News

Graduates, their family members and friends will gather at Southern Wesleyan University’s campus in Central on May 6 and 8.

The speaker for the May 6 graduation ceremony will be Dr. Ron Benefiel, president of Nazarene Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Mo. He earned a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Southern California in 1986 and a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Point Loma Nazarene College in San Diego.

Dr. Benefiel has served as pastor of Los Angeles First Church of the Nazarene and served congregations in Pomona, Calif., and Kansas City, Kan. He has served as professor of sociology and religion at Point Loma Nazarene University and as assistant professor at Azusa Pacific University.

The May 8 morning and afternoon ceremonies will feature Dr. Gary Carr, special assistant to the president at Southern Wesleyan University. Dr. Carr earned his doctor of ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., a master’s degree in theology from Duke University, and a master’s of divinity from Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Ky. He completed his bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He has served as vice president for translations for the International Bible Society and as division chaplain, 2nd Marine Division and 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

In addition, Dr. Carr has served as command chaplain aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk and Battle Force Seventh Fleet. During his military career, he served as national director of chaplain recruitment and as command chaplain at the Naval Air Technical Training Center, Pensacola, Fla. He is an ordained minister in The Wesleyan Church and served as pastor for the Diamond Springs Wesleyan Church in Michigan.

The Spring 2010 Graduation Exercises of Southern Wesleyan University will be held in Newton Hobson Chapel and Fine Arts Center on the Southern Wesleyan University campus in Central, S.C.

Students graduating from the university’s traditional program will participate in the ceremony on Thursday, May 6, at 3 p.m.

There will be two separate graduation ceremonies on Saturday, May 8, for students graduating from the university’s Adult and Graduate Studies programs. The 10 a.m. ceremony on May 8 is for students earning associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees from the Central, Greenville, Greenwood and Spartanburg locations.
The 3 p.m. ceremony on May 8 is for students earning associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees from the Columbia, Charleston and North Augusta locations.

The university expects to confer more than 350 degrees, according to Registrar Rock McCaskill. For details, call Southern Wesleyan University’s Academic Records Department at (864) 644-5530. Tickets, issued through the university, are required for those attending the ceremonies on May 8. For guests without tickets, overflow seating is available, which will allow guests without tickets to view the ceremony via a closed circuit broadcast. Details are available at http://www.swu.edu/academics/academic_records/graduation.htm.

Other end-of-semester events at Southern Wesleyan University include Baccalaureate Chapel on May 6 at 10 a.m. in Newton Hobson Chapel and Fine Arts Center. The baccalaureate sermon will be delivered by Rev. Rodney Addison, pastor of West Town Community Church in Augusta, Ga. Rev. Addison and his wife are graduates of Hobe Sound Bible College in Florida. He has served previous congregations in Pennsylvania and Kansas City and as pastor of Fairview Wesleyan Church in Tuscaloosa, Ala. He currently serves as a member of the district board of administration for the South Coastal District of The Wesleyan Church and has served as chaplain for the university’s North Augusta learning center.

The university’s Baccalaureate Chapel includes a “Ceremony of the Servants” and a challenge for graduates of the university to find ways to serve the needs of people throughout the world.

Southern Wesleyan University prepares students for leadership and graduate study in such fields as religion, education, music, business, medicine, law and a variety of civic and social service professions. Southern Wesleyan offers 41 degree programs in the areas of business, education and ministry. The university’s main campus is in Central and there are regional learning centers across the state, in locations such as Greenville, Columbia, Charleston and North Augusta. Classes are also offered in Spartanburg and Greenwood.