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Experience As German Exchange Student Gives Gwu Senior Confidence For Future Endeavors, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

The youngest of seven children, Avery Terry of Greensboro, N.C., always has family looking out for him. A senior criminal justice major at Gardner-Webb University, Terry decided to apply to study abroad and explore the world on his own. He was accepted into the Gardner-Webb International Exchange Student program and attended the University of Trier in Germany during the spring semester of his junior year.

Alumna’S Degrees In Criminal Justice And Human Services Help Inmates Overcome Past, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Motivated by her desire to help people and set a good example for her family, Monique Richardson enrolled at Gardner-Webb University despite fears about her age. “I was scared coming back to school in my 40s,” Monique disclosed.

Gardner-Webb Offers Grants To New Goal—Dcp Students In Criminal Justice And Human Services, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Gardner-Webb University has announced grants for two popular bachelor’s degree programs for GOAL—The Degree Completion Program undergraduates. New students, who are applying to the criminal justice program or the human services program for spring semester 2020, may be eligible for these grants. Qualifying students may reduce their tuition cost up to $3,000 per academic year.

Gwu Criminal Justice Program Equips Police Lieutenant With Leadership Skills, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Lt. Lori Miller, of Taylorsville, N.C., has served the Hickory Police Department for nearly 13 years. She’s the second female in the history of the department to achieve the rank of lieutenant. She also teaches students in the BLET (Basic Law Enforcement Training) and DOCC (Department of Community Corrections) programs.

Alumna Was Hired Full Time While Completing Her Degree In Criminal Justice Administration, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

A year before graduating from Gardner-Webb University with a bachelor of science in criminal justice administration and minor in psychology, Alexis Williams was hired by the city of Gastonia (N.C.) Police Department. After her internship there, the 2019 alumna was offered a job and worked full time as a police officer while completing her degree. "All of the criminal justice classes that I took were absolutely inspiring, and I learned so much about the criminal justice field,” Williams observed.

Gardner-Webb And Blue Ridge Community College Sign Articulation Agreement, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Blue Ridge Community College President Laura B. Leatherwood joined with Gardner-Webb University Interim President Dr. Ben Leslie to sign an articulation agreement designed to provide a clear pathway for students who want to earn an associate degree in accounting, early childhood, business administration, information technology, or criminal justice at Blue Ridge and then move on to work toward their bachelor’s degrees at GWU in related fields. “By following the course of study outlined in the articulation agreements, students can easily see how their course work will transfer, how it will apply to their bachelor’s degree program, and what courses they …

Bachelor’S Degree Prepared Gwu Alumnus For Career In Law Enforcement, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

On his 21st birthday in 1985, Graham Atkinson went to work for the Surry County Sheriff’s Department in Dobson, N.C. A four-year degree wasn’t a requirement, and Atkinson was eager to begin working. About a decade later, he enrolled in Gardner-Webb University through what is now called the Degree Completion Program (DCP).

Skills Developed In Gwu Criminal Justice Program Benefit Alumnus Throughout Career, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Since earning his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Gardner-Webb University in 2000, Terry Sult, police chief of Hampton, Va., has served in four towns, each with different needs. His GWU studies helped him developed the skills needed to adapt to new situations, analyze problems and propose solutions. “The bachelor’s degree provides you with a broader view of the world and lets you look at things from a different plateau,” Sult observed.

Gardner-Webb Alumnus Serves As Administrator With N.C. State Highway Patrol, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Brian Regan, a 2008 alumnus of Gardner-Webb University, has served nearly three decades with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol (NCSHP). In 2017, he was appointed as Major/Director of Professional Standards. Regan’s respect for the vocation began when he was 10 years old, and a state trooper came to his house. The trooper had the difficult job of telling them that Regan’s father had died in a motor vehicle crash.

Gwu Alumnus Discovered God Had Different Plan For His Life, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Rev. Wesley Smith thought he was following God’s will for his life in 2001 when he received his bachelor’s in criminal justice from Gardner-Webb University. However, he became discouraged when he didn’t find a job in juvenile probation and parole and wasn’t sure what to do. Direction came during a church revival service.

Gardner-Webb Student Pursues Passion For Justice, Office Of University Communications, Mallory Moore

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

It started with a passion for justice. Gardner-Webb senior Lauren Mahoney from Rosman, N.C., always knew that she wanted to help people. “If someone has been victimized, I want to be able to do something about it,” she shared. Recently, Mahoney had the opportunity to pursue her interests through an internship with the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) at its Western District Office.

Gardner-Webb’S Criminal Justice Program Prepared Alumnus For Promotion, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Mark Lineberry ’15 joined the Asheboro (N.C.) Police Department in 1992 as a patrol officer. He aspired to follow the example of his grandfather, who was also in law enforcement. As he serves the community, Lineberry’s goal is to make a difference in someone’s life.

Gwu Criminal Justice Degree Was First Step In Alum’S Successful Career, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Tom Anderson ’04 of Statesville, N.C., believes that personal success doesn’t happen by accident. An alumnus and adjunct professor for Gardner-Webb University, Anderson tells students that academic and career success is a combination of intentional steps, goal setting, and a high level of commitment. To reach his goals, the first intentional step he took was to pursue a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice.

Gwu Criminal Justice Alumnus Gains Knowledge To Effectively Solve Problems, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Every spring, the population of the town of Wilkesboro, N.C., grows by around 75,000 for Merlefest, a musical tribute to the late folk and bluegrass guitarist Merle Watson. Ensuring the safety of visitors and residents during the four-day event requires a team effort of hundreds of people. Chief of Police Craig Garris, a 2000 graduate of Gardner-Webb University, coordinates his department’s role in the effort.

Alum Furthers Career In Criminal Justice Through Gwu Degree Completion Program, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Despite the dangers, Travis Brittain (’08) of Gastonia, N.C., decided from a young age to serve the community through law enforcement. “The risks involved did not weigh as heavily upon me as the desire to join the profession,” he stated. “I wanted to be in a position to help people.”

Degree Completion Program Student Learns Skills To Help People Through Difficult Transitions, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Before enrolling in the Gardner-Webb University Degree Completion Program (DCP), Claire Bowen, of Stokes County, N.C., worked in a geriatric psychiatric unit and saw the important role of human services. She realized people need someone to listen and point them to valuable community resources where they can find more help. Bowen decided to go back to school and earn her bachelor’s degree and work with youth and adults going through difficult transitions in life.

Gwu Degree Completion Program Helps Student Explore Criminal Justice Field, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Courtney McClure (’16) of Cramerton, N.C., doesn’t remember the name of the person who first introduced her to Gardner-Webb University. She was only in elementary school, but she never forgot the name of the college and the school colors. “We were sitting on a classroom floor and people from different colleges came in and introduced their college,” she recalled.

Gardner-Webb Partners With Gaston College To Help Students Complete Degrees, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Gardner-Webb University and Gaston College (Dallas, N.C.) announced a partnership that will further ease the transfer process for students who complete degrees in certain programs with coursework at both institutions. Officials for both schools signed agreements to create a seamless degree track for accounting, business administration, criminal justice, elementary education, entrepreneurship, human services and nursing students who begin their studies at Gaston College (GC) and finish them in GWU’s Degree Completion Program (DCP).

Gardner-Webb, Isothermal Community College Partner To Help Students Complete Degrees, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Gardner-Webb University and Isothermal Community College (Spindale, N.C.) announced a partnership that will further ease the transfer process for students who complete degrees in certain programs with coursework at both institutions. Officials for both schools signed agreements to create a seamless degree track for accounting, business administration, entrepreneurship, healthcare management, criminal justice, human services, elementary education, nursing and religious studies students who begin their studies at Isothermal (ICC) and finish them in the University’s Degree Completion Program (DCP). The agreements, called Pathways to reference the structured paths of study between the two schools, formalize a degree partnership that already exists …

Gwu Alumna Dawn Stover (’01) Makes A Difference One Child At A Time, Office Of University Communications

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

When Dawn Stover (’01) was in college, she studied criminal justice so she could one day become a police officer. But when life circumstances forced her to reconsider the career she had always dreamed about, she ultimately discovered a position that perfectly suited her skill set and capitalized on her passion for helping kids. “It was always about children for me, I knew that whatever I did in life was going to have to impact children,” Stover offered.

WGWG: Guardian ad Litem program- An Interview with Dawn Stover

Family Members Reaching Their Goal, Office Of University Communications, Jeanie Groh

Gardner-Webb NewsCenter Archive

Emily Houser is a busy woman. She is a wife, a mother, an auditor at Gaston Community College, and a Mary Kay sales director. On top of that, she is working toward her human services degree at Gardner-Webb University.