Archive for November, 2021

Photos by Ralph Freso GCU News Bureau Grand Canyon University students dressed up in their holiday finest, danced, ate great food and danced some more Monday night at the annual Hanging of the Greens in GCU Arena.   

Students who made the effort to come back to campus after Thanksgiving break and get to Chapel on Monday were rewarded with another passionate talk by the inimitable Chris Brown. The Senior Pastor of North Coast Church in Vista, California had a lot to say about how trusting God with your life will never disappoint. “The longer you dare to walk with God, the further you dare to walk with God,” Brown said, “the more and more, I promise, you’re going to find exactly as He has said.”

Photos by Ralph Freso GCU News Bureau Chris Brown of North Coast Church in Vista, California, returned to the Grand Canyon University campus Monday to give another of his spirited talks, this time about the importance of trusting God with your life. GCU grads Chandler Jennings and Chandler Kruse provided the worship music.  

Shay Quitno was terrified. She couldn’t sleep. It was her first day ever of teaching a class after graduating from GCU last spring. Quitno shared those feelings on Instagram, a project by the College of Education to chronicle the first year of a COE graduate in hopes that aspiring teachers and others can see what it’s like and learn from it. “Life with Shay” has been a social media hit. Quitno had more to say (and film) on a recent day in her classroom at Hermosa Vista Elementary School in Mesa, where it was evident her training overcame rookie teacher anxiety.

The Lope Shop has a big selection of GCU gear for Christmas shopping, and that’s the operative word — big. Oversize is the style this year. Shelly Schrimpf, Assistant Director of Campus Retail and Licensing, says she has trouble keeping larges and extra larges in stock. Reprinted from the November issue of GCU Magazine.

You’re going to a holiday party. There will be tons of great food. And the last thing you want to do is eat too much of it. Connie Colbert and Emily Orvos have 10 tips that will help you enjoy the feast without overdoing it. For example, don’t mindlessly eat foods just because they are there.

Kristin Wyse has some advice about effective communication that could come in handy during the holidays. Misunderstandings and quarrels are part of all relationships, even healthy ones. Here’s how to handle them effectively when they arise.

Craig Detweiler has had a long career in the arts. He wrote, directed and produced The Disney Channel’s “The Duke,” and he’s the author of several books, including his latest, “Deep Focus: Film and Theology in Dialogue.” But his life in the arts is only half of his story. GCU’s new dean of the College of Fine Arts and Production also is dedicated to his Christian faith and has spent the last few decades trying to bring those two passions together. Said his wife, Dr. Caroline Cicero: “He was told when he decided to become a Christian that he had to throw his artistic interests away, that he had to shove those in a drawer, and that is not true.”

It’s easy to get caught up in the season and occupied with the decorations, watching football and catching up with family. But GCU Director of Spiritual Life Erik Nelsen in his brief Thanksgiving message during Monday’s virtual Chapel asked the campus community to pause, remember the hope of the season gifted to us by the Christmas story, and check in with friends and family who might have lost some of that hope. “Treat yourself to a peppermint mocha and spend time with God,” he said.

GCU Engineering, which debuted just six years ago, has been making big strides lately. Several of its degree tracks received ABET accreditation, considered the gold standard in engineering and computing accreditation, and now the department is getting set to launch three new programs: industrial engineering, computer engineering and a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with an Emphasis in Aerospace.