Outreach

On her own 3D printer at home in Florence, Arizona, GCU robotics and engineering major Kylee Rodgers likes to print keychains and other trinkets. But 3D printing is a whole new ballgame on her current project — helping build the first Habitat for Humanity 3D-printed house. “I saw news articles a couple of years ago about 3D-printed houses, but they were just tiny. It hasn’t been ANYTHING like this. … It’s really cool,” said Kylee, who is volunteering alongside her father, Dominic, the Habitat volunteer team lead on the Tempe project.

Jazmine Cordon and her high school team engineered a plant-watering robot to help educate middle schoolers who have seen their share of food insecurity. Fiona Tran’s middle school team wanted to help wheelchair users by designing a wheelchair light to make it safer to navigate pathways at night. The two teams, whose projects’ roots are at Sevilla Elementary School West, just a half-mile from GCU, presented their projects at the virtual MESA USA National Engineering Design Competition on Monday. It was the first time students from the school competed at nationals, something that might not have happened, said Sevilla West STEM educator Mia DeLaRosa, if not for help from GCU’s K12 STEM Outreach team.

GCU Nursing alumna Brittney Hoyt grew up singing in church and at county fairs in Case Grande, Arizona, so when her best friend asked her to sing at her wedding, she was thrilled to be a part of her big day. It’s where she met fellow wedding singer Jake Hoot. Eight years later, the two are married and Jake, after winning the 17th season of NBC’s “The Voice,” is a rising country star. Not that Brittney isn’t a powerhouse herself. The labor and delivery nurse returns to Nicaragua often to do missionary work, she operates her own nonprofit, and she has returned to singing, regularly joining husband Jake when he performs.

GCU’s Point of Dispensing vaccination site will end full-time operations for the public on Monday, exactly three months after it opened. It passed 50,000 vaccinations in just 38 days and didn’t need even that long to reach 100,000. And unlike other sites, which charge several thousand dollars per day, GCU did it for free by using students, faculty and staff volunteers. Reprinted from the April issue of GCU Magazine.

It was a productive semester for students looking to attend graduate school as the Honors College wrapped up its Pre-Law and Pre-Health Professional, Academic and Career Programs. Both programs, one of which made its debut this semester, played a role in helping prepare students for what they can expect when it comes to graduate school. “From my point of view, it was very helpful and very informative,” said government student Madeline Landes, who attended all of the Pre-Law P.A.C. sessions this semester. “I would recommend this because I think it’s a very informative program.”

There was no shortage of inspirational redemption stories at Wednesday’s Phoenix Rescue Mission Signing Event as three of four scholarship recipients signed their letter of intent to attend the University in the fall. The recipients, who have completed the nonprofit’s Recovery Program, include Amanda Jaramillo, Jacqueline Mix, Brian Farretta and GCU 2019 alum Jesse Dalla Riva. “These people have had some significant challenges and they’ve taken the first step now, they’ve gone through the Phoenix Rescue Mission Program, they’ve come out of it successfully and they’ve started their new life,” said GCU President Brian Mueller. “For us to be able to offer them this opportunity to take their life now to a whole new level is a blessing.”

Setting a $3.2 million pledge goal was lofty in a year of uncertainty, said Dr. Tacy Ashby, Senior Vice President of K12 Educational Development. Yet despite the roadblocks COVID-19 has presented, GCU and GCE employees reached that ambitious objective. “We’re thrilled to have reached the goal, and it is a reflection of the caring and committed GCU community,” Ashby said.

One teacher bought a special seat cushion to make a child with autism feel more comfortable in the classroom. Another grew a garden. The stories of what GCU alumni did with the money granted by Desert Financial Fiesta Bowl Charities Wishes for Teachers are inspiring. The organization sponsored by GCU helps those teachers make their students’ dreams come true, too.

Canyon Urban Farms quickly has become a place of peace and prosperity. It is a favorite destination of the Outdoor Recreation Club with off-campus outings restricted — its members show up every week to care for the raised beds, which continue to supply the community with fresh vegetables. “It’s a meditative activity that wipes away the stress,” freshman Savannah Miles said. “It’s beautiful to make your own produce. Plus, I like dirt. I like playing in dirt.”

College is all about learning experiences, and the Honors STEMists club took learning to the next level when its members built two wheelchairs and donated them to the Neighborhood Christian Clinic. Best of all, the Honors College students got to meet the family of a recipient. “It was just a very raw moment,” said one of the students, Abby Abraham. “They just kept saying, ‘You don’t understand how much this means to us.’”