Gordon State College held its Spring 2025 Commencement ceremony in the SARC Arena on Friday, May 16, honoring 290 graduates with baccalaureate and associate degrees, an increase from the previous year.
During the ceremony, President Dr. Don Green particularly recognized a few Highlanders for their higher education milestone.
This includes Kaylan Dawson, a student from Upson County who had her start at Gordon through a dual enrollment opportunity as a high school senior. After her father was in a car accident during that time, Dawson chose Gordon for proximity purposes, allowing her to stay close to home and help her father recover. She later entered the Paraprofessional-to-Teacher (P2T) pathway, which allows paraprofessionals working in Georgia schools to earn their degrees while getting paid as school employees. Dawson said choosing Gordon has given her a strong financial advantage. While many of her peers are now moving back in with family after earning their degrees and applying for jobs, she has already purchased her own home and secured full-time employment.
Earnest Lewis of Henry County spoke on behalf of the graduating class. He addressed overcoming failure, saying, “Hidden within every failure is a new puzzle piece to be added onto your game of life. We must acknowledge the coexistence of success and failure. Because, without failure, success will be near unrecognizable, and without success, we will never understand the value that failure provides.”
Alumnus Thomas “Tog” Goss returned to campus as a part of Commencement. Now the Chief Operating Officer at Atrium Health Navicient Baldwin, he credited the “strong foundation” Gordon provided him. “The Highlander spirit is built on courage, resilience, and ambition,” Goss said.
Following the main Commencement ceremony, Gordon State hosted two traditional events: the Book and Bell ceremony for education graduates and the Pinning Ceremony for nursing graduates.
President Green emphasized the broader impact of earning a college degree, calling it “a step that opens doors, empowers families, and shapes communities.”
Grant Turner is the editor of the Barnesville Buzz and an educator, coach, and writer based in Barnesville, Georgia. He shares stories that bridge community, faith, and personal growth. In addition to teaching and coaching, Grant is Director of Musical Worship and a Sunday School teacher at New Hope Baptist Church in Zebulon, Georgia. He lives in Barnesville with his wife, Haley.
