Honors College

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.”

The successful journey of growth and academic excellence inspired a celebration for the Honors College Saturday, recognizing President Brian Mueller for his impact and innovation, the college’s 50 inaugural members, a warm speech by recent graduate Brittany Holen and an introduction of the advisory board and team. Students also were invited to meet two outstanding power couples with perspective on balancing careers and marriage.

Hundreds of Honors College students joined together Thursday at the Grand Canyon University Arena to celebrate the largest freshman class since the College’s beginning in 2013 and to learn about the opportunities available for a brighter future.

This spring, 17 students in the Honors College had the chance to explore England, Ireland and Scotland in 12 days. After riding in a huge bus through narrow streets, spending time with locals and experiencing new cultures, students left with two things – the urge to travel again and new friends for the semester to come. GCU Today has the story.

“Making a Difference One Life at a Time,” a program created for special needs children, won first place in the Honors College’s Spring Symposium Showcase. Each team member received $3,000 in scholarships, and there also were scholarship prizes for second and third place.

Nearly 70 students from the Honors College presented research projects related to themes of service, ethics, research and leadership Saturday at the third annual Grand Canyon University Symposium Showcase. The students are part of the top 11 brightest and most creative teams competing for scholarships scheduled to be awarded April 16.

GCU’s Honors College asks a lot of its gifted students, but it asked a little more recently when it put 22 of them through the Personal Academic Career Boot Camp. Three emerged as the finalists for the $3,000 scholarship by best handling the mock interviewing, networking and professional training.

GCU is honoring principals who spread the love of STEM to students at their schools. These are educators who have create aerospace, robotics and earth science clubs, science fairs, renewable energy workshops, rocket science experiments, or on the high school level have added physics, engineering and advanced math to their curriculum.

Like nearly everything on campus, Grand Canyon University’s Honors College is growing fast. The college, which changed from the Honors Institute to Honors College in June, will have a total enrollment of more than 700 students this fall, 11 times its size at inception three years ago, including 467 incoming freshmen with an average GPA of 4.16. Also new this year, Camelback Hall will be the first dedicated housing for Honors students on campus. The rapid growth has brought added benefits to students and increased GCU’s status as a quality academic institution.

Grand Canyon University’s Honors Institute has emerged as a hub for creative problem-solving. In its second year, the Institute’s students — which could total more than 600 by fall — are already working on projects to generate ideas on how to integrate academics and issues facing the University community. Some of those projects, including a look at how to enhance GCU’s partnership with Habitat for Humanity, will be on display Saturday at Antelope Gym lecture halls and the first-floor meeting rooms at the Student Union.