At a time when young adults discover their freedom and often leave the faith, Diocese of Phoenix Newman Centers are present on college campuses to build community, personally accompany students and foster authentic encounters with Christ. All Saints Catholic Newman Center, Holy Spirit Newman Center and Holy Trinity Newman Center have shown abundant growth, serving hundreds of young adults — Catholics and non-Catholics alike — changing hearts along the way.
House of hope
Holy Spirit Newman Center, established just 10 years ago, serves the community at Grand Canyon University (GCU). The humble house of hope with a bright purple door stands not too far from campus. Though the building itself is small, the Newman Center has had a big impact on souls in the last decade.
Senior Karina Avalos, one of the hundreds of students impacted over the years, had a strong encounter with the Lord at a Newman retreat after struggling to have faith in something greater.
“I was saying constantly, ‘God, if You’re real, just show me and I’ll give You my life,’” Avalos said.
It was on that retreat that God spoke to her — not in a thunderous way, but in a humble way. She described it as a “sense of love and peace in my heart that I never felt before.”
“After that, I knew that I had a community.”
Such encounters are fostered with the help of the Sisters of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary, a group of religious sisters that serve alongside pastor Fr. David Loeffler. In addition to moments of prayer and encounter, there are also opportunities for students to grow in service.
Serving is one of the fundamentals at the GCU Newman Center. With the focus on fostering family and community, they are constantly “giving ourselves as a community to others,” Development and Engagement Coordinator Cassy Beltran said.
“Any leftovers we have [from weekly Newman Night meals], we don’t like to consider a leftover. We just like to consider it as another meal for the people around.”
The students at the GCU Newman Center are also known for their deep love for the Lord. Weekly, 150-175 students gather for Sunday Mass, which is celebrated on a makeshift altar.
“There’s [other local] churches where it’s just like a big screen or a huge stage, and [our altar] is just a little platform made 30 seconds ago,” Avalos said.
But these humble means are a meeting place with the Lord.
“We just try our best to give God the most respect and love we have.”
“We are with you”
Across town in Tempe, Ariz., All Saints Catholic Newman Center at Arizona State University (ASU) has shown tremendous growth. With ASU being a notorious “party school,” All Saints Newman staff take a different approach than might be expected when it comes to encountering students.
“We do want to stand as a beacon of hope and inspiration for students,” said Ryan Ayala, All Saints’ director of campus ministry. But more than fighting against the culture and the realities many young adults face, his team instead strives to show students that “we are with you, not against you.”
Ayala describes the Newman Center as meeting young adults right where they are on their journey. He wants students to know: “We want to join you. We want to help you. We
want to assist you. We want to walk with you.”
The approach is bearing abundant fruit. In fall of 2025, 52 young adults came into full communion with the Catholic Church through the Newman Center’s Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) program, and earlier this month at the Easter Vigil nearly 50 more students joined in. That’s more than double last year’s numbers.
Ayala credits the abundant growth to Bible studies and a strong OCIA formation program.
“We are seeing a 10-to-12-percent increase across those major programs,” said Ayala, who emphasized studying Scripture as the primary formation for students wanting to grow deeper in their faith. All Saints actively encourages young adults to “really immerse yourself into the written Word … and learn to grow as disciples.”
Ayala sees the thriving OCIA program as a sign of a healthy Newman Center.
“At the end of the day, that’s why we exist … to bring souls closer to Christ.”
An engaging presence
The Northern Arizona University (NAU) Catholic Jacks at Holy Trinity Newman Center have a strong presence on campus. More specifically, through social media they continue to spread the Gospel at a time when students need it most.
“The college years are the perfect time where someone has a little bit of space and freedom, where they can make their own adherence to Christ,” said pastor Fr. Matt Lowry. He and his team seek to be present and inviting to students.
Whether it’s through pickup basketball games or free meals, Fr. Lowry easily connects with young people in many ways. But one of his favorites? Social media.
The outgoing priest has gone viral on TikTok several times and currently has more Instagram followers than any other Newman Center in the country at 183,000 followers. He also has more followers than the NAU itself.
Fr. Lowry’s relatability has helped the presence of the Newman Center grow on campus and has given the group a good reputation to both Catholic and non-Catholic students alike, “even before they’ve come to encounter us,” Fr. Lowry said.
In their own unique ways, the Diocese of Phoenix’s three Newman Centers are doing the important work of engaging students, meeting them where they are and introducing them to Christ.
“Newman Centers are arguably one of the most important works that we can do right now in the Church’s mission, especially its mission on evangelization because a lot of souls are being won and lost at the college level and at the university level,” said Ayala.
Fr. Lowry agrees. It’s important work to invite students in “so that they become lifelong missionary disciples.”
Contributions by Catherine Mulhern
