Campus Weeks Debuts With Career, Alumni, and Veterans Events…and Therapy Dogs

October kicked off Campus Weeks, designated weeks during GGU’s fall semester filled with vibrant, in-person events to welcome students back to campus. The first Campus Week, held Oct. 10-15, included veterans, career, and alumni events as well as fun events that featured therapy dogs for Mental Health Awareness Week and a GGU Pizza Party for all students.  

GGU partnered with the San Francisco SPCA’s Animal Assisted Therapy Program for the Therapy Dogs event. The SPCA brought in a terrier named Fonzie, a poodle named Ponzu, and a larger dog named Luke. A mix of students and faculty mingled with therapy dogs and dropped by for canine cuddles.  

The Helen Diller Center for Veterans of U.S. Military Service sponsored a GGU Pizza Party and a Taco Tuesday event—both popular with all students. About 40 students joined each event, representing GGU Law, Finance, Leadership, Project Management, ITM, MBA, Business Analytics, and Tax degree programs.  

At the Alumni Career Panel, students heard from alumni working in the fields of accounting, taxation, human resources, and law.  

Eveline Tom, BS in Accounting ’79, enjoyed a dynamic career in international banking and finance that took her to Asia and New York. She encouraged students to be true to themselves, have fun, and aim to identify their strengths and weaknesses while at GGU.  

“Strategic volunteering is an invaluable tool,” advised Jenny Liang, MS Taxation ’18. “I volunteered at the California Society of Certified Public Accountants (CalCPA) and today I’m a board member. If you want to meet a lot of people in your profession, go to their professional organization, and you’ll meet people from different parts of the profession, which will allow you to learn about the different types of jobs you could pursue.”  

Pleshetta Dauzart, MS HRM ’11, encouraged students to leverage their alumni community.  

“Before you get to the end of your program, start to think about who you are going to connect with,” said Pleshetta. “Think about who your network is, how to grow your network, and how to leverage GGU’s alumni community.”  

Ryan Griffiths, JD ’12, noted that networking also includes showing up and being friendly and professional with everyone you encounter.  

“Don’t get so wrapped up in school that you don’t interact with others. School is important, but it’s also important to keep your life outside of school, your friends, your mental health, and figure out what you want to do. I wish I had done that more.”