Student Engagement

The near future will be a time of transition and hope, from a time dominated by a virus to one of helping each other, according to the priorities of three candidates for president of the Associated Students of Grand Canyon University. The election runs Wednesday through Friday, and Azul Pereyra, Havilah Houston and Darion Padilla will discuss their plans in a Meet the Candidates event at 5 p.m. Wednesday on the Quad.

It’s a window of opportunity for Student Leaders. The window is on the Student Life Building, where a large graphic art piece was installed Tuesday that showcases student leadership and the chance for students to apply for positions for next academic year. It’s not the biggest that GCU graphic installer Martell Robinson has done, but it’s close. Even bigger is what it represents: Student Leaders who set the tone for campus life.

This semester has been like no other. But GCU’s leaders and students adapted to the pandemic. They went to class in face coverings, gathered outdoors for Bible study and took part in fun events specially designed to avoid close contact. Campus life endured. And these creative examples are proof positive. Reprinted from the November issue of GCU Magazine.

It’s not home but GCU campus is the next best thing for the holidays. Administrators and students are using their creative spirit to celebrate with campus events and food while staying safe and avoiding travel over Thanksgiving. They are gathering for a “Friendsgiving” or taking part in GCU Dining’s fabulous meal, or even offering their own recipes from home, such as student Nate Lowery’s winning caramel apple salad.

Multicultural Office Director Donald Glenn views diversity as a stained glass window made up of different sizes, colors and textures, each piece beautiful in its individuality — but they’re magnificent when they come together. It’s that message of unity that the University is embracing in its approach to diversity — the Christian worldview of bringing people together. For GCU, that means unifying its diverse student body of approximately 90 countries and cultures so that everyone has a seat at the table.

It was a busy week for the Multicultural, Diversity and Inclusion Office, which culminated Un1ty One Week with Worship Night and the Parade of the Nations. Students wore traditional dress and carried flags from different countries to show the diversity of the GCU campus. Students from more than 90 nations and cultures make their home at GCU. The weeklong event also included a talk with student-athletes of color, an art walk, presidential-styled debate and Cooking and Culture Night. “It was all about us coming together and continuing that message of oneness,” said Multicultural Office Director Donald Glenn.

Edgar Moreno played Donald Trump. Devon Wemple played Joe Biden. But the GCU Speech and Debate team members weren’t 100% accurate in their imitations during a mock presidential debate on Wednesday. They were civil, even presidential, in laying out the positions of the candidates prior to Tuesday’s election.

What happens when a bunch of lawyers form a club? Sorry, there’s no punchline. The Pre-Law Society Club was launched last winter to help pre-law students connect and study for the difficult transition to law school. In its first meeting this semester, there were surprises on what they need to know, and it wasn’t a good lawyer joke.

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.

Excited students brought life back to the GCU campus on a Saturday night of celebration. Welcome Fest was filled with activities all across campus. What the new students learned was the overwhelming sense of community that can still exist six feet apart and wearing masks. “You are not alone,” host Caleb Duarte told a group of freshman gathering on the fields in The Grove. “We are one Lope. We are one herd.”