College of Science Engineering and Technology

For some, it takes a life time for their wildest dreams to come true. For recent Honors college Graduate Quyen Phan, his dream of landing a job with SpaceX came to fruition straight out of college. As a new Associate Engineer Phan hopes to be a trail blazer for fellow engineers graduating from the College of Science, Engineering and Technology. “I want to do good so I can prove that a GCU student can provide this much impact on the company,” Phan said. “I’m hoping that other future GCU students can come on board with me as well.”

It was a productive semester for students looking to attend graduate school as the Honors College wrapped up its Pre-Law and Pre-Health Professional, Academic and Career Programs. Both programs, one of which made its debut this semester, played a role in helping prepare students for what they can expect when it comes to graduate school. “From my point of view, it was very helpful and very informative,” said government student Madeline Landes, who attended all of the Pre-Law P.A.C. sessions this semester. “I would recommend this because I think it’s a very informative program.”

While pet harnesses are already available on the market, no standard exists to test them. So GCU students designed a canine crash test dummy to help make those pet harnesses safer. Another team developed their Smart Valet to help travelers traverse the airport with ease. And a third team developed a seating system for students with disabilities. They were just a few of the 30-plus projects presented at Monday’s virtual senior Engineering Capstone Showcase.

Uriel Serna has always been intrigued by big data and knew it could be used to save lives, so he created a portable nanny camera that uses machine learning to recognize children’s faces. He wanted to help parents better monitor their children to prevent tragedies, such as children drowning in their family’s swimming pools. Shelby Clow and Kolten Spencer created an app for first-time pet owners. And Deep Contractor and Michael Stauffer designed a virtual reality chatroom where people who don’t speak the same language can communicate, despite the language barrier. Those were just a few of the 40 or so projects computer science, computer programming and information technology/cybersecurity seniors created for the senior Technology Capstone Showcase, which was virtual this year.

From natural deodorant to COVID-19 research, there was no shortage of impressive student presentations at this year’s CSET Research Symposium and Honors Showcase on Saturday. Honors finalists delivered in-person presentations while CSET finalists presented orally via Zoom. “It just goes to show how active and engaged our students were both inside and outside the classroom this year despite COVID-19 and limitations on what they could and couldn’t do,” Honors College Associate Dean Dr. Breanna Naegeli said.

GCU wanted to go where the jobs were, which is why it opened the College of Science, Engineering and Technology in 2014. Today, the college is announcing that four of its programs have been accredited by ABET, including the bachelor’s degree program in Computer Science and the bachelor’s degree programs in Biomedical, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. It’s a prestigious distinction that assures employers that GCU’s students are meeting a quality standard. “They know that these students are prepared for industry,” said Dr. Janet Brelin-Fornari, Associate Dean of Engineering. Fifth in a nine-part series spotlighting each GCU college as the fall semester begins.

When Spring Commencement was postponed because of COVID-19, the Graefe family still wanted to celebrate its two graduates: Jake, who had earned his bachelor’s degree, and his mother, Beth, who had just completed her dissertation defense. Beth asked her dissertation committee chair, Dr. JoAnn Foley Markette, if she would give a speech via Zoom for the impromptu ceremony, and Markette delivered a talk they won’t forget. “I got teary eyed because Dr. Markette said such beautiful things,” Beth said.

The College of Science, Engineering and Technology Research Symposium and Honors Showcase made a quick transition to online when the COVID-19 precautions were put in place. “For a tight three-week timeline, I think our administration, faculty and students did an incredible job bringing their work to life in a virtual manner,” said Breanna Naegeli, Honors College Associate Dean.

National Cybersecurity Career Awareness Week is designed to introduce students to careers in the field. One event GCU students could attend this week was a Provost Speaker Series talk on Wednesday by GCE’s Chief Information Security Officer Mike Manrod. He spoke about what students could really expect from a career in cybersecurity. “He is what students want to be. They want to be Mike,” said Technology Project Manager Katherine Urrutia. “We thought it would be great for him to come in and talk to our students.”

Increasingly, students at Grand Canyon University are adding minors. These extra concentrated courses give students deeper knowledge in a branch of their major, an increased skill set, a complement to their major, or a completely different academic area to explore.