University ceremony set for Dec. 19
By From staff reports
Published in News on December 9, 2015 1:46 PM
MOUNT OLIVE -- The University of Mount Olive will graduate approximately 280 students on Saturday, Dec. 19, during commencement exercises scheduled for 2 p.m. in the George and Annie Dail Kornegay Arena on the Mount Olive campus.
Dr. Michael J. Dunsmore, superintendent of Wayne County Public Schools, will be the commencement speaker.
The commencement worship service will precede the graduation ceremony at 10:30 a.m. in Southern Bank Auditorium in Raper Hall with the Rev. John Hill as the speaker.
Dunsmore graduated from Mansfield State College in Mansfield, Pa., in 1983 with a with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.
After serving as an extensive juvenile probation officer for five years, Dunsmore moved from the justice system to the education system.
Dunsmore later earned a master's degree in counseling from Shippensburg University in Shippensburg, Pa. The following year he became an emotional support and life skills teacher at an intermediate school in Summerdale, Pa.
In 2003, Dunsmore earned a master's degree in special education from Shippensburg University. The following year, he was named director of Special Education at Mount Union Area School District.
In 2006, Dunsmore became the supervisor of special education at Palmrya Area School District. Dunsmore then earned a doctorate degree in educational leadership from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pa. Dunsmore left Pennsylvania in 2009 and moved to North Carolina to become the superintendent of Tyrrell County Schools.
Dunsmore was named the North Carolina Northeast Region Superintendent of the Year. After serving six years in this position, Dunsmore moved from Tyrrell County to Wayne County to become the superintendent of Wayne County Public Schools. His first official day was July 1, 2015.
In addition to his education and administration experience, Dunsmore served as the head wrestling coach at Shippensburg University from 1993 through 2001. He has also served as a volunteer diver and educator at the North Carolina Aquarium since 2009.
In addition to having served on various community and professional boards, Dunsmore is a member of the following organizations: Council for Exceptional Students, National School Superintendents Association, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, North Carolina Superintendents Association, and North East Superintendents Association.
Hill is a UMO alumnus and the pastor of the Winterville Free Will Baptist Church in Winterville.
Hill graduated from UMO in 2003 and earned a master of divinity in Christian education from Baptist Seminary in Richmond, VA. He later completed his doctoral studies at Campbell University Divinity School.
Hill serves on the university's board of trustees and as the current chairman of the board for the Free Will Baptist's International Mission Board.
He also serves as chairman of Academic Abundance Inc., a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing education and skill development to underprivileged individuals. Hill is an avid NAUI SCUBA diving instructor and is highly involved in multiple Winterville community organizations.
Hill is married to Joy Daughtry Hill (Class of 2004) and has three adopted sons from Brazil, Luiz, Erinaldo and Alex.
The University of Mount Olive is a private institution rooted in the liberal arts tradition with defining Christian values.
The university, sponsored by the Convention of Original Free Will Baptists, has locations in Mount Olive, New Bern, Wilmington, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Research Triangle Park, Washington, Jacksonville, and in Smithfield at Johnston Community College.
For more information, visit www.umo.edu.