Campus Life

Just one builder constructing almost an entire university? It’s unheard of. But it’s something Pono Construction, under the leadership of owner Butch Glispie, has done, beginning with North Rim Apartments in 1986. For 33 years, Glispie and his team of subcontractors have helped carry out the vision of the University, raising and renovating more than 60 structures on campus.

GCU doesn’t quite look like other universities. Instead of Georgian colonial- or Greek revival-inspired structures, the University’s buildings are more futuristic, with their rectangular shapes that jut in and out, spans of glass, and touches of color, such as warm yellows, oranges and greens. But those designs also incorporate a nod to the University’s past with their brick bases. “The campus is rooted in its history. That’s why you see this (brick) block, which is really the strong foundation of the Christian values that ground the campus,” said suoLL architect Caroline Lobo.

The new GCU Innovation Center now has a director (Robert Vera), a home (Building 66 at 27th Avenue), a slogan (“Create your purpose”) and a GCU-oriented goal — to provide opportunities for both GCU students and local start-ups. Dr. Randy Gibb, Dean of the Colangelo College of Business, calls it “a different way to approach this start-up world.” Vera certainly knows how to approach that world as well as a lot of other ventures. He’s even a best-selling author.

Liz Cook says that most students come to campus after years of their parents worrying for them about what they are — or aren’t — eating. The new dietitian of the Canyon Health and Wellness Clinic is here to help. After all, her favorite dish is vegetable stir fry. That’s a hint. Foods that are closest to looking like something you need to pick out of a field are good for you. Cook will bring much more good advice to her new role, as part of the expanded clinic that aims to satisfy even more student health needs in the coming year. Another hint from Cook: “The unhealthiest choice is the easiest choice.”

The Chapel schedule for the fall semester features a lot of speakers who have brought strong messages to campus before. From Beth Guckenberger to Ron Merrell to Riccardo Stewart and many more, here’s a look at who’s speaking when and what they’ve said before.

A new Grand Canyon University mail center opened Monday to meet the needs of a growing student population and its consumer habits of shopping online. Stephanie Salas said the center will process more than 1,500 packages every day. Inside the complex located across the bridge of the Little Canyon Trail in Building 44 is a huge warehouse filled with shelves that will be holding everything from shipped bicycles to lamps and refrigerators. After all, Salas said, it is a “click-and-shop generation.”

The usual lunchtime burger-and-fries fare is getting an upgrade at Canyon 49 Grill, which rolled out its new all-day menu. That means foodies can not only get their fill of their favorite lunchtime sandwich-driven items but also can try some of the Grill’s dinnertime offerings, such as an herbed chicken breast atop calabrese pesto (a type of broccoli), roasted caulilini (baby cauliflower) and goat cheese grits. The Grill also rolled out some new menu items, such as Country Nachos and the Sriracha Burger, which it introduced to about a dozen food bloggers on Tuesday evening as part of the first Food Blogger Night. It’s a reminder, Executive Chef Marcus Maggiore said, that “We want to make sure we have a place on campus where people can get a dining experience instead of just a meal.”

GCU and GCE volunteers fanned out to two homes in the neighborhood on Friday, digging into painting and landscaping projects and defying the July heat. Homeowner Mira Nava recalled the first time Habitat visited her home eight years ago to fix the roof. Her mother was battling cancer at the time and told Nava: “This is a reminder that God is still here.” Andrea Northup, Habitat for Humanity Faith Relations Manager, told Nava: “That’s what GCU lives by — faith.”

There will be a lot of laughs in Ethington Theatre this season, and that’s by design. The schedule, which begins Aug. 23 with “One Man, Two Guvnors,” is filled with classic comedies. “Lighthearted,” said Claude Pensis, Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Production, “but still the plays have messages. It’s always a matter of what does the director want to do, and then how does it fit into the program?”

Christopher Crawford and his Grand Canyon University landscape team perform magic every summer. Despite the summer heat, they water, trim and tend hundreds of plants and trees and acres of the grass to keep the campus looking like an oasis in the desert. Making the campus one of the nation’s best also requires careful selection of plants for shade — thank you, ash trees — and for color, such as lantana along the north end of GCU Stadium.