Online Life

Katia Cheetany, didn’t let the language barrier stop her when she immigrated to the U.S. from Lebanon 26 years ago. Now she refuses to allow the obstacles that have come up throughout her doctoral journey keep her from furthering her education and achieving her goal. “From every professor I learn something. At the end of every class I walked out with something,” She said. “To me I feel like every single class gave me an opportunity to grow academically and personally.”

Saturday was a day of celebration as Grand Canyon University’s Alpha Chi chapter inducted 1,212 new members into the prestigious honors society. Only students within the top 10% of their graduating class in each of their individual colleges are eligible. “GCU does attract a lot of exceptional learners,” Honors College Associate Dean Breanna Naegeli said.

Assistant Professor Chuck Banaszewski primarily teaches the first class that doctoral learners take when they come into the program, and they can rest assured that they are being instructed who knows what he’s talking about. Banaszewski’s background is filled with scholarly presentations, and his goal is to give the learners a solid foundation as they prepare to begin their dissertation.

There were graduates from four different colleges at the Thursday evening ceremony of Fall Commencement, but their stories have several things in common — starting with perseverance. But it’s also gratifying to hear about the support of their families and the admiration of their children.

For Jamaica native and now North Carolina resident Garfield Hyman, getting his bachelor’s degree in Applied Management always has been about making his journey worthwhile. He said his GCU instructors helped him on his online journey: “I found support, making the experience a really good one.”

Kirk Cameron’s Fall Commencement keynote address underlines the importance of perseverance. The former “Growing Pains” star and now prominent Christian actor addressed GCU’s most recent group of graduates with congratulations and a powerful message of overcoming fear, fulfilling their mission and finishing the race. “This was really exciting,” Cameron said. “I was a little nervous, I’ve never done it before … I knew with all these Christian families, it was just really a special blessing to be part of this day that they’ll remember for their whole life.”

You want to hear about determination? Take a listen to the Colangelo College of Business graduate who has battled head and neck cancer for 10 years. Or the one who had multiple strokes and had to learn how to walk and talk again. Or the woman who didn’t think she could have children and adopted three — but then got pregnant after she started the online program.

Dennis Attawia, Associate Professor in the College of Science, Engineering and Technology, says he is known among students as someone who can take complex problems and make them understandable. Considering how he looks today, you’ll never believe the style he rocked back in the day.

GCU’s Eta Chi chapter of Delta Mu Delta, the international business honors society, keeps giving Colangelo College of Business students more reasons to join if they are lucky enough to receive an invitation. It now ranks among the top 10 chapters in the country, and this year its members received four scholarships from the organization — the first time the chapter has gotten that many. Students with 24 GCU credits and in the top 20% of their class are eligible.

Dr. Jeff Jibben, a member of the Online Full Time Faculty in the College of Theology, is an expert on the Gospel of Matthew and was a church pastor for 20 years. He is passionate about making complex material easier to understand, is a do-it-yourselfer and has a side career that feeds his love for making a house a home.