Academics

Honors College students gathered in GCU Arena on Saturday night to celebrate all of their achievements during the 2018-19 academic year. Assistant Dean Breanna Naegeli said the Honors banquet is one of her favorite events of the year. “It allows us all an opportunity to take a moment to reflect upon and acknowledge all the exceptional work and efforts of our students. These students not only take Honors courses and commit to the rigor in the classroom, but they continually go above and beyond outside of the classroom as well,” she said.

Students and faculty made their way to the Colangelo College of Business lobby Friday to watch the inauguration of ASGCU’s new leadership, led by President Samuel Yonan and Executive Vice President Bret Malkin, and bid farewell to 2018-19 President Noah Wolfe. “I’m excited for what they’re going to do. They’re going to do a great job,” Wolfe said. “We’ve had a great run and got a lot of stuff done, so I feel confident to hand the baton off to some wonderful people. I’m looking forward to what’s in the future.”

Learning and Living Communities are designed for GCU freshmen who prefer to share a residence hall room, suite or floor with students of similar academic interests. Along with the connections they make organically, there are organized activities in Juniper Hall, the building housing six LLC’s: Honors, Colangelo College of Business (CCOB), College of Science, Engineering and Technology (CSET), psychology from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), and nursing and athletic training through the College of Nursing and Health Care Professions (CONHCP). “It has a different feel,” Kayla Warren said of her freshman year in Juniper. “It is academically centered, where we were all in the same mindset.”

English/professional writing major Jordan Radcliffe said StartleBloom is important because it assures that “student creativity has a voice and an outlet.” About 40 student-created literary works, such as poems and short fiction, are included in the latest edition of the literary review. The StartleBloom team handed out copies of the publication Wednesday on the Promenade.

Washington High School senior Juan Ballez has watched his father struggle with mobility in his hand and, for years, wished there was a way he could help. Now, on the cusp of graduating, he thinks he knows a way — by becoming a biomedical engineer. His dream of helping people, like his father, came closer to fruition Tuesday at GCU, when he found out he was one of 43 students in the neighborhood surrounding GCU to receive the Students Inspiring Students scholarship. “It feels like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders,” said Juan after receiving the scholarship, which covers four years of tuition and books. “… I was determined. I was like, I can’t have my parents pay for it (college). I don’t want that burden on them.”

Mark Snyder, President of Snyder Nationwide Real Estate, spoke to graduate and Hospitality Management students Thursday about he injects his faith into the business world. “I’m going to do what’s right every time,” he said. “I pursue God daily. God’s the kingmaker, not your talents.”

The recent Honors College Leadership Conference helped those students build connections with business professionals and better prepare themselves for the future. “I think it was a great opportunity to meet established individuals in the various fields, whether it be business or different markets of leadership, but also meeting other motivated individuals that are students as well,” Honors student Elisha Fronda said.

The Milwaukee Brewers showed off their spring training facility in Maryvale on Tuesday, and there’s an important GCU connection: There’s space for a Learning Lounge, which opens April 16. The baseball team, like the University, is focused on building the community. “We’re excited to be part of that,” said Andrew Daugherty, General Manager of the Maryvale complex.

The majority of the seven presentations in the second annual Kevin McClean Research Colloquium featured work that can be applied in the classroom. That’s no accident. GCU adheres to the Boyer model of scholarship, which goes beyond research and extends to application and integration.

Men’s soccer coach Schellas Hyndman wanted one thing for youth attending Saturday’s Future for KIDS soccer camp: To have fun. But he also encouraged them to exhibit good sportsmanship, practice, work hard and to value their education, much like the soccer players who conducted the camp do. More than 160 youth, ages 7 to 12, attended the event, which marked the first time GCU men’s soccer has hosted a camp with Future for KIDS, a mentorship program that emphasizes education, ethics and athletics.