LWC to Grant First Doctorate Degree on Saturday
Lindsey Wilson College will make academic history on Saturday, December 15. The liberal arts college will confer its first doctorate degree in counselor education and supervision, the first Ph.D. to be awarded in the college’s 115-year history.
Leon Ellison of Cincinnati will become the first graduate of the Doctorate of Philosophy in Counselor Education & Supervision program. Ellison will be among 411 individuals who will receive their degrees during the 108th commencement ceremony which begins at 10 a.m. CT on Saturday in Biggers Sports Center, 360 Spickard Drive, Columbia, Ky.
This will be Lindsey Wilson's third largest winter class since the college began the ceremony in December 2004. LWC's largest winter class was 418, which was graduated in 2013. This winter, LWC will award 197 undergraduate degrees, 213 graduate degrees and one doctorate degree.
This is the third degree Ellison has received from LWC. He earned his bachelor’s in human services and counseling and his master’s in counseling and human development by attending LWC’s community campus at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College.
“Successful doctoral studies in counseling requires persistence, commitment and the ability to master the technical apparatus of the domains of teaching, research, leadership and advocacy,” said Professor of Counseling & Human Development Daniel Schnopp-Wyatt who served as one of Ellison’s lead advisors. “Leon did all this and more. Some days it wore me out just trying to catch up to him.”
Ellison, a veteran of the U.S Army, says past experiences and childhood trauma motivated him to pursue a career in counseling.
“Earning this degree is important to me because it provides a vehicle to make lasting change in my community,” said Ellison. “My experiences growing up and my time as a child and family counselor influenced my passion for counseling and advocacy work.”
“It’s a milestone for Lindsey Wilson College to begin graduating doctoral students,” said LWC President William T. Luckey, Jr. “Having a successful doctorate program helps increase LWC’s stature, research opportunities and attracts a higher caliber of students to the college.”
And Luckey says the work of the faculty and administrators that made this accomplishment a reality should not be overlooked.
“There are a lot of people who should feel great satisfaction seeing this moment happen at the college,” Luckey said. “This is the result of work from people who were passionate about maintaining strict standards of academic excellence while continuing to meet the needs of our students and serve the Lindsey Wilson mission.”
The Doctorate of Philosophy in Counselor Education & Supervision first launched in 2014 to prepare leaders in the field of professional counseling. The 72-hour, weekend Ph.D. program was created in response to a growing need in Kentucky to have more doctoral-level, mental health professionals. The program takes about four years to complete and is fully-accredited by the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs.
To accommodate the large crowd expected for winter commencement, the ceremony will be shown on closed-circuit television in the Norma & Glen Hodge Center for Discipleship, 402 Helen Flatt Drive and in the Roberta D. Cranmer Dining & Conference Center. The ceremony will also be carried live on DuoCounty Channel 2 and on lindsey.edu via the Stretch channel.
For more information about LWC's 2018 winter commencement ceremony, contact the LWC Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@lindsey.edu or 270-384-8400.
Pictured: Leon Ellison of Cincinnati will make Lindsey Wilson College history on Saturday when he becomes the first graduate of the Doctorate of Philosophy in Counselor Education & Supervision program. This will be the first Ph.D. to be awarded in the college’s 115-year history. Ellison will be among 411 individuals who will receive their degrees during the 108th commencement ceremony which begins at 10 a.m. CT on Saturday, Dec. 15 in Biggers Sports Center, 360 Spickard Drive, Columbia, Ky.
More:
• Click here to learn about the admissions process at Lindsey Wilson College.
• Click here for information about the Doctorate of Philosophy in Counselor Education & Supervision program.
• Click here to see all of LWC's community campus/extended location sites.
• Click here to apply to LWC.