President of Mercer University to be graduation speaker

Dr. R. Kirby Godsey, president of Mercer University, will deliver the graduation address at Campbell University on Monday, May 9. The 9 a.m. ceremony will be held on the Academic Circle in front of the D. Rich Memorial Hall. Since coming to the presidency in 1979, and being the 17th president in Mercer’s 170-year history, Dr. Godsey has steered Mercer University to unprecedented heights. His numerous achievements include doubling Mercer’s enrollment, expanding its endowment to well over $200 million and founding schools of Theology, Education, Engineering, Business and Economics and Medicine. These and other accomplishments have garnered Mercer perennial recognition as one of the South’s leading institutions of higher education. Dr. Godsey’s academic preparation is notable for its outstanding breadth. Following his undergraduate studies at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, he added two masters degrees, a Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (1960), and a Master of Arts in philosophy from the University of Alabama (1967). His two earned doctorates are a Th.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (1962), and a Ph.D. from Tulane University (1969). He has also received honorary degrees from The University of South Carolina, Averett University and Samford University. Dr. Godsey is the author of ‘When We Talk About God, Let’s Be Honest,’ and has written numerous articles for scholarly and professional journals and denominational publications, including the ‘Journal of Higher Education, ‘The Educator’ and ‘The Journal of Philosophy.’ Among many significant involvements, he is active in the American Association of Higher Education, the American Philosophical Association and has served as a member of the board of trustees of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Acknowledging his long and distinguished involvement with the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association, Dr. Godsey was, in 2001, the recipient of its highest honor, the Meritorious Service Award. Campbell expects to confer approximately 700 degrees at its May commencement services.