Commencement Information for Orlando Campus
December 6, 2012
- Where:The Life Center Church, 63 E. Kennedy Blvd. Eatonville, FL
- Deadlines: November 30th is the deadline for getting students names added to the program.
- Regalia: Regalia will be available for student and faculty to pickup, starting on November 29th at the Orlando campus from 9am-6pm
- Seating information: Theater style. Please let us know if special seating or handicap seating is required.
- Photographer: Griffith Photography will be taking pictures at 5:00pm before the ceremony.
- Commencement Speaker is Dr. Don Sweeting, President, Reformed Theological Seminary, Oviedo, FL .
- Questions: If you need further clarification s please contact Alexis McCullough or Heather Miller at 407-379-0114.
Donald W. Sweeting, president of Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Fla.
Don Sweeting is the president of Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Fla. Before assuming this post, he served as a pastor for more than 20 years in ministries of church planting
and church revitalization. He planted a church in Northern Illinois. He also served as senior pastor of a large Presbyterian church in Denver with the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Don has also been involved in training pastors overseas. Building strong, healthy churches and training pastors and leaders for the global 21st century church is a passion of Don’s.
The son of George and Margaret Sweeting, Don grew up in a Christian home. His dad pastored the historic Moody Church in Chicago and eventually served as president of The Moody Bible Institute. Besides teaching him about Christ, one of the best gifts his parents gave him was the freedom to be whom God had called him to be, and as such, they have been his life-long encouragers.
Don’s educational journey started at the Moody Bible Institute. He then transferred to Lawrence University, where he earned a B.A. in history. Soon after, Don interned for U.S. Congressman John B. Anderson and assisted the late Chuck Colson at Prison Fellowship. God used this time to confirm Don’s direction toward ministry. His educational journey continued at Regent College in Vancouver, B.C., where he studied under Dr. J. I. Packer. From there he traveled to England, where he earned an M.A. from Oxford University and during which time his friendship deepened with the late John Stott. Don later served on Dr. Stott’s boards—the Langham Foundation, John Stott Ministries and the Langham Partnership International. While planting and pastoring in northern Illinois, Don received a doctorate in church history from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.
Before coming to RTS, Don taught church history at Denver Seminary, served as chairman of the EPC’s theology committee and continues to serve as a trustee on the board of Colorado Christian University. Today Don teaches church history (and other courses) at RTS as the James Woodrow Hassel Professor of Church History. He is on the board of the National Association of Evangelicals and also serves with the World Reformed Fellowship. Don is a member of the Evangelical Theological Society and the Fellowship of Evangelical Seminary Presidents.
Don is married to Christina, a trained biologist and accomplished violinist. They have four children: James, Jonathan, Joshua and Julianna. Don enjoys reading, baseball and music—playing guitar and bagpipes. He and his family enjoy hiking in the Rockies and climbing 14ers. Don is passionate about the gospel, making disciples, and proclaiming God’s Word through preaching, teaching and writing (his blog is www.chiefendofman.org), and training future church leaders.
Don and his dad have a new Moody Publishers book that was released in February 2012 entitled, How to Finish the Christian Life: Following Jesus in the Second Half.
