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MHC Confers Degrees on 86 August and December Graduates
It was the mountains that sealed the deal.
Being from Antigo, Wisconsin, Christopher “Kit” Powell said he had never experienced being in the mountains until he came to Mars Hill College as a cross country recruit over four years ago.
In his graduation speech on Friday evening, December 16, 2011, Powell (right), a music performance major, described how the mountains had drawn him to Mars Hill College, and then had become a metaphor for the struggles of college life. During practice each day, he said, he had run up the slopes of western North Carolina, accepting the toil as the price of success.
“The parallels proved simple and poignant,” he said. “I dedicated the dauntingly steep climbs to big papers and performances, the hills to daily musical practice sessions and homework, and the dips and bumps in between to my own personal ebb and flow. Each run I completed solidified my ability to succeed in all parts of my life.”
Powell shared these thoughts with his fellow graduating seniors at Mars Hill College’s December graduation ceremonies, held in Moore Auditorium on Friday evening. Powell was one of 74 December graduates and 12 August graduates who were eligible to participate in graduation.
Adult student Tenise Smith, a special education major, described the special challenges and joys of those students who receive a college education beyond the “traditional” college age. “Over the past three years, I’ve gotten to know people who were pursuing an education in spite of being employees, in spite of having families to care for, in spite of tragedy, in spite of financial problems, and in spite of other bumps in the road,” she said. “To put it bluntly, being a dedicated student is not for wimps.”
Especially for adult students, graduation is a difficult but rewarding milestone that would have been all but impossible without tremendous motivation and support from family, as well as the faculty and staff of Mars Hill College.
Physical education major Luis Cruz, a resident of Anaheim Hills, California, spoke of boarding a plane for North Carolina after being recruited as a quarterback for the MHC football team.
“This was one of the toughest and scariest decisions I have ever had to make, but ended up being one of the best,” he said.
Cruz described the community feel of the Mars Hill campus, and the closeness he feels to faculty and fellow students. He also said he felt truly blessed to have been part of Mars Hill’s very successful athletic year, which included being part of the first MHC football team to ever win the SAC championship and advance to the NCAA playoffs.
The invocation at Friday’s ceremonies was given by Britney Acosta, a mathematics major from Glenville, NC. The musical selection was Etude in E Major, performed on piano by Sarah Grace McCoy, a junior music performance major.
The top majors for Mars Hill’s December and August graduates were: business administration, business management, education (elementary, middle, special) and sociology.
Graduates included a husband and wife from Marshall, NC: Megan Scott, an elementary education major and December graduate; and Shawn Scott, a business management major and August graduate.
Of the 86 graduates, three were double majors: Qing Lu of Wuhan City, China, double-majored in business administration and mathematics; and Amanda Fisher of Asheville, NC, double-majored in political science and sociology. Nikola Milanovic, of Belgrade Serbia, actually earned two degrees, graduating with honors and earning both a bachelor of arts degree in International Studies and a bachelor of science degree in business administration.
The following December graduates received their bachelor’s degrees from Mars Hill on Friday evening:
Luis Ramon Cruz, Anaheim Hills CA
Jacob James Bluett-Mills, Aptos CA
Patrick Park, Fullerton CA
Dustin Lee Stone, Casselberry FL
Jennifer L. Ammons, Jacksonville FL
Brittany Lauren Butler, Lake Wales FL
Tiffiny Elke Anderson, Orange City FL
Mitchell Keyon Williams, Wildwood FL
Brandon Keshod Edmond, Dublin GA
Jared Dominic Toro, Fayetteville GA
Brooklyn Gordon Isom, Toccoa GA
Tyler Allen Hodgson, Woodstock GA
Tabitha Ann Kielhack, Saint Charles IL
Jason Edward Messineo, Edgewater MD
Katy Elizabeth Sizemore Greene, Alexander NC
Dale M. Rogers, Alexander NC
Jessica Paige Epley, Arden NC
Kimberly Graham, Arden NC
Brian A. Haynes, Arden NC
Michael Joseph Brittian, Asheville NC
Michele Anne Clausen, Asheville NC
Donna Edmonds Collins, Asheville NC
Teresa Gentry Dutcher, Asheville NC
Amanda Lea Fisher, Asheville NC
Samuel Hartshorn, Asheville NC
Diane Amelia Hayes, Bryson City NC
David Brown Banks, Jr., Burnsville NC
Jessie Logan Buchanan, Burnsville NC
Kimberlyn Christine Lindsay, Burnsville NC
Shentell L. Ramsey, Burnsville NC
Russell Patrick Williams, Burnsville NC
Reginald Bruce Howard, Jr., Charlotte NC
Barry Antonio Rice, Jr., Charlotte NC
Jonee Chantelle Taylor, Cherokee NC
Miranda Rae Reasoner, Denver NC
Tanner Reid Nance, Eden NC
Courtney Brooke Jackson, Flat Rock NC
Joshua Lamont Baker, Fletcher NC
Britney Lynn Acosta, Glenville NC
Matthew Karl Owen Henrikson, Hayesville NC
John Joseph McCarson, Hendersonville NC
William Spencer Grigg, Hudson NC
Bobbie-Ann Webb, Leicester NC
Tenise S. Smith, Marion NC
Judi Lee Davids, Mars Hill NC
Jessica Lynn Harwood, Mars Hill NC
Victor Louis Herring, Jr., Mars Hill NC
Cheryl M. Smith, Mars Hill NC
Tayler Marie Ledbetter, Marshall NC
Megan Teresa Scott, Marshall NC
Patrick O. Wright, Marshall NC
Alicia Kim Briggs, Micaville NC
Shelby Diana Gaillard, Mountain Home NC
Heather Laurel Sitze, Raleigh NC
Rebekah Elaine Crockett, Swannanoa NC
Jillian Michelle Dyer, Waynesville NC
Sarah Elizabeth Lomax, Weaverville NC
Olivia Suzanne VanderElzen, Weaverville NC
Cassandra Louise Adamson, Wilmington NC
Timothy John Burns, Jr., Downingtown PA
Kaley Suzanne Kite, Gaffney SC
Allie Lenora Thrift, Gray Court SC
Kathryn Debra Buice, Pickens SC
Shawn Paul Esworthy, Pineland SC
John Gordon Giles, New Tazewell TN
Phillip Michael Burke, Nolensville TN
Magan René Reedy, Roanoke VA
Christopher Philip Powell, Antigo WI
Eric James Benesch, Ontario, Canada
Chad Larry Skinner, Ontario Canada
Qing Lu, Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China
Nikola Milanovic, Belgrade, Serbia
Tyler Alex Fred Farmer, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Frederic Elsner, Ebbs, Tirol, Austria
The following August Graduates received their degrees in the summer, but were eligible to participate in Friday’s graduation ceremonies:
Brent Michael Burlingham, Asheville NC
Karen Denise Stevens Gurley, Burnsville NC
Bryan Torres Howell, Cherryville NC
Amanda Craig Lehman, Fairview NC
Stacie Lynn Price, Fairview NC
Jocelyn Maxine Williams, Greensboro NC
Andrew Wilson Hewett, Mars Hill NC
Shawn Cody Scott, Marshall NC
Amy Lynne Roper, Morganton NC
Brittany Briggs George, Weaverville NC
Jason Robert Sinclair, Brewster NY
Desmond Montez Peterson, Abbeville SC