Gardner-Webb to Award its 25,000th Bachelor’s Degree During Spring Commencement on May 8

Ceremony Celebrates Achievements of Nearly 500 Undergraduate and Graduate Students

Thursday’s commencement ceremony will be shown on the University Facebook page.

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—Gardner-Webb University will host its Spring Commencement Ceremony on Thursday, May 8, at 6:30 p.m. in Spangler Stadium. Families and guests will celebrate the achievements of nearly 500 students in traditional undergraduate, online, and graduate programs of study.

The Class of 2025 will also reach a notable milestone for the University. During this year’s ceremony, Gardner-Webb will award its 25,000th bachelor’s degree since becoming a four-year institution in 1971. In addition, three other benchmarks will be achieved:

• The College of Business will award its 9,000th bachelor’s degree.
• The College of Health Sciences will award its 2,000th graduate-level degree. 
• The College of Education will award its 7,500th degree (includes bachelor’s and graduate-level degrees).                          

The commencement program will include speeches from Gardner-Webb University Interim President Nate Evans and President of the Student Government Association, Paul McElearney. Greetings will be offered by Board of Trustees Chair the Rev. Dr. M. Lamont Littlejohn Jr.

The featured speaker is Skip Allen, lead pastor at Hope Community Church in Shelby, N.C. Allen is passionate about seeing lives transformed by the Gospel. A graduate of Crest High School, he earned a Bachelor of Science in biblical studies from Liberty University and a Master of Arts in religion with a concentration in evangelism and church planting. Hope Community Church is a growing multi-site church where people gather each week to worship, grow in their faith, and reach their communities with the hope of Jesus.

His wife, Jena, is a two-time graduate of Gardner-Webb University and has dedicated 17 years to serving mothers and newborns as a labor and delivery nurse at Atrium Cleveland in Shelby. The Allens have five children.

During the ceremony, the Most Outstanding Graduate Medals will be presented to two students in recognition of their outstanding leadership, citizenship, and academic excellence. Senior Scholastic Awards will be presented to students who completed their academic careers with a perfect 4.0 GPA. The online scholastic award will be given to students with the highest cumulative grade point average. The Darlene J. Gravett Award will also be presented to a graduate student for scholarly research that has the potential to make an improvement to society. It is named in honor of Gravett, who was a long-time dean of the GWU Graduate School and Associate Provost Emerita.

Thursday’s commencement ceremony will be shown on the University Facebook page and YouTube channel.

More information about Gardner-Webb Spring 2025 Commencement is available here.

College of Health Sciences Recognition Event

The College of Health Sciences will hold an additional recognition ceremony for its graduates on Friday, May 9, at 9 a.m. in the Lutz-Yelton Convocation Center. All master’s candidates will be hooded on the stage during the event. Pre-licensure nursing students will also be pinned.

Gardner-Webb University is North Carolina’s recognized leader in private, Christian higher education. A Carnegie-Classified Doctoral/Professional University, GWU is home to nine colleges and schools, more than 80 undergraduate and graduate majors, and a world-class faculty. Located on a beautiful 225-acre campus in Boiling Springs, N.C., Gardner-Webb prepares graduates to impact their chosen professions, equips them with the skills to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and inspires them to make a positive and lasting difference in the lives of others. Ignite your future at Gardner-Webb.edu.