College of Education

Chesa Mendez of the College of Education is passionate about diversity awareness in the classroom because, she says, the world has changed but the educational system has been the same for hundreds of years. She also is so devoted to health and wholeness, she created a company that focuses on seven lifestyle areas for what she calls “a holistic approach.”

Amanda Errington is new to the Online Full-Time Faculty in the College of Education, but she isn’t new to teaching. In fact, that’s what she lives and breathes. She says she’s very passionate about quality teacher professional development,” and she has shown it time and again during her own experiences in the classroom. Particularly interesting is the time she taught a class even though she was the principal of the school.

For GCU student Maddie Bucky, befriending a boy with special needs changed her outlook. Her problems didn’t seem so large, but that wasn’t all. The boy embraced life and always had a smile, so she tries to do that, too. As president of the student club Best Buddies, she will join others in celebrating the first Disability Awareness Week at GCU.

Nathan Hollis II, Assistant Professor in the College of Education, is a faculty member worth watching. After all, how often do you hear someone say, “I don’t believe my most notable professional accomplishment has come just yet. I believe it is on my journey ahead, and God continues to prepare me.”

Paul Danuser is widely known on campus as an exuberant public address announcer for GCU Athletics. But in his other life as an Assistant Professor and student, he was playing the long game of completing his doctoral degree. In August, he finally won. Dr. Paul Danuser shared what the experience was like, the importance of being a lifelong learner and what he hopes to do next.

Deborah Haralson, IT and IT/cyber faculty lead, wore virtual pink hair and asked students to fill out an online poll about the RAM on their computers. Mechanical Engineering Technology instructor Dina Higgins hit play on her first “Safety Minute” segment. College of Education Assistant Professor Dr. Brandon Juarez started class with a prayer and said he would help students look into how they can become great classroom teachers. Professors and students navigated the first day of class online in the COVID-19 world while looking forward to Sept. 28, when they’ll see each other in person for the first day of on-campus instruction. “While not under the best circumstances, it was a great first day overall,” said technology student Alex Schaeffer.

Dr. Debbie Rickey was known to have an open door in GCU’s College of Education, ready to listen to new ideas for growth and to offer personal support to colleagues. On Monday, she retires after four decades in education and was honored with a retirement parade to her Phoenix home. She leaves an important legacy with countless students who learned from her, teachers she helped mold and with GCU, where she helped lead the effort to the COE’s national accreditation.

Teaching can be tough. Fighting for enough funding or pay. Taking all of society’s ills into your classroom, which this year means COVID-19. But GCU is putting a positive light on the profession and celebrating it when it needs it most. The College of Education’s “Lopes Teach Up” is a pledge everyone should sign to support the front-line educators we appreciate even more this fall.

To say the new Assistant Dean in the College of Education is driven may be an understatement. Emily Pottinger has taken on the leadership role while producing an education podcast, studying for her doctorate and preparing for the birth of her second child. Part of her drive comes from wanting to train teachers to love and care for students — a positive education she wants for her own children one day.

Katy Long calls it “the circle of life,” not after “The Lion King” song but after GCU’s efforts to fill Arizona schools with more teachers than any other college. One reason for the College of Education’s success is partnerships with school districts. Students do practicums and internships at schools, often under the tutelage of former GCU students who work there, then are hired full time and help mentor other Lopes, filling that circle with GCU-educated teachers.