NW Valley Times

Junior Ethan Young is surrounded by Residence Life staff members at Diamondback Apartments after being presented with a gift bag. Young was the 75th student to check in. Photos by Ralph Freso

Hailey-Cate Bull, a freshman from Colorado, was moving her belongings with her parents on Monday when she encountered a welcoming reception at Cactus Apartments.

“Congratulations!” resident advisors cheered, blowing kazoos.

They handed her a purple gift bag attached to balloons as a reward for being the 75th resident to check in at Cactus Apartments. This initiative was part of Residence Life's celebration across 30 living areas on campus for Grand Canyon University’s 75th anniversary.

Bull expressed excitement and surprise upon receiving the gift but revealed that she was aware of the anniversary. “We have done our research on GCU,” said her father, Harry Bull. He mentioned they had even bought an anniversary banner online and hung it in their Parker, Colorado home.

“This is very exciting,” said Hailey-Cate, who will study elementary education and is on the GCU dive team.

Cactus resident director Lauren Thompson noted that her staff shared the excitement of presenting the bag filled with treats, a purple GCU tumbler, and literature on the university's history. “When they saw it come in with balloons on it, they couldn’t wait to give it out.”

Grand Canyon College opened in September 1949 in Prescott, Arizona with 95 students attending classes in an old national guard armory before relocating to west Phoenix. By the early 2000s, enrollment neared 1,000 students but financial troubles loomed until GCU President Brian Mueller and his administrative team arrived in 2008.

Junior Ethan Young also received recognition for being the 75th student to check into Diamondback Apartments. The business management major admitted he did not know much about GCU’s history but appreciated the gesture. “I would put it at more like 1960s or 1970s... But I am a candy eater,” he remarked while examining his gift bag's contents.

His mother Rosie Young expressed pride and excitement over her son's transfer from community college to GCU. “But more so I am excited that he is excited," she said. "It’s all he talked about was GCU and that he wanted to go here."

Young worked diligently to earn a scholarship and joined the bowling club. His new chapter began auspiciously with this unexpected acknowledgment during move-in day.

Grand Canyon University senior writer Mike Kilen can be reached at [email protected]