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Sunlight sparkles between the arch of the Padnos Hall of Science, left, and Lubbers Student Services Building as students walk on a college campus.

GVSU in photos, October 2026: Fall provides perfect backdrop for Homecoming, cultural events and 'The Beast'

BY University Communications
Image credit - Top image by Kendra Stanley-Mills

Nov 2, 2026
Two people wearing yellow life vests use spotlights to shine into a river as they stand on a boat.
At left, Bill Flanagan, conservation manager at John Ball Zoo, and Eamonn Powers, GVSU graduate, conduct research on sturgeon in the Grand River on October 8.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A college student works on a laptop while sitting among colorful fall trees.
Madison Tolstyka, behavioral neuroscience major, studies at the Arboretum on October 9, when the fall colors were on full display.
Image credit - Cory Morse
Golden leaves reflect on a river as a row crew passes in a blue boat.
Rowers, from left, Michael King, Dave Montreuil, James Hollister, Lucas Fridsma, Drew Oderkirk, Olin Bauer, Taha Ibrahim, Carter DeMercurio and Nick Duursma participate in a practice race on the Grand River October 8.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A detail of an orange leaf, left. At right, small yellow leaves decorate a sidewalk and manhole cover.
Left, fall colors were on display in the Ravines on October 9. At right, colorful leaves decorate the sidewalk of the Mount Vernon pedestrian mall near the Seidman College of Business October 2.
Image credit - Left; Cory Morse and Right; Kendra Stanley-Mills
A portrait of a college student with a red painted hand print over her mouth.
Kella Elswick, co-president of the Native American Student Association, wears a red handprint, the symbol for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. On Indigenous Peoples Day, NASA, Office of Multicultural Affairs and the campus community participated in the Red Sand Project at the Cook Carillon Tower on October 12.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Hands lift a cheerleader into the air against a blue sky, left. At right, an academic building is silhouetted against a blue sky streaked with white clouds.
Left, a cheerleader is hoisted into the air by teammates during Homecoming at Lubbers Stadium on October 3. At right, interesting cloud formations decorate the sky above Seidman College of Business in early October.
Image credit - Left; Macayla Cramer and Right; Kendra Stanley-Mills
A folk dancer swirls a colorful ribbon skirt in a dance.
Grand Valley’s Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration, hosted by the Office of Multicultural Affairs in collaboration with student organizations Latino Student Union and Monarcas, featured an evening of pride and connection.
Image credit - Grace deBest
A portrait of a college volleyball player wearing a jersey with the number 19 on the front while holding the volleyball on her shoulder.
Women's volleyball player Gabby Orlet is pictured inside Fieldhouse Arena on October 8. She dreamed of playing volleyball at the collegiate level, but that future was threatened when she was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive form of cancer as a young teenager. Orlet now ranks among league leaders with 883 assists and has been named GLIAC Setter of the Week three times this season.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A cast of a college theatre performers in costume hold hands on stage as pink lights shine behind them.
Tehya Maloney, as Hermia, right, holds hands with Cameron Mead, as Lysander, during the final dress rehearsal for Grand Valley's production of William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" on October 1 in the Louis Armstrong Theatre.
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
A silhouetted bird flies from a bare branch of a tree.
A bird is silhouetted as it flies from a branch in the Ravines on the Valley Campus October 21.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A college student walks with a cat in a see-through cat carrier backpack on campus.
Morgan VerMulm, a first-year sonography major, walks through the Valley Campus with her cat, Milo, on October 19.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A college theatre performer applies makeup around their eyes.
Ren Rieman, as Mustardseed, applies makeup moments before the final dress rehearsal for Grand Valley's production of William Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream.”
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
As seen from above, a college marching band rehearses on a grassy field with their musical instruments.
The Laker Marching Band practices on October 2.
Image credit - Simon Zwart
Two college students smile at each other while hammocking in a green hammock among trees.
Music majors Noah Carr and Mijeong Lee sit in a hammock at the Arboretum on October 9.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A young child holds their nose while in a greenhouse near a blooming corpse flower.
Liana Schut, 4, holds her nose while visiting “The Beast” with her family at the Barbara Kindschi Greenhouse. They were among many visitors who saw the corpse flower during its peak bloom October 15.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A group of sorority sisters cheer and laugh as they take cell phone photos of their sorority sister after she was crowned Homecoming Royal.
A'Layja Robinson, nursing major, is celebrated by her Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sisters after she was crowned 2026 GVSU Homecoming Royal during the homecoming game at Lubbers Stadium on October 3.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A person's hands reach up to adjust a crown on their head.
A'Layja Robinson, nursing major, holds her crown in place after being named the 2026 GVSU Homecoming Royal on October 3.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A college student smiles while wearing heart-shaped blue sunglasses with the letters G and V on them.
Lily Schaub, a senior majoring in cybersecurity, dons a pair of GV sunglasses during Homecoming on October 3.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Three people intently work on a project using colorful wooden sticks and round wooden pieces.
Ottawa Hills High School students (from left) Mason Davis, Dallas Mayes and Dariana Weaver use Makit construction blocks to build teamwork and problem-solving skills as part of the Ottawa Gauntlet at the L. William Seidman Center on October 14. The gauntlet highlights learning, teamwork and problem-solving.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A student is silhouetted as they walk past windows of an academic building.
A student is silhouetted as they walk through the halls of Au Sable Hall on October 13.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Sunlight hits a forest floor showing colorful leaves that had fallen from trees.
Morning light filters through the Ravines, spilling onto fallen leaves on October 13.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A soccer play points to a double rainbow over the soccer field.
Shea Douglass, a second-year defender, points toward a double rainbow over the GVSU Soccer Field during the Lakers' match against Davenport on October 16.
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
A student works on a laptop while sitting next to a green abstract art painting, left. At right, a carillon tower is reflected in windows of an academic building.
Left, Ava Griffen, a double major in anthropology and environmental and sustainability studies, studies inside the Seidman House on October 6. Pictured in the background is Don Kerr's "Straight Stream with Sunburst." At right, the Cook Carillon Tower is reflected in the windows of Zumberge Hall as students are seen walking to classes on October 13.
Image credit - Left; Cory Morse and Right; Kendra Stanley-Mills
A college student hold their nose as they wait in a line to view a blooming corpse flower in a greenhouse.
At center, Harlee Coolman, a first-year nursing student, reacts to the smell of “The Beast” at the Barbara Kindschi Greenhouse. A line of people snaked through the greenhouse to see the corpse flower during peak bloom on October 15.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Students walk past colorful golden leaves on a college campus.
Students walk through the Great Lakes Plaza on a sunny October 7
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Students walk through a metal bridge as sunlight spills through on a fall day.
People cross the Little Mac Bridge on the Valley Campus during a warm October 7.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Marching band members march onto a football field during a homecoming football game.
The Laker Marching Band performs in Lubbers Stadium at the start of the Homecoming football game against Wayne State October 3.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A person wearing a floral suit coat smiles as they hold a microphone as they talk in front of a wall of flowers.
Tiburcio Lince, director of Multicultural Affairs, gives remarks during "Flores y Cultura: A Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration" at the Kirkhof Center on October 15.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A person wearing red glasses and headband smiles as they lean in to take a selfie with a person during an event.
Robbie Mondine ’76 takes a selfie with President Emeritus Arend “Don” Lubbers during a Golden Reunion celebration at the Alumni House during Homecoming October 3.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
A teacher works with young students in a classroom with an American flag hanging in the background.
Charles Ball ’26 teaches third graders (from left) Averi Clark, Annicia Roddie, Karter Mitchel and Raelynn Smith at Challenger Elementary in Kentwood on October 14.
Image credit - Cory Morse
Hands grasp a small toad.
Shelby Flory, a senior majoring in exercise science and natural resource management, catches an eastern American toad while hiking the Towers Trail with Outdoor Adventures program October 13.
Image credit - Simon Zwart
College women tangle up as they play soccer during a game.
Alex Williams, senior defender, battles for possession against Davenport during the second half of the match October 16 at the GVSU Soccer Field.
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
A college student wearing a silver coat and face protection holds a bag over an open flame during an iron pour.
A Grand Valley student adds charcoal to the furnace during the iron pour on October 23 behind the Calder Fine Arts Center. The campus tradition brings together students from across West Michigan to create molds and cast iron sculptures for art classes and more.
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
A large group of students wearing blue scream and cheer during a college football game.
GVSU fans celebrate during the football game against Ferris State on October 17.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A university president wearing a blue suit coat gestures behind a blue podium.
President Philomena V. Mantella gives remarks during the October 27 "Connecting the Dots" event on the City Campus. The event marked the transition from several years of collaborative planning to building, as construction of the Blue Dot Innovation Lab in downtown Grand Rapids will begin, signaling a key milestone for a prominent physical space in the Blue Dot Ecosystem.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
Football players run onto a field as people reach out to high five the team.
Cameron Bagent, offensive lineman, runs onto the field and slaps hands with fans lining the sideline before kickoff of the Homecoming game against Wayne State on October 3.
Image credit - Macayla Cramer
Two men laugh together during an event.
Adebayo “Bayo” Ogundipe, dean of Padnos College of Engineering, right, laughs with guests during a Southeast Michigan Leadership Reception in Detroit October 22.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
People laugh together as they stand together at an event.
(From left) Tim Marroquín, adult student support specialist; Megan Bravo, project manager for the Division of People, Equity, and Culture; and Ashley Jefferson, administrative assistant, Inclusion and Equity, talk during "Flores y Cultura: A Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration" at the Kirkhof Center on October 15.
Image credit - Cory Morse
People walk past a blue art sculpture with umbrellas.
Pedestrians walk past the Transformational Link in the rain on the Valley Campus on October 1.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A Cooper's hawk rests on an art sculpture in a garden setting.
A Cooper’s hawk perches on a fountain in the Nancy Lubbers Garden at the DeVos Center on October 29.
Image credit - Cory Morse
A college student bikes past a white outdoor art sculpture on a college campus.
A student bikes by the "Heaven and Earth" sculpture by James Clover on the Valley Campus October 13.
Image credit - Kendra Stanley-Mills
As seen from a drone, a student casts a shadow on a sidewalk past colorful trees.
Fall colors on display at the Valley Campus October 28.
Image credit - Cory Morse

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