GCU celebrates milestone, remarkable transformation heading into 2024-25 academic year

NEWS PROVIDED BY
Grand Canyon University (GCU)
Aug. 28, 2024

PHOENIX, Aug. 28, 2024 /Standard Newswire/ -- Grand Canyon University will celebrate its 75th anniversary this year with the largest enrollment in its history.

GCU will have a projected enrollment of more than 125,000 students when classes begin this fall, an increase of nearly 6% from 2023-24. That includes more than 25,000 students studying at GCU’s ground locations and roughly 100,000 studying online.

"To look at how far we have come from our humble beginnings in 1949 to where we were 15 years ago to becoming the largest Christian university in the country, it is clear that God has his hand on this place in a very special way," said GCU President Brian Mueller. "With everything going on in the world today, I am convinced God’s plan was for us to be at this university, at this time, and in these circumstances."

The theme of GCU’s 75th anniversary, captured in this commemorative book, is "75 Years of Purpose: 15 Years of Transformation." It exemplifies the faith-based principles that have helped GCU students find their purpose for 75 years and highlights the remarkable renaissance that began in 2008 when Mueller and his administrative team arrived.

In 2008, GCU was only a few years removed from nearly declaring bankruptcy and closing its doors. Enrollment on the Phoenix campus, which was surrounded by one of the most economically challenged neighborhoods in Phoenix, was less than 1,000 traditional students as the University focused on growing a new online platform to reach working adult students.

Since then, the university has:

• Grown from 4 to 10 colleges and tripled the number of academic offerings by focusing its curriculum on high-growth job fields such as engineering, computer science, cybersecurity and business while also making significant investments to address nationwide workforce shortages in areas such as teaching, nursing, counseling and even trade industries.
• Frozen tuition prices on its Phoenix campus for 16 straight years with only a modest average annual increase of 1% in online tuition.
• Invested $1.8 billion into a campus that has expanded from 100 acres to over 300 acres and is ranked No. 24 out of 1,387 college campuses in the U.S. by niche.com.
• Embarked on an extraordinary construction blitz that has seen 72 new buildings and major renovations, including 30 of the 32 on-campus residence halls, eight GCU-affiliated parking garages, five colleges, three administrative and support buildings, and about a dozen athletic, recreation and entertainment facilities. Those don’t include an additional 32 on-campus dining options.
• Dramatically increased both ground and online enrollment while also raising admissions standards.
• Created flexible hybrid learning modalities that allow students to study online and in person depending on the type of information that must be learned.
• As part of its Christian mission, launched an ambitious and first-of-its-kind five-point plan that builds upon the university’s already robust community outreach efforts. GCU’s community initiatives are having profound impacts on its inner-city Phoenix neighborhood.

"When we arrived in 2008, we thought this could become something special," Mueller said, "but we never expected it to happen this quickly."

The key, Mueller said, was to stay true to GCU’s Christian mission, embrace free market principles to grow the university, focus on attracting high-quality students, and ensure that private Christian education is affordable to all socioeconomic classes. In doing so, GCU has become an American success story and a driving force in higher education that now produces roughly 30,000 graduates on an annual basis.

"Teaching from a Christian worldview perspective produces graduates who are known for their integrity, servant leadership and ability to solve problems in a collaborative environment," Mueller said. "We have become very attractive to students and families because we teach from that perspective, but we also have many students who don’t come from a faith background and wish to come here for other reasons. Whether that is our high-quality academics, the community culture on campus that we are known for, the plethora of on-campus student activities and community outreach initiatives, our location in Phoenix, or opportunities to engage with some of the 500 companies that are represented on our advisory boards, there is no shortage of interest in attending GCU."

To celebrate its 75th anniversary, GCU has several events planned during the school year, including a Week of Service in October dedicated to numerous community outreach projects and a gala event during Homecoming festivities in the spring.

Move-in for students begins Aug. 26, with fall classes starting on Sept. 3.

About Grand Canyon University:  Grand Canyon University was founded in 1949 and is Arizona’s premier private Christian university. GCU is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and offers over 345 academic programs, emphases and certificates for both traditional undergraduate students and working professionals. The University’s curriculum emphasizes interaction with classmates, both in-person and online, and individual attention from instructors while fusing academic rigor with Christian values to help students find their purpose and become skilled, caring professionals. For more information, visit gcu.edu.

SOURCE Grand Canyon University (GCU)

CONTACT: Bob Romantic, 602-639-7611, bob.romantic@gcu.edu