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Brian Mueller
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, GRAND CANYON EDUCATION INC

GCU CHAPEL || BRIAN MUELLER || 9-14-2026

📅 Sep 14, 2026 Grand Canyon University 56 MIN 1573 VIEWS 21 SEGMENTS · 4 SPEAKERS
About Grand Canyon University: Founded in 1949, Grand Canyon University is Arizona’s premier private Christian university and one of the largest and fastest-growing universities in the country.* We’re committed to delivering an affordable and transformative higher education that serves its students, the community and God. Based in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona with a vibrant, expansive campus, GCU integrates a welcoming Christian worldview into 330 academic programs including 270+ academic programs for online students (as of June 2023), giving you the personal freedom and support you need to ea...

What Brian Mueller said

Written from the verified transcript and checked against it. Every figure links to the moment it was said.

Brian Mueller, Chairman and CEO of Grand Canyon Education, opened the first chapel of the semester by recalling that in 2008 fewer than a hundred students attended chapel in Ethington Theater, while today's participation in activities is up over 20% versus last year. He used the film 'The Shawshank Redemption' to illustrate how freedom breeds anxiety, citing that one in three university students experience debilitating anxiety. Drawing on Jean-Paul Sartre's view that humans are 'condemned to be free,' he argued that Jesus provides a structure for decision-making, referencing Matthew 4, John 14:6, and Matthew 25. He outlined three questions for decisions: does it prepare you for Jesus' return, does it make you more productive, and does it impact 'the least of these.' He connected this to the university's $2 billion investment in Phoenix, plans for a law school and a nursing clinic with St. Vincent de Paul, and encouraged students to find a church.

Key takeaways

  1. Mueller said participation in student activities is up over 20% versus last year, reflecting campus energy.
  2. Mueller said the university invested $2 billion into the Phoenix campus over the years.
  3. He revealed plans for a law school and a nursing clinic on 35th Avenue with St. Vincent de Paul to serve the local community.

Numbers and commitments

FigureWhat it refers toTypeAt
20% increase in student activity participation versus last year metric 25:36
1 in 3 university students experiencing debilitating anxiety metric 29:10
$2 billion investment in the Phoenix campus metric 47:35

Chapters

  1. 0:00Opening and 2008 chapel memory
  2. 29:10Freedom and anxiety in America
  3. 31:29College decisions and existential dread
  4. 33:20Jesus' call to disciples
  5. 35:15Jesus as the way, truth, and life
  6. 36:23Three parables for decision-making
  7. 37:56Preparedness and productivity
  8. 43:55Serving the least of these
  9. 47:35University growth and community outreach
  10. 53:14Finding a church and closing prayer

Questions asked in this interview

1
  1. 24:18How many of you this is your first chapel service that you've ever been to?
ASGCU Announcer 6:55 ↗
Hey, Lopes. This November is election day and we here at ASGCU are doing everything we can to make sure you are at the polls. But before we carry you to the polls, the first step is registering to vote. Join ASGCU at Party at the Polls on September 15th on the Promenade from 11 to 1. Make sure you register to vote, grab a hot dog, and pledge to vote this November. ASGCU does not endorse any specific party or candidate. Ad paid for by Lopes Dining Dollars.
Chapel Leader 7:38 ↗
Good morning, GCU. Welcome to the first chapel of the semester. We're so excited to be back with you all and gather together as one voice and lift up our King because He's worthy of it. So, that's what we're going to do this morning. So, together we sing. Sing is the song of the redeemed. It's this song of the redeemed rising from the African plain. It's the song of the forgiven drowning out the rain. The song of Asian believers filled with God's holy fire. It's every tribe and tongue in every nation. A love song born of a grateful choir. It's all God's children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. It's all God's children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. Oh, our God reigns. So let it rise above the four winds caught up in the heavenly sound. Let praises echo from the towers of cathedrals to the faithful gathered underground. Of all the songs sung from the dawn of creation, some were meant to persist. Of all the bells rung from a thousand steeples, none rings truer than theirs. It's all God's children singing. Glory, glory. Hallelujah, He reigns. It's all God's children singing. Glory, glory. Hallelujah. He reigns. Yes, He reigns. It's all God's children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. It's all God's children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. In all the powers of darkness, they tremble at what they've just heard. Cuz all the powers of darkness, they can't drown out a single word. Yes. All the powers of darkness, they tremble at what they just heard. Cuz all the powers of darkness, they can't drown out a single word. All God's children sing glory, glory. Hallelujah, He reigns. Yes, He reigns. It's all God's children singing. Glory, glory. Hallelujah, He reigns. He reigns. All God's children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. All children singing glory, glory, hallelujah, He reigns. For our God, our God reigns.
We're thankful for you, Jesus. Oh, He's worthy of all our praise. And all the saints and all the angels, and all the saints and angels, they bow before Your throne. And all the elders cast their crowns before the name of God and sing, You're worthy of it all. Sing it out. You're worthy of it all. For from You are all things and to You are all things. You deserve the glory. We long to give it all to You, Jesus. All the saints and angels, all they bow before Your throne. And all the elders cast their crowns before the Lamb of God and say, You are worthy of it all. You are worthy of it all. Oh God, You are all praise and to You are all things. God, You deserve the glory. It's all for heaven cuz You are worthy of it all. Yes, You are, Jesus. You are worthy of it all. For from You are all things and to You are all things. God You deserve the glory. Oh, we long to make a sweet sound of Jesus. Oh, let our praise arise. Let our praise arise. Let's lift a song to the Lord. Sing day and night, let incense arise. That's our prayer. Day and night, night and day, let incense arise. Day and night, night and day, let incense arise. Day and night, night and day, let incense arise. Day and night, night and day, let incense arise. Day and night, night and day, let incense arise. Amazing. Day and night. Day and night. Day. You are worthy of it all. Oh, You are worthy of it all. It's all You Jesus. For You are all things. It's Your name. God, You deserve glory. So we pour it out cuz He is worthy of it all. You are worthy of it all. For You are all things and You are all. You deserve glory. You're worthy of it all. You're worthy of it all. For from You are all things and to You are all things. You deserve the glory. Sing that again. For from You are all things and to You are all things. God, You deserve the glory.
There was a moment when the lights went out. When death claimed its victory, the King of love had given up His life. The darkest day in history. There on the cross they made for sinners. For every curse His blood atoned. One final breath and it was finished. But not the end we could have known. For the earth began to shake and the veil was torn. What sacrifice was made as the heavens roar. And all hail Jesus. All hail. Lord of heaven and earth. All hail. Jesus. All hail. The Savior of the world. Yeah. We're going to sing our praise to You, Jesus. You're our Savior. There was a moment when the sky lit up. A flash of light is breaking through. When all was lost, He crossed eternity. Oh, the King of life was on the move. Yeah. In a dark world where our Lord was made one miraculous way and was forever. Sing. Jesus Christ. All hail the Lord of heaven and earth. All hail, Jesus. All hail the Savior of the world. All hail Jesus. All hail the King. All hail. The Lord of heaven and earth. All hail, Jesus. All hail. The Savior of the world, the Savior of the world. Sing it out to Him this morning. So let every knee come bow before the King of kings. Let every tongue confess that He is Lord. Lift up your shout. Let us join with all of heaven singing holy. Now we sing it holy and we cry out holy. We're singing holy. Yeah. All hail Jesus. Sing that out. All hail. All hail King Jesus. All hail, Savior of the world.
Wow. Jesus. Jesus, we give You so much glory. God, we praise Your name because You are our Savior. You are our King. Pray that You bless this room. Bless these people. Bless this campus, God. Pray all this in Your name. Amen.
Well, good morning GCU. How are you today? Welcome to the first chapel. Turn to somebody and fist bump them. Just tell them welcome. We are so happy you're here. How many of you this is your first chapel service that you've ever been to? Oh wow. Well, we're glad you're here. So, we have just a couple of announcements before I introduce our speaker for today. Spiritual Life has a lot of opportunities for you to engage in. If you're interested in local ministries or global ministries, you can stop by the Spiritual Life office. Life groups are starting up all over campus. Spiritual Formation is going to be doing some workshops all semester. So, if you're interested in that, please look them up in The Gathering every Tuesday night, 7:30 in Antelope Gym. We'd love to have you there for that as well. We'll be going through the book of Colossians. So, without any further ado, it's my pleasure to introduce to you President Brian Mueller. Welcome him, please.

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Cite this transcript

APA, MLA, BibTeX
APA

Mueller, B. (2026, September 14). GCU CHAPEL || BRIAN MUELLER || 9-14-2026 [Interview transcript]. Grand Canyon University. CEOInterviews.AI. https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1441138/

MLA

Brian Mueller. "GCU CHAPEL || BRIAN MUELLER || 9-14-2026." Grand Canyon University, 14 Sep. 2026. Transcript, CEOInterviews.AI, https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1441138/.

BibTeX
@misc{mueller2026_1441138,
  author       = {Brian Mueller},
  title        = {GCU CHAPEL || BRIAN MUELLER || 9-14-2026},
  howpublished = {Interview transcript, Grand Canyon University. CEOInterviews.AI},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = {sep},
  url          = {https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/1441138/},
  note         = {Speaker-attributed transcript with timestamps}
}