CEO GinaMaria Scarpa. “Their programs go the extra mile to make sure our students get the support and guidance needed to […]

(Above) Community Church of Joy Senior Pastor Dr. Walt Kallestad awards Brian Mueller the “Servant Heart” for scholarships given by GCU to JCS students. GCU CEO Brian Mueller attended the Community Church of Joy Christian School’s (JCS) “Servant Heart” Award ceremony on Friday, December 18, 2009, to accept an award on behalf of GCU. JCS honored the University for providing a $20,000 scholarship to 28 of the school’s students. GCU collaborated with School Choice AZ to offer the scholarships. Each of the 28 scholarship winners will receive $5,000 per year for up to four years to assist with their JCS tuition. The scholarship is a significant amount towards the cost of attending JCS. The scholarship required applications to be new to JCHS, meet certain qualifying guidelines and write a faith-based essay. Joy Christian School is a private K-12 school located in Glendale, Ariz. It’s mission is to “build a new generation of Christian leaders.” The school states its core values as faith, leadership, excellence, relationships, integrity and service. For more information on JCS, visit www.joyonline.org or call 623.561.2000.

GCU’s first Canyon Cares Christmas outreach event Sunday, Dec. 13 brightened the holidays for more than 550 neighborhood children and their families with dinner, Christmas presents and holiday fun. Thanks to the generosity of GCU employees and students, McKinley Hall became Santa’s workshop, with more than 330 gifts for parents to choose from, ensuring that each of their children had a special gift on Christmas morning. While the parents chose and wrapped gifts with the help of employee volunteers, GCU students entertained the children with face painting, ornament making and cookie decorating. One of the highlights of the event was sledding on the amphitheatre hill south of the Student Union, complete with five tons of real snow! “We were blessed to have the opportunity to reach out to our neighborhood families with this special holiday gift,” said University Pastor Mik Milem. “Many thanks to the nearly 200 GCU employees and students who volunteered their Sunday afternoon to make the event a great success, including helping families find and wrap presents for their children, serving dinner, and providing the children with an afternoon filled with laughter and smiles.” GCU’s annual Christmas Music Festival in Ethington Theatre followed the outreach event, with […]

As Grand Canyon University continues to grow, so does our commitment and responsibility to positively impacting the communities in which we attend school, live and work. Throughout our 60-year history, GCU has steadily gained a reputation for changing lives all over the world through education and community outreach. To help document our commitment, the University has created a new Canyon Cares 2009 Community Impact Report, which is being distributed this week to Valley leaders. The report highlights just a few of the ways GCU positively contributes to the communities we serve through campus-wide outreach efforts, individual contributions of our faculty, staff and students, and as an employer. (Click here to see a copy of the report, which will be updated annually.) “Our purpose in sharing this information is to demonstrate GCU’s longstanding servant leadership-based culture,” said GCI CEO Brian Mueller. “This culture drives us as an organization and as individuals to seek our opportunities to positively impact and contribute to the communities in which we live and work. Less obvious but equally as important is the impact GCU has on our community’s economy and growth, both as an employer and as the training ground for some of the most sought-after […]

The “Finding My Shoes” event, presented by GCU Ambassador of Inspiration & Achievement Brenda Combs, was a success, outfitting local homeless with jackets, blankets, shoes, hygiene kits, gloves, hats and sleeping bags. Brenda collected more than 1,500 blankets, 600 jackets, 500 pairs of shoes, 500 hygiene kits and 50 sleeping bags. The event also served breakfast to more than 675 people. “It was such a blessing to be able to give the homeless community these resources, and to make them as comfortable as possible while sleeping at the overflow shelter,” she says. “The overflow shelter is actually a fenced in parking lot, so people are essentially sleeping on the ground. I am so grateful for how GCU stepped in a helped me collect and deliver these items to people in desperate need!” Brenda organized the event through her Finding My Shoes organization. The outreach program provides services to the homeless community. This was the second event of the year and presented on at the Human Services Campus, located at 230 South 12th Avenue, in Phoenix. Local news media covered the event, including ABC News Phoenix (video here) and KTAR (story here). Her office is located in Building 18 on GCU’s […]

GCU’s business honors society – the Eta Chi chapter of Delta Mu Delta – held its annual symposium on December 10, 2009, to a capacity crowd in the Williams Lecture Hall. Dr. Kevin McClean, moderator of the business honors society, initiated the event in 2006 to encourage a sharing of research results on topics selected by KBCOB faculty. The event provides a platform for students, faculty and staff to showcase their research work. This year’s topics fell under the heading Maintaining ethical standards in challenging economic times. Presenters included Drs. Cindy Knott, Kim LaPrade and Lisa Aaroe from the College of Education, as well as Dr. Ronke Oke from the KBCOB. Drs. Knott and LaPrade presented Action Inquiry to Solve Education Ethical Dilemmas. Action research is a reflective process used by school leaders to identity and solve problems on a campus. They tailored the presentation for future educators and business managers. Dr. Aaroe presented Funding Special Education and shared her research on federal stimulus funds allocated for special education, but ultimately misappropriated. Dr. Ronke Oke presented Ethical Leadership Challenges in Challenging Times. The discussion covered roles and actions of ethical leaders, as well as how ethical leaders respond to a […]