Grand Canyon University

Men’s soccer coach Schellas Hyndman wanted one thing for youth attending Saturday’s Future for KIDS soccer camp: To have fun. But he also encouraged them to exhibit good sportsmanship, practice, work hard and to value their education, much like the soccer players who conducted the camp do. More than 160 youth, ages 7 to 12, attended the event, which marked the first time GCU men’s soccer has hosted a camp with Future for KIDS, a mentorship program that emphasizes education, ethics and athletics.

Kara Morrow is the first GCU Honors College student to be selected for a White House internship. The 2018 graduate is surrounded by exceptional students. Her sister, Kelsey, is a 2015 GCU graduate slated to complete chiropractor school in May, and her brother, Kaleb, a GCU freshman, is a National Merit Finalist and an aspiring forensic scientist.

The platforms are prepared, the debate topics are polished and the flyers are posted for the next election cycle for the president and vice president of the Associated Students at Grand Canyon University (ASGCU). In one corner, Samuel Yonan is running for president with v.p. running mate Bret Malkin versus Jacob Montgomery, an aspiring president, and Anthony Clark, his v.p. choice. The debate will take place from 6-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, on the first floor of the Student Union, North Dining Hall. Refreshments will be served as the candidates share their vision for the 2019-2020 academic year.

Complex foreign policy issues proved challenging but not daunting for GCU’s extemporaneous speech team members at the Jannese Davidson Memorial Tournament at Concordia University in Irvine, Calif. On the strength of a first place, a runner-up and a fourth-place finish by extemporaneous speakers, GCU placed second overall behind Point Loma Nazarene, in a 24-team event. GCU students spoke about issues impacting China, Venezuela and the European Union.

The marathon reading of Dante’s Divine Comedy brought the words of the 14th century Italian poet to life on the GCU campus on Friday. Students and faculty members, along with a few high school teachers, were among the 50 readers who combined to read all 100 cantos of “Inferno”, “Purgatorio’’ and “Paradiso”, a view of the afterlife. The project is the passion of Assistant Professor Jonathan Olson, who packed two lunches and reveled in every moment of the marathon.

GCU Dance coach Jacque Genung-Koch said it was “pretty exciting and super humbling” when her team won the Division I Game Day competition Friday in the Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships at Orlando, Fla. “We got the chance to do what we do at home, on a national stage. It was exciting to bring what we are, who we are at GCU, for other teams to see and for a judging panel,” she said. The team also finished second in the jazz competition.

The GCU Cheer team earned its best finish ever — second place in the Division I Game Day event — Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships at Orlando, Fla. “The biggest thing is GCU made a name for ourselves and we really stood out,’’ co-captain Casey Traut said. “We had someone tell us that we started a legacy for this school.”

The GCU Spirit team’s ability to fire up the crowd will be the key to the Game Day competition in the Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships, which begin Friday in Orlando, Fla. The Dance team also will compete in a traditional favorite, the Jazz event, and the Cheer team will show its athleticism in the small Co-ed Division I event. Also, Thunder and the drum line are participating in a demonstration of spirited and rhythmic collaboration.

Four flights and a four-hour taxi ride, covering more than 9,000 miles to reach her student-teaching assignment, proved to be a minor inconvenience for Ashley Olander, whose desire to experience a different culture led her to a remote mountaintop in southern India where she led seventh grade physical education classes. Olander is one of nine Grand Canyon University students who have embraced international student-teaching. “It is a beautiful opportunity to learn about our world, but most importantly that they see God’s hand at work in our children, no matter if it is in a classroom in America or India or Japan,” said Dr. Kimberly LaPrade, Dean of the College of Education.

Dr. Deb, GCU’s Vice President of Counseling and Psychological services, provides a plethora of profound wisdom for the start of 2019. In a soaring column channeling Michelangelo, Dr. Deb advises employees and students to set realistic, idealistic, altruistic and optimistic goals instead of making New Year’s resolutions that risk being broken.