For Immediate Release
GALLATIN, TN—Welch College conferred degrees on 54 students in its Commencement ceremony on May 8, according to Provost Matthew McAffee. Commencement exercises were held in the Student Activities Center, in which the gymnasium space was converted into a 700-plus seating auditorium for the Baccalaureate service on Thursday evening, May 7, and the Commencement ceremony on Friday morning, May 8. The college awarded associate’s degrees, bachelor’s degrees, Master of Arts in Teaching degrees, Master of Arts degrees, and the Master of Divinity degree.
Dr. Edward E. Moody, Executive Director of the National Association of Free Will Baptists, delivered the Commencement address. Rev. Chris Truett, pastor of Bethel Free Will Baptist Church in Kinston, North Carolina, delivered the Baccalaureate sermon.
President Matt Pinson recognized Coordinator for Admissions Records Pam Buck, Registrar Anna McAffee, and Librarian Christa Thornsbury for their ten years of service.
Additionally, several faculty and staff members who retired during the 2025−2026 school year were recognized. Tina Tolbert, Freshman Coordinator and Assistant Professor of Speech, and Mike Anderson, Facilities Technician, for twenty-seven and thirty-three years of service, respectively. Pinson also honored the service of Martha Fletcher, who worked as the Executive Assistant to the President for seventeen years.
Pinson also recognized Dr. Jon Forlines, who recently retired from the position of Vice President for Student Services. State Representative and Dean of Adult Studies William Slater awarded Dr. Forlines a commendation for his retirement and twenty-four years of service, passed by both houses of the Tennessee Legislature.
The Teacher of Year recognition was awarded to Dr. José RodrÃguez, Program Coordinator for Pastoral Ministry and Dean of the Spanish Ministry Institute. Dr. Christopher Talbot, Assistant Professor of Ministry and Apologetics and Program Coordinator for Youth and Family Ministry, was recognized as Academic Advisor of the Year.
The college congratulates the 2026 graduating class and commends them to the service of Christ and the transformational work of His kingdom.
Associate of Science Degrees
Terry Lloyd Brewer
Happy, Kentucky
Ministry
Jacob Michael Edgmon
Dickson, Tennessee
Ministry
Katie Nicole Newton
Mount Juliet, Tennessee
Business
Julianna Kaye Richards
Antioch, Tennessee
Biology
Emma Caroline Whited
Papua, Indonesia
Early Childhood Education
Associate of Arts Degree
Josie Noelle McLamb
Hendersonville, Tennessee
Teaching
Bachelor of Science Degrees
Hannah Grace Barnes
Portland, Tennessee
Psychology
Hannah Joy Carmack-Gaddy
Hendersonville, Tennessee
Theological Studies
Clayton Lee Carter
Madison, Indiana
Business Administration
Walker Hamilton Cummins
Gallatin, Tennessee
Business Administration
Omar JosÃas GarcÃa Carrero**
San Pedro de MacorÃs, Dominican Republic
Business Administration
Zaimes Bradley Hall
Graceville, Florida
Exercise Science
Locke Grayson Hord
Fairview, Tennessee
Exercise Science
Matthew Garrett Johns*
Ashland City, Tennessee
General Christian Ministry
Ethan Lance LaWarre*
Altha, Florida
Business Administration
Camden Eli Lewis**
Clarksville, Tennessee
Biology
Rachel Cheyenne Lewis***
Gastonia, North Carolina
Psychology
Stephen James Lewis***
Chicago, Illinois
Biology
Zoey Renee Lincoln***
Wabash, Indiana
Child Development and Learning
Morgan Brooke Livingston***
Locust Grove, Oklahoma
English Education
Jacob Nathan Miller
Ozark, Alabama
Business Administration
Charlie James Oglesby
Nashville, Tennessee
General Christian Ministry
Jacob Dilan Petitt
White House, Tennessee
Business Administration
Michaela Grace Pinkerman*
Goodlettsville, Tennessee
Business Administration
Samuel Jae Riggs
Pleasant View, Tennessee
Business Administration
Emily Belle Roach***
Greeneville, Tennessee
Mathematics Education
Malone Jeanette Roberts
Gallatin, Tennessee
Psychology
Jacob Andrew Robertson*
Amory, Mississippi
Music Performance
Marcus Eli Scarlett
Lebanon, Tennessee
Exercise Science
Jahleh Eva Scott**
Apollo Beach, Florida
Child Development and Learning
Nathan Michael Shute
Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Youth and Family Ministry
Brook Jewel Snow**
Pleasant View, Tennessee
Biology
Mason Dale Thornhill
Brownsville, Tennessee
Exercise Science
Easton Samuel Truett*
Kinston, North Carolina
Youth and Family Ministry
Dalton Lane Ulrick
Clarksville, Tennessee
Business Administration
Caroline Hope Watts*
Pleasant View, Tennessee
Business Administration
Karilyn Kathleen Wieting***
Huron, South Dakota
Exercise Science
Bachelor of Arts Degrees
Benjamin Wendell Becker
Gallatin, Tennessee
History
Korey Ryan Canady
Smithfield, North Carolina
English
Emmett Hudson Markins*
Gallatin, Tennessee
Humanities and Arts
Caleb Brooks Sampsell**
Northport, Alabama
Pastoral Ministry
James Wilson Walton***
Colquitt, Georgia
History
Christopher Jameson Elijah Williams***
Hamilton, Alabama
Pastoral Ministry
Master of Arts in Teaching Degrees
Makayla Ann Binkley
Ashland City, Tennessee
Special Education
Authentic Learning Experience Compendium: The Effects of Behavior Management Strategies on Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Opal Rena Brackin-Loza
Brackentown, Tennessee
Special Education
Authentic Learning Experience Compendium: Achieving Organizational Success for ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder Students
Susan Rose Brotherton
Ashland City, Tennessee
Teaching
Thesis: The Effectiveness of Teaching Methods in World Language and the Satisfaction Found Therein: Grammar Translation versus Total Physical Response Storytelling
Master of Arts Degrees
Edward Keith Byrd Jr.
Charlotte, North Carolina
Organizational Leadership
Kristi Marie Johnson
Gallatin, Tennessee
Organizational Leadership
Research Project: Servant Leadership Explored Through an Incarnational Lens
Sarah Katherine Lovett
Gallatin, Tennessee
Theology and Ministry
Thesis: Covenantal Continuity: Thomas Grantham and the Unity Between the General and Particular Baptists
Anna Elizabeth Pinson
Gallatin, Tennessee
Humanities
Thesis: Dramaturgy: A Christian Approach
Osamu Sakamoto
Tokyo, Japan
Theology and Ministry
James Wilson Walton
Colquitt, Georgia
Humanities
Thesis: Generals in the Heartland: Confederate Leadership in the West
Derek Corbin Whited
Hendersonville, Tennessee
Humanities
Thesis: The Gyres and a Tower: Evaluating Conservatism in the Poetry and Prose of W. B. Yeats
Master of Divinity Degree
Michael David Hollis
Pleasant View, Tennessee
*** Summa Cum Laude – 3.75
** Magna Cum Laude – 3.50
* Cum Laude – 3.25
Honors awarded only to recipients of Bachelor’s degrees