April 19, 2018 (Jackson, Miss.) - Graduating students will be honored atBelhaven University's Commencement Ceremony May 12, 2018 at Thalia Mara Hall, 255 East Pascagoula Street. The day of convocation will begin with the traditional undergraduate ceremony at 9:30 a.m. and the adult, graduate and online ceremony at 2:30 p.m.
Belhaven Senior Vice President and Provost Dr. Dan Fredericks will be the honored commencement speaker for the undergraduate ceremony. He has 35 years of higher education lead ership, roughly a quarter of those years as a faculty member, three-quarters in administrative roles. His leadership has spanned the 80% growth of Belhaven University and oversaw the expansion from one campus to eight campuses in five states. He developed Belhaven's adult and online programs, including a high school dual enrollment program called High Scholars.
Dr. Fredericks has served in many education roles as tenured professor, student development dean, athletics administration, academic administration and college president. The full-time faculty at Belhaven has more than tripled in size, while the percentage of faculty with terminal degrees has risen from 56% to 85% under his administration. He oversaw the elevation of Belhaven's academic stature from a four-year liberal arts college to a master and doctorate level university. He completed ushering Belhaven's four fine arts programs to national accreditation, and led the way to developing the school of nursing. He also served as Belhaven's interim president in 1995.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts from The University of Minnesota and Master of Divinity from Covenant Theological Seminary. He later acquired his Ph.D. from The University of Liverpool, England. His post-doctoral studies were done at the Institute of Holy Land Studies in Jerusalem, Israel.
Dr. Dolphus Weary will be the honored commencement speaker this year for the graduate, adult, and online ceremony. Dr. Weary earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Los Angeles Baptist College and his Masters of Religious Education at Los Angeles Baptist Seminary. Later, Dr. Weary received a Master in Educational Administration from the University of Southern Mississippi. In 1997, he received a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) from Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Miss.
For over 30 years, Dr. Weary has spoken on college campuses, in churches, seminaries, and conferences around the country. Currently, he serves as the president of Rural Education and Leadership (R.E.A.L.) Christian Foundation. Dr. Weary is the former executive director/president of Mission Mississippi, a racial reconciliation ministry that encourages unity within the body of Christ.