FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Chris Anderson, 978-646-4064
[email protected]

CHARLOTTE, NC (May 16, 2019) — The Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Board of Trustees will confer 85 master’s degrees and 9 doctoral degrees during commencement exercises at 10 a.m., May 18, at the Charlotte campus. Total degrees to be conferred at Gordon-Conwell’s four campuses in Jacksonville; Charlotte, NC; and South Hamilton and Boston, MA, include 330 master’s degrees and 51 doctoral degrees.

Dr. Dennis P. Hollinger will be the commencement speaker at his last Commencement as President before retiring June 30. Dennis Hollinger has served as President and Colman M. Mockler Distinguished Professor of Christian Ethics at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary for the past eleven years. Prior to that, he served eleven years as a professor, eleven years as a pastor, and eleven years in higher education administration. Dr. Hollinger is the author of four books and more than eighty articles, primarily in the field of ethics, and has served as the co-editor for the Eerdmans book series, Critical Issues in Bioethics.

Among the Charlotte graduates is David Holcomb. David never considered cancer to be a part of his curriculum at Gordon-Conwell, but he readily admits the disease sometimes stood as a bigger barrier to graduation than reading more than 60,000 pages and learning Greek and Hebrew. David will receive his Master of Divinity degree Saturday, May 18, at Gordon-Conwell Charlotte commencement exercises at Forest Hill Church, ending a journey marked by cancer and community.

Gordon-Conwell—Charlotte was founded in 1992 and moved in 2003, to a 19-acre property and the 31,897-square-foot Frank and Morrow Graham Academic Center, named after the parents of Rev. Billy Graham and his siblings. In 2015, Gordon-Conwell completed construction of the first major addition to the building. The David M. Rogers Hall of Mission is enhanced with classrooms suited to the mobilization of informed and inspired students for Kingdom work around the world. For over 20 years, this campus has made graduate theological studies available to students from around the world. Today, Gordon-Conwell—Charlotte continues to advance the seminary’s vision by training students to think theologically, engage globally and live biblically in every sphere of life.

The Charlotte campus is located at 14542 Choate Circle, Charlotte, NC 28273.
On-site contact: Rev. Deana A. Nail [email protected] | 704-527-9909, ext. 5810

ABOUT GORDON-CONWELL

Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is a multidenominational, evangelical Protestant graduate school serving nearly 1,800 students on campuses in South Hamilton and Boston, MA; Charlotte, NC; and Jacksonville, FL. Students represent more than 85 denominations and 50 foreign countries. The seminary ranks as one of the largest in size among the 251 seminaries accredited by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. Gordon-Conwell offers many degrees at the master’s and doctoral levels and has gained an international reputation for leading faculty in the areas of biblical studies, ministry and theology.

ABOUT DR. DENNIS P. HOLLINGER, PRESIDENT AND COLMAN M. MOCKLER DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR OF CHRISTIAN ETHICS

Dr. Dennis P. Hollinger concludes his eleven-year tenure as President and the Colman M. Mockler Distinguished Professor of Christian Ethics at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, MA. Over the years he has served in various leadership, academic and pastoral roles.

Dennis is a frequent speaker in churches, pastors’ conferences, seminaries, colleges and academic forums. He is the author of four books, including The Meaning of Sex: Christian Ethics and the Moral Life (Baker); Head, Heart, Hands: Bringing Together Christian Thought, Passion and Action (InterVarsity Press); and Choosing the Good: Christian Ethics in a Complex World (Baker). He has authored more than eighty articles, mostly in ethics and has served as the co-editor for the Eerdmans book series, Critical Issues in Bioethics.

Dennis graduated from Moody Bible Institute in 1969, received the B.A. from Elizabethtown College, the M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, the M.Phil. and Ph.D. from Drew University, and did post-doctoral studies at Oxford University. He and his wife Dr. Mary Ann Hollinger have two married daughters and six grandchildren.

ABOUT DAVID HOLCOMB, FEATURED GRADUATING STUDENT

In August 2016, David’s wife Christy visited the emergency room with what was thought to be a severe migraine. One day later, doctors diagnosed and removed Christy’s malignant brain tumor. In October 2017, Christy once again underwent surgery to remove another tumor. The outpouring of compassion, care and prayers from the Gordon-Conwell community helped David not only care for Christy and pursue his degree but also to raise two daughters and serve as Minister of Discipleship at River Oaks Community Church in Clemmons, NC.

As David celebrates his graduation, the entire Gordon-Conwell community joins in rejoicing over Christy’s miraculous healing and continuing progress. “She is doing well, and her recent scans show no signs of progression. She has good strength, clarity and improved cognitive and physical ability. Doctors now talk in terms of a full long life, when before they only prepared us for the worst,” explains David.

Through the power of prayer, the power of community, and the power of the deep biblical theology he received at Gordon-Conwell, David feels more prepared to serve and better equipped to minister to those who hurt.