West Virginia Wesleyan College President William R. Haden and Dean of the College Dr. Larry Parsons handed out approximately 375 diplomas on Sunday, April 30, during the 116th annual Commencement Ceremony in the John D. Rockefeller Physical Education Building. Nearly 2,000 family and friends of graduates attended the event. The men and women who received their degrees join the more than 15,000 Wesleyan alumni as members of the OrangeLine.

Commencement ceremonies were highlighted by an address to the Class of 2006 by Kathleen “Kay” Goodwin. She lauded Wesleyan and its students for their community service efforts, labeling Wesleyan as the state’s premiere community service leader in higher education. His message, entitled “Every, Every Minute” challenged graduates to continue to learn and to make a difference. She remarked, “Don’t go through life with catcher’s mitts on both hands. Find what you believe in and stand up for those convictions.” Goodwin is currently the Secretary of Education and the Arts in West Virginia.

Three distinguished individuals received the Doctor of Humane Letters degree during the ceremony. Receiving the honorary degrees were speaker Goodwin, and Marvin ’51 and his wife Carmen “Elaine” Karnes Culpepper ’54.

Dr. Eric Waggoner, assistant professor of English, was honored with the coveted “Teacher of the Year” award by the graduating seniors. The annual award is based on a vote conducted by the graduating class, in which each student selects his or her favorite professor during their college career.

The previous night, Baccalaureate was held in Wesley Chapel with featured speaker Rev. Margaret Mason Mallory. Rev. Mallory is the district superintendent of the Toledo District in the West Ohio Conference.

With graduation behind them, Wesleyan students will now step into a world full of possibilities with unlimited potential. Several will enter the work force, with many recent graduates already finding jobs in their teaching, nursing, and health care fields. Many more will elect to continue their education at graduate schools in state and across the country such as West Virginia University, Marshall University, and Vanderbilt University. “The Commencement weekend was marked by a positive spirit and gracious interactions among those gathered to observe the ceremonies,” remarked President Haden. “Graduates, their families, and friends heard inspiring messages from Reverend Margaret Mason Mallory and Kay Goodwin. All in all, it was a grand opportunity to acknowledge the accomplishments of the Class of 2006, and I wish them well in their future endeavors.”