Grand Canyon University kicked off its 75th year with the largest enrollment in its history. The institution, whose classes began in September, has an enrollment of 125,000 students – an increase of nearly six percent 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,” GCU President Brian Mueller said. “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 is “75 Years of Purpose: 15 Years of Transformation.” It exemplifies the faith-based principles that have helped students find their purpose and highlights the remarkable renaissance that began in 2008 when Mueller and his administrative team arrived.
Back then, 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, 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 four 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 trade industries.
The school also 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.
Major renovations include 72 new buildings, including 30 of the 32 on-campus residence halls, eight 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.
As part of its Christian mission, GCU launched an ambitious and first-of-its-kind five-point plan that builds upon the university’s robust community outreach efforts. GCU’s community initiatives are profoundly impacting 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.”
Mueller explained that the key was to stay true to GCU’s 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 annually.
“GCU has an amazing story of leadership and teamwork in building a world-class university and having billions of dollars in economic impact to the local economy. I am proud to be associated with this institution,” Jerry Colangelo, advisor and former owner of the Phoenix Suns and AZ Diamondbacks, said.
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. To learn more, visit gcu.edu.
