Recent News

Pursuing a doctoral degree is one of the most challenging endeavors in academics. But Dr. Michael Berger, Dean of the College of Doctoral Studies, and his staff have developed a program that gives learners multiple ways to receive assistance. “We can’t make it easy, but we try to make it easier by the addition of all the great support services that we have,” he said.

The Honors College, which started as a student community of 59 in 2013, has grown to become GCU’s ninth college and this fall welcomed more than 1,000 freshmen, bringing its total to more than 2,250 with no signs of slowing down. “As the culture shifts year after year, as we get these new waves of exceptional leaders coming in, each year can look like a completely different story,” Associate Dean Breanna Naegeli said.

In a new GCU Today feature, Faculty Focus will highlight outstanding faculty at the University, both ground and online. The first installment is on College of Education Professor Dr. Meredith Critchfield, who has an unquenchable zest for education as well as some other interesting passions.

GCU’s College of Education leaders knew they had a department of skilled faculty and a rigorous and innovative curriculum. Others have agreed. COE was awarded the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP) for seven years after reviewing the evidence collected through a process of self-study and peer review. Dr. Kimberly LaPrade, Dean of COE, said the national accreditation validates what she knew: “There are a lot of people that don’t have the depth of experience that our faculty has.”

They sang. Oh, how they sang. They worshiped. Oh, how they worshiped. The annual Ignite ceremony, a staple of Welcome Week, turned everyone in GCU Arena on Thursday night into a participant and challenged the emotions of everyone who was there. It was that powerful.

Grand Canyon University Theatre Department’s first play of the 2019-2020 season looks to be one of the most comedic it has done in a while. Director Michael Kary compares the comedic styles to shows like “The Office” or “Parks and Recreation,” and the cast said audiences won’t want to miss the production. “It’s very funny, I will go as far as to say I’ve never been part of a show that is funnier than this one,” said Micah Larsen, who plays the role of Francis Henshall. “There’s a laugh at every turn, so if that’s not good enough reason to come out and laugh a little, I don’t know what is.”

Move-In gets the year started off right for incoming GCU students, but it has the same effect on the volunteers who help them. Whether they’re helping for the first time or are seniors and have done it every year, they treasure the excitement. “It’s my third year, and it’s always the same energy,” said one.

The annual GCU INsider, reprinted from the August issue of GCU Magazine, contains its usual assortment of information and tips on the new pizza place on campus and other improvements that students will see. And then there are the really important answers to questions you undoubtedly had … such as what shade of purple GCU uses.

Jazz preservation, That’s what Dance Director Susannah Keita and the rest of GCU’s Dance department hope to accomplish by putting such a strong emphasis on jazz dance within their program. Few Dance programs offer jazz dance to their students, making GCU’s dance program a unique and sought after program for students looking to study jazz dance. Recently Keita was even able to present at the National Dance Education Organization’s jazz conference this summer. “We want our dancers to be prepared for the commercial dance world and the concert dance world,” Keita said. “Jazz can be in either.”

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Projections for 2016-2026, registered nursing is among the top occupations for job growth. Despite that growth in the field, the number of nurses emerging from higher education wont’ be enough. The bureau estimates the country will need more than 1 million registered nurses by 2024, and the outlook is even more dire for Arizona. Read how GCU and partner GCE are trying to alleviate the problem.