Honors College

Honors College students gathered in GCU Arena on Saturday night to celebrate all of their achievements during the 2018-19 academic year. Assistant Dean Breanna Naegeli said the Honors banquet is one of her favorite events of the year. “It allows us all an opportunity to take a moment to reflect upon and acknowledge all the exceptional work and efforts of our students. These students not only take Honors courses and commit to the rigor in the classroom, but they continually go above and beyond outside of the classroom as well,” she said.

Learning and Living Communities are designed for GCU freshmen who prefer to share a residence hall room, suite or floor with students of similar academic interests. Along with the connections they make organically, there are organized activities in Juniper Hall, the building housing six LLC’s: Honors, Colangelo College of Business (CCOB), College of Science, Engineering and Technology (CSET), psychology from the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS), and nursing and athletic training through the College of Nursing and Health Care Professions (CONHCP). “It has a different feel,” Kayla Warren said of her freshman year in Juniper. “It is academically centered, where we were all in the same mindset.”

The recent Honors College Leadership Conference helped those students build connections with business professionals and better prepare themselves for the future. “I think it was a great opportunity to meet established individuals in the various fields, whether it be business or different markets of leadership, but also meeting other motivated individuals that are students as well,” Honors student Elisha Fronda said.

A mid-February trip to New York gave 11 Honors College students the opportunity to meet other young adults from around the world and discuss world issues. They also got to see some of the city’s most iconic destinations. “It was a very incredible experience. It was worth it,” Sara Cordero said. “It was just a really great opportunity to just listen to professionals all over the world and how they all tackle these humanitarian issues.”

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 mission? Meet movers and shakers who can assist with the deeper mission: aiding impoverished Peruvian coffee farmers. For GCU students Noah Wolfe, Aly Halbakken and Tim McGill, the Clinton Global Initiative University proved to be a mission accomplished.

A trio of Grand Canyon University students are accelerating their dream of eliminating the middle man for impoverished Peruvian coffee farmers. They will take their ideas to the Clinton Global Initiative University, a conference this weekend at the University of Chicago. “I think it is awesome to be able to see future world leaders, entrepreneurs and changers in one central location,’’ said Noah Wolfe, who has combined with Tim McGill and Aly Halbakken to form a nonprofit, Novella.

A group of Honors College students had high hopes of worship and career development on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. The students hit their expected goals. But what enlightened them to the core was what they didn’t expect — love.