Colangelo College of Business

Ivan Nechunaev, a former All-American swimmer, reached another milestone when he became the first GCU graduate to be accepted into The Wharton School of The University of Pennsylvania. But what he plans to do with that prestigious degree is even more significant.

Welcome Week 2017 promises to be another busy and festive time for students as they return to campus. But it’s extremely important, too. “The week says to all, ‘You belong here,’” said Charity Norman, manager of GCU’s Student and Family Program.

It has been only three months since Andrea Northup got her Business Management degree, but she already is working for Habitat for Humanity and also is launching an interesting and extremely humane entrepreneurial venture. How she got to GCU and then turned this into all that is quite a story.

Paul Waterman is no ordinary instructor. For one thing, he’s an accomplished pilot. But he also is a multitalented entrepreneur who has brought a learn-by-doing wisdom to his role in the Colangelo College of Business at Grand Canyon University. He recently was named the college’s Outstanding Service faculty member for the 2016-17 academic year.

Emauni Burnes-DePaul was overcome with emotion Wednesday when Thunder, Westwood High School staff and GCU faculty surprised her by awarding her a full-tuition Colangelo Scholarship to the Colangelo College of Business. “I had faith in God but this makes me love Him so much more,” Emauni said.

It doesn’t take long to see why Dr. Barry Asmus was ranked by USA Today as one of the five most requested speakers in the country. Starting with the fall semester, Colangelo College of Business students will get a first-hand look at his passion for economics and the joy he gets from teaching and sharing his faith.

Dr. Rick Roth was a longtime high school and college basketball coach before coming to GCU to work as an assistant professor in the Colangelo College of Business. He’s using what he learned from his experiences and a case study he did for his dissertation to do workshops for the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) titled “Champions of Character: Coaches as Moral Influencers.”

Photos by Slaven Gujic GCU News Bureau Online students in the Colangelo College of Business, College of Education, College of Fine Arts and Production, and College of Theology received their diplomas Saturday in two separate ceremonies at Grand Canyon University Arena.   

Ryan Pinney rolled his wheelchair onstage Saturday at spring commencement with the same force he has used to overcome the bicycling injury that paralyzed him. But the Air Force veteran is philosophical about getting his Sports Management degree and the other accomplishments he has achieved in his journey.

Twenty-one students in the Honors College inaugural group, which began in 2013, were awarded their degrees Thursday. Breanna Naegeli, Honors College assistant dean, described the moment as “bittersweet” but added, “We’ve been really blessed because without them we wouldn’t be where we are today.”