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The annual Valentine’s Day dinner in the Student Union drew its largest turnout ever Thursday night. Students were treated to a six-course meal of roasted New York strip steak, garlic shrimp, broccolini, baked potato, bread rolls followed by a chocolate dessert.

The Learning Lounge is making an immediate impact on students at Westwood Elementary. Based on first semester test results, 50 percent of the third and fourth grade math students improved by one to two grade levels as opposed to no grade level growth among students at a control group school. Targeted lessons developed by Learning Lounge leaders and implemented in small group instruction by GCU students, known as LEADs (Learning Advocates), are paying off.

Wow … as in wow, it’s big and wow, it’s nice. That has been the typical reaction this week as students got their first look at the Canyon Activities Center, which features 10 sparkling new basketball courts, plenty of places to sit and a full-service Lopes Mart. But along with those conveniences comes a versatility that quickly made it a great place to hang out. “That’s the biggest thing – just the magnitude of the number of things we can do,” Campus Recreation Director Matt Lamb said.

Standing alone on the stage, the young man in the tuxedo is anything but unnerved by the spotlight nor the GCU Arena crowd of his peers, 7,000 strong. Caleb Duarte’s suave emcee performances at all major entertainment events on campus have led to the creation of “Canyon Night Show.’’ As he hosts his Valentine’s Day-themed fourth taping of CNS before a live audience at 7 p.m. today at Thunderground, Duarte’s dream of hosting a nationally televised talk show is being sown.

John Iannarelli worked some high-profile cases when he was with the FBI — the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the shooting of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and the Oklahoma City bombing. He spent some time Wednesday speaking with students about his work with the FBI and qualities that make a good leader. Iannarelli was on campus as part of the Provost Speaker Series.

In a first-person “My LopeLife” account, Caleb Duarte tells what being “The Host” at GCU has meant to him, personally and spiritually. Reprinted from the February issue of GCU Magazine.

College of Education students from Grand Canyon University are taking advantage of an innovative pre-service resident teaching program that enables them to create and implement lesson plans and work directly with students on an accelerated basis. These benefits are evident at Westwood Elementary, where GCU students are putting educational theory into practice.

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.

GCU’s Academic Excellence Site (AES) partnership with Westwood Elementary is multi-faceted, from a pre-service resident teaching program to the Learning Lounge, Canyon Professional Development, Leadership Coaching and Parent View. Among the many positive results: Westwood students are building skills, gaining momentum and developing a vision for higher education.

Grand Canyon University has wrapped itself around Westwood Elementary, the first of three K-12 schools designated as an Academic Excellence Site. As part of GCU President Brian Mueller’s five-point plan, a team of departments, including K-12 Educational Development, the College of Education, and the Learning Lounge, collaborate to improve academic success in local schools and help young students consider college as part of their future.