Grand Canyon University

There’s a reason GCU’s signature event, Move-In, runs smoothly. Event Services, Student Affairs, Residence Life and other teams work hard to make it the most memorable experience possible for first-time Lopes, and they often do it from behind the scenes … and with Uncrustables at the ready.

Madelyn Hendrikse planned a whopper of a farewell to home in Wisconsin before heading to Phoenix for her first year at GCU. She decided to water ski 62 miles across Lake Michigan with a friend. It’s a rare feat that attracted national media attention. It was hard battling the rough waters in the middle of the lake. She did a lot of praying and gutted it out. It was about more than sking, said the freshman who will study biology with a pre-medicine emphasis: “This journey has taught me that I can achieve anything in life that I set my mind toward.”

This just in. Seven, count ’em, SEVEN new dining options are opening for the new semester. Canyon Pizza Co. in the Student Union has created a big buzz, offering slices for a thrifty $2.75 with fresh ingredients. Managers there say they will be listening to customers on new pizza combinations to add throughout the year. Another big Student Union addition is Lopacellis Pasta, which promises large portions. Other trends include a move to healthy options on menus, led by the new Purple Greens on the second floor of GCU Arena, where you can build your own bowl or have fresh-pressed juices. “Our chefs have knives, not scissors,” said John Milleson, Sodexo’s Resident District Manager. “Chefs with scissors cut tops off and dump in the product. There are no microwaves in my operation, and you have to look hard to find a pair of scissors.”

Liz Cook says that most students come to campus after years of their parents worrying for them about what they are — or aren’t — eating. The new dietitian of the Canyon Health and Wellness Clinic is here to help. After all, her favorite dish is vegetable stir fry. That’s a hint. Foods that are closest to looking like something you need to pick out of a field are good for you. Cook will bring much more good advice to her new role, as part of the expanded clinic that aims to satisfy even more student health needs in the coming year. Another hint from Cook: “The unhealthiest choice is the easiest choice.”

Dave Smith was known as the name reader at every GCU graduation the past seven years. He had seven seconds to read the name card, and often there were names tricky to pronounce. Smith, who retires Monday as Director of Academic Excellence in the College of Education, had the reputation of a detailed man who could pull it off — and he did — along with the complex reports and data collection he helped produce as GCU grew over his 10 years here. “I’ve loved it. It’s probably the best job I’ve had,” Smith said. “I’m a very detailed kind of person, and it fits my personality.”

More and more GCU students and employees are saving money on their daily commute to work. They find a carpool buddy through ShareTheRide.com, hop on a bicycle or take public transportation. In just the last six months, Eden Adams, who runs the GCU Trip Reduction Program, has seen participation rise 12.5%, to 581 commuters. They are not only eligible for monthly prizes and can take advantage of free bus passes, last year Lopes in the program prevented the emission of 48 tons of pollution. One more benefit, says Andre Anderson, a university counselor who takes the bus and light rail: “There’s so many interesting people you see every day, and conversations develop.”

The Milwaukee Brewers and Grand Canyon University are already teaming up for big wins. The GCU Learning Lounge that opened in April at the Brewers’ training complex in Maryvale created a unique partnership between a Major League Baseball team and university that garnered the Governor’s Tourism Award for an urban partnership last week in Tucson. “It’s such a unique and forward-thinking program, and it shows a commitment by both GCU and the Brewers to the neighborhood they share,” said Debbie Johnson, director of the Arizona Office of Tourism.

A new Grand Canyon University mail center opened Monday to meet the needs of a growing student population and its consumer habits of shopping online. Stephanie Salas said the center will process more than 1,500 packages every day. Inside the complex located across the bridge of the Little Canyon Trail in Building 44 is a huge warehouse filled with shelves that will be holding everything from shipped bicycles to lamps and refrigerators. After all, Salas said, it is a “click-and-shop generation.”

David Salgado knew it was a tough road to take. The Grand Canyon University graduate and IT employee wanted to pass the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), be accepted into a law school and earn a scholarship to pay for it. There were a lot of twists and turns along the way. But he managed a rarity — a full scholarship to law school. His west Phoenix parents jumped for joy. None of the extended family had ever been to college, much less law school. They had canceled vacation to plan on helping to pay for it. Salgado will go to Gonzaga School of Law on the Thomas More Scholarship.

We already knew this, but now the rest of the country knows it, too: Thunder is the best. His likeness was the winner of the Toykodachi Mascot Madness contest, and the angry-faced Japanese-anime Thunder soon will be on T-shirts, socks and other items at the Lope Shops. And here’s the best part about wearing this new Thunder: He beat Wilbur The Wildcat of the University of Arizona in the fan voting in the finals.