GCU TODAY DEC 2013 WEB

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P2 December 2013
A s Richard Conaway sits in his modest office on the
Grand Canyon University campus, he imagines what
might be going on around him.
Hindus and Muslims from other countries sharing their
beliefs in a Christian Worldview class. Students from
Canada, home of publicly funded health care, studying
nursing. A Slovakian and an American getting to know
each other over lunch.
“They are so jazzed to be here,” Conaway says of GCU’s
international students. “It’s an honor for their family.
They try to do everything they can to stay.
“They love the United States, but they also love GCU.”
Conaway should know. For more than a year now,
the former English teacher has been the University’s
international student coordinator. His primary
responsibility is to manage the student visa program,
under which international students are granted a visa to
study on a U.S. campus.
Unofficially, he’s like a stand-in uncle, taking students on
everything from trips to the Grand Canyon to errands
at Wal-Mart. He conducts orientations that explain
the nuances of bank accounts and driver’s licenses. His
office sees a steady stream of drop-by visitors during a
typical weekday.
“We try to get them connected,” Conaway says. “That’s
the biggest challenge. When they try to go it alone,
their grades suffer. But there’s a community of support
here, and once they realize that, they’re star students.”
In 2011, approximately 50 international students were
admitted to GCU as part of the student visa program.
In two years, that number of admissions doubled.
The University now has 210 new and continuing
international students – not a large percentage out
of 8,500, but still an important part of a multinational,
multicultural campus that is nearly 40 percent
minorities (26 percent identify as Hispanic/Latino).
GCU Today Magazine decided that it was time to tell
the stories of some of these students and to highlight
the impact they are making.
Dr. Timothy Larkin , an associate professor of
sociology who has been at GCU for four years, also has
a firsthand perspective. He says his classes are enriched
by international students and an even larger population
of undocumented students, estimated to be more
than 300.
“In my Cultural Anthropology class, I made a statement
about how the military component of the DREAM
Act is significant, with (U.S.) citizenship being gained
through that,” Larkin says. “And three students raised
their hands and said that it’s no longer part of the
DREAM Act, that it has been taken off the table.
They’re keeping me current.”
Conaway, who lived in the Czech Republic for three
years, says the welcome mat needs to remain out at
GCU for all nationalities and ethnicities.
“At the end of the day, this supports GCU’s mission to
graduate global citizens,” he says. “What better way
than to bring the world into our classrooms?” ■
– Doug Carroll
Multinational, multicultural:
GCU is a school of the future
GLOBAL
CITIZENS
D.C. intern P3
Serrano Village P4-6
ASGCU president P7
Out of Africa P8-9
Speech/debate P10
Serbian athlete P11
I Am GCU P12-13
Alhambra HS P14-17
Native Americans P18
Online student P19
Alumni P20-23
Volume 3 – Issue 4
GCU Today Magazine is a
quarterly publication of the Office of
Communications and Public Affairs at
Grand Canyon University.
Written and Edited by
DOUG CARROLL
Communications Director
602.639.8011
MICHAEL FERRARESI
Senior Writer
602.639.7030
JANIE MAGRUDER
Communications Manager
602.639.8018
COOPER NELSON
Junior Writer
602.639.7511
KATRINA PALMISANO
RACHELLE REEVES
Student Staff
Design by
DEANNA FUSCO
SoHo Southwest
Photography by
DARRYL WEBB
University Staff Photographer
602.639.6375
Office of Communications
and Public Affairs
BOB ROMANTIC
Executive Director
Grand Canyon University
3300 W. Camelback Road
Phoenix, AZ 85017
ON THE COVER
Senior Jesse Villegas, who lives among refugees, and junior Suji Shin, president of
Grand Canyon University’s student government, are two prominent examples of a growing
multicultural presence on campus. Photographed outside GCU Arena by Darryl Webb
ON THE COVER