Grand Canyon University

It wasn’t a complete shock to GCU Justice Studies students this summer when racial tensions flared regarding police officer actions across the country. They had created plans to help alleviate those issues in their Community Based Strategic Planning class. More importantly, they provided solutions.

July 4 is the day Americans celebrate the nation’s independence. But how that date emerged and how we have celebrated it through the years are a series of surprises revealed by Dr. David Dean, Assistant Professor of History at GCU. He wrote a compelling summary of the holiday for GCU Today with historical peculiarities, such as what two presidents died on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Mental health counseling and religious faith haven’t always been on the same page. Today, that is changing. Dr. Laurie Tone, adjunct counseling instructor in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, led a webinar Thursday that described how the integration of faith and counseling can give people hope, especially in these uncertain times.

A global pandemic didn’t stop the College of Nursing and Health Care Professions from helping its graduate students — all working nurses — move one step closer to completing their master’s degrees. The college worked hard to make the three-day summer residencies for Family Nurse Practitioner and Acute Care Nurse Practitioner as COVID-19-safe as possible. Despite the current health climate, “Most of the students said, ‘I’ll still be there,'” said Stephanie Herrick Kays, Graduate Simulation Coordinator.

Beakers, goggles and graduated cylinders have long made their homes in countless chemistry labs. But not this summer, at least not in Dr. Kimberly Horsley’s introductory chemistry class. She wanted to find out if some lab activities could be done at home, and COVID-19 presented a unique opportunity to test the at-home-lab-experiment waters. Her CHM-113 students received lab kits in the mail, assembled by the College of Science, Engineering and Technology’s lab team, and the remote chemistry opportunity was on.

GCU counselors have continued to be productive while working from home, and the numbers for May showed just how much. They completed more than 232,000 activities on behalf of students, a jump of 31% from 2019, and the number of outbound calls increased by 15%.

GCU students in School Counseling practicums across the country found a way to make the best of the bad situations caused by the pandemic. Facing emptied schools, they fashioned creative ways to be of service to their communities. “It reflects GCU’s mission, which is to help the best way we can,” said Angelica Corona.

The work of David Kadlubowski, Athletics and Media Photographer for Grand Canyon Education, is well-known by anyone who regularly reads GCU Today or GCU Magazine. It also was the focus of a national competition last week — Kadlubowski submitted six entries, and three placed in the top four. One was chosen as the best in the Personal Vision category.

You still can break out your ten-gallon hat and shiny cowboy boots if you want, but Habitat for Humanity of Central Arizona is moving its annual “Blueprints and Blue Jeans” fundraising gala online. The event is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday and will feature a message from GCU President Brian Mueller and appearances by Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and former Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner.

The Pineda brothers, Josh and Jake, have used their GCU degrees in Digital Design with an Emphasis in Web Design to get off to a strong start in the field. But that’s not where their similarities end. Hardly. They hung out together when they both were on campus, and now they share their common interests when they travel.