Photos by Ralph Freso
Laura Sutton could not wait.
The incoming Grand Canyon University freshman from Ramona, California, accompanied by mom Sharon, checked into her Acacia Hall apartment at 5:55 a.m. Monday – five minutes before the first group of students were scheduled to move in on the first day of an event-packed, bustling Welcome Week.
“We wanted to move in as early as possible because it’s Arizona,” Sharon Sutton said after three trips from their vehicle to her daughter’s apartment.
The rising sun, accompanied by a quick spike in temperature, did little to melt the Suttons’ excitement as the Thundering Heard Pep Band and the rest of the Spirit team performed on the Grove lawn while Thunder, GCU’s mascot, mingled with incoming freshmen, their parents and a plethora of volunteer workers.
The vibrant, high-energy atmosphere cast an auspicious mood over the four freshmen apartment buildings at the Grove on the northwest corner of campus as GCU embarks on the 2024-25 academic year and its milestone 75th anniversary.
“I just think it's super, super meaningful,” GCU student body president Ashley Cote said. “I've gotten the opportunity these past few months to learn more about the GCU history and what comes with that. I think with the 75th year, you're just going to see GCU be a campus that celebrates a lot of things, which is so special. You get to just have even more energy, just more festivities, just all the fun things that come with a celebration year.”
It was on Aug. 1, 1949, that the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention established the university with about 16 faculty and 100 students in Prescott, Arizona, before relocating in 1951 to Phoenix. It has since grown to become the largest Christian university in the country, with much of that sweeping change happening in the past 15 years, as chronicled in the book, "75 Years of Purpose: 15 Years of Transformation."
GCU President Brian Mueller said the first day of Welcome Week is “always a great day” and surveyed freshmen and their families briskly moving into their apartments, hauling their bathroom caddies, area rugs, XL bedding, mini fridges and trinkets from home via carts on wheels.
He reflected on 16 years ago, when GCU was a campus of a little more than 1,000 students, to today, where those numbers have swelled to more than 125,000 students, including more than 25,000 on campus and 100,000 online.
Mueller relished GCU’s presence in west Phoenix and its consistent Christian commitment to the neighborhood and the community.
He also acknowledged how GCU’s steady enrollment speaks to its themes as a private, Christian institution that's dedicated to affordability.
“The fact that we haven't raised tuition in 16 years, the fact that our students take out less debt than the average state university student, the fact that almost 50% of our students are graduating in three years – those are things that are really attractive, especially to middle-class families,” Mueller said.
“But then the fact that we're private, that we're Christians. There were a lot of things that happened on college campuses as we finished the year last year," he said, referencing student protests. "People are anticipating that there'll be some of that coming back, and we didn't have that here.
“We're really focused on solutions and serving the community and serving disadvantaged populations. Those things resonate with everybody, regardless of what background you're coming out of.”
Foot traffic in the lobby of Acacia Hall moved swiftly, thanks in part to the preparation of the apartment’s staff. Resident assistants at the freshman apartments realize they must be extra prepared for the onslaught of questions by parents and students who are living away from home for the first time and might seek some guidance or advice.
“We’re prepared,” Dawson Omdahl, an Acacia RA said as he and fellow staffers waited for the next student check-in. “And we have the experienced RAs to answer all the hard questions and the new RAs to have fun.”
Acacia was expected to check in 15 students in the first hour and 168 at the end of Monday, Omdahl said.
Pushing a cart of personal belongings couldn’t discourage Laura Sutton, who plans to study psychology.
“It’s just the whole environment, and the people are so friendly,” Sutton said. “It really helps you smile unconsciously at how amazing it is.
“(Moving in) has been better than I thought, because everyone is so nice and everything runs smoothly.”
Sutton said she chose GCU because of its academics but became sold after experiencing the lively environment during her Discover trip to visit campus in February. She called her mother from Sky Harbor International Airport to tell her she decided. She was coming to GCU.
It helps that she's just an hour's flight from her hometown and that relatives live in the Phoenix area.
Upperclassmen during move-in can leave an indelible mark on freshmen who appreciate the help in getting acclimated to a new environment. Mueller said nearly 1,500 student leaders – including a life leader and an RA in every residence hall – aim to make every incoming freshman comfortable, especially those who are away from home for the first time.
“They're trained to look out for kids that may be on the spectrum, or they aren't coming out of their rooms, aren't getting connected,” Mueller said. “I get a lot of positive comments about our faculty.
“I get a lot of positive comments about our school leaders, because they're just so concerned that every student has a great experience here. And they use their commitment and their dedication to the institution and work really hard at it.”
GCU News Senior Writer Mark Gonzales can be reached at [email protected]
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GCU News: 75th anniversary brings largest enrollment event at Grand Canyon University
