From a Small Town to a Big City: How ORU Senior Grace Hansel Found Her Home at ORU

Like thousands of students, senior Grace Hansel found her college home at Oral Roberts University (ORU) in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Raised in the small town of Eldridge, Iowa, Grace arrived at a time of remarkable growth, both for ORU and Tulsa.  

With accolades from across the nation, Tulsa is becoming one of America’s most recognized cities. Not only has it grown to over 1 million residents, Tulsa is home to Gathering Place, one of the “100 Best Places to Visit” according to Time magazine. CNN also recently added Tulsa to its list—along with Dijon, France; Lahti, Finland; and Naples, Italy—of best travel destinations for 2022. 

Like Tulsa, ORU is growing too. Over the last 13 years, ORU’s enrollment has continued to climb, reaching historic numbers in the Fall of 2021. And with a 2022 Spring enrollment of 4,629, the University grew by 11.5%, continuing its trend of unprecedented growth. During this time of unprecedented growth, Grace will graduate from ORU, but looking back, she remembers a time when she considered returning to Iowa. 

Becoming Involved, Finding a Home

“Initially, I ended up at ORU as a legacy kid,” Grace said. “My parents and my uncle were both on the ORU cheer team, and my brother graduated with a political science degree. I looked at other schools, but eventually, I decided to try ORU.” 

Grace’s first year didn’t go as expected. During her second semester, the pandemic closed ORU early, and Grace’s classes went online.  It was then that Grace started thinking about staying in Iowa. 

“My freshman year, I didn’t think I wanted to be here,” Grace said. “I didn’t get involved, and I wasn’t trying to make friends. But then a position became available in ORU’s Student Association (SA), and somebody suggested I apply. So, I applied, and I got the position.” 

SA’s mission and vision are to create community and enhance the student body experience for ORU students, with a focus on clubs, organizations, intramurals, and events. As a member of SA, Grace began to thrive at ORU, becoming a leader on campus. Being plugged in and connected turned Grace’s college experience around, and as she found her home at ORU, Grace began to change and grow. 

Nurturing Student Growth and Leadership

“I’ve changed a lot at ORU,” Grace said. “When I started here, I wasn’t sold out for Christ; I just went through the motions. But the Holy Spirit brought key people into my life, and they helped build my faith. If it hadn’t been for the Holy Spirit, I’d still be in a dark place, far from my Christian walk at ORU. I'm a different person ... a better person ... because of all this.” 

By “all this,” Grace means the culture at ORU, a culture of faith and leadership. With its culture of faith, ORU has become one of the largest and most influential Christian universities in the world. And as a University focused on leadership, ORU is graduating the next generation of thinkers and innovators, transforming Generation Z into the leaders of tomorrow. With its commitment to leadership, Grace says ORU is different from most universities. 

“It’s normal to see ORU students walking around in business suits,” Grace said. “That’s because there are lot of opportunities to showcase professionalism and leadership. We’ve got students leading as resident advisors and chaplains, and there are also leadership opportunities within Missions and SA. As a leader within SA, I’ve had the opportunity to manage clubs, manage team members, and plan campus events.” 

Finding Your Future: The Power of One Decision

Looking back, Grace says that a single decision—her decision to get involved—changed her future. Because of that one decision, Grace found her home at ORU, where she developed into a campus leader. Her faith grew, too, and her experiences grew through the students she met. One decision can impact so much, and it was the decision to get involved that changed everything for Grace. 

“New students need to get involved. That’s my biggest advice,” Grace said. “Leading with SA has been crucial to my story at ORU. Being on a missions team or joining a club or participating in an outreach ... there are so many groups on campus, so many leadership opportunities. Definitely step outside your comfort zone and become a leader because, at the end of the day, leadership is just about loving people and loving people well.”