By Eric Jay Toll/Special to GCU News
Photos by Rick D'Elia / Wednesday morning slideshow / Wednesday morning livestream
When Dennis Owusu won the Green Card Lottery to come to America, he knew it would change his life, but he didn’t know all the ways his life would change. What he experienced is a testament to faith and fortitude.
“(I’d say) to anyone in a dark season: Hold on,” he said. “Even when you’re sleeping in your car, even when the world seems silent, your story is still unfolding. And you’re stronger than you think.”
Owusu speaks from experience.
After losing his job and home, he and his two daughters lived in a car for a year and a half. But his story begins long before sleeping in their vehicle.
“I went to the University of Ghana for my junior and senior year in 2007 and 2008,” said the 2025 Grand Canyon University master's of cybersecurity student who crossed the commencement stage on Wednesday. “I had two classes to complete, but I couldn’t wait.”
Owusu, who now lives in Maryland, bade goodbye to the stepmother who raised him like a son and moved his life to America.
“I was lucky to finish the last two classes online,” Owusu said. “I was in the United States. I had a degree in computer science.”
Coming to America for opportunity also brought him face to face with a harsh reality: He didn’t know anyone.
“It's very difficult when you get to America legally, and then you don't have help,” he said. “You have a lot of people around, but with help or no help, my goals coming from Ghana were, one, for greener pastures, and two, to become a medical doctor.”
Owusu said the reality of his dream hit him hard. He returned to school in Maryland and earned Certified Nursing Assistant and Geriatric Nursing Assistant certificates to work in assisted living centers or nursing homes. He landed a job, but it wasn’t his dream.
“(America) is a lot different than what we see back home on television,” he said. “We see the fancy stuff. Musicians throwing money around like it’s a pot of gold everywhere. You come here and it is very different.”
Working as a CNA/GNA, Owusu loved his job because he loves to help people of any age, but he found himself drawn to geriatric adults. He landed at a nursing home in Maryland. Continuing his education, he became a Certified Patient Care Technician. He honed his skills to advance himself on the career ladder, but becoming a doctor was still far out of sight.
“I realized I wanted to go to school to be a (registered nurse),” he recalled. “But looking at the time, the lack of flexibility and financial stability, I asked how I’m able to (support) myself and my family.”
Owusu eventually started losing interest in nursing, and a friend of his at the time was attending GCU as an online student and suggested he look into it.
“I came to America and just didn't give up,” he said. “It was time I did something for myself. I thought about it. And I was like, OK, why not?
"I said to myself, I can, I can do this. I'm new to online classes and all that. I'm always used to an in-person class. So I took the challenge. It's not been easy, but here I am.”
He started his coursework, and then disaster struck.
“When I started the classes, I became homeless with my two kids,” Owusu said. “I realized that you have to find people to help you. I love to help people, but when it comes to me, people don’t like to help. (I worried that) my kids and I would fail. I brought them into the world, and it’s for me to take care of them.”
He got a job while they were at school, but not one generating enough income to rent a place in the pricy Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Living in the car for 18 months, Owusu and his daughters pulled into the library parking lot and shared the Wi-Fi for the three to do their homework. He acknowledges that, were it not for GCU, he would not have had the motivation to succeed or the means to do it. After all that time in the car, he finally found affordable housing.
Through it all, his university admissions counselor, Melanie Mozey, was there to help and guide him through the struggles of being unhoused.
“She would pray with me, she would encourage me. I really didn’t open up to her, but she was always there for me.”
At last, in a home, a more secure job, and a better life for his daughters, he completed his degree and came to Phoenix for commencement.
“When I became homeless, my oldest daughter told me, ‘The degree is not just to put on the wall. It’s your pride. It’s our pride, so we can see something on the wall with your name on it and say, My dad did that.’”
It kept him going to earn the degree through all of his challenges. From it, he learned something he shares with others: "Go with your passion,” Owusu said. “Don’t look at the money. It will come. Trust in God and don’t give up on yourself.”
Phoenix-based Eric Jay Toll is an award-winning freelance journalist and photographer covering business, the economy and travel. His work has appeared in such publications as the Phoenix Business Journal and USA Today.
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