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Rev. Timothy Whitaker receives honorary degree at 
Florida Southern College commencement ceremony

AKELAND, Fla. (Dec. 4, 2002) - Timothy Wayne Whitaker, Bishop of the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church, will receive an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane letters during Florida Southern College's commencement ceremony Dec. 14. 

Whitaker, a member of Florida Southern's board of trustees, is being recognized for his years of service and leadership in the United Methodist Church. 

A graduate of Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Whitaker was awarded numerous academic honors including admittance into Phi Alpha Theta, a history honorary society, and Theta Phi, a theology society. He received the Award for Academic Excellence from Candler in 1973.

Prior to becoming bishop, Whitaker served the Church in positions ranging from pastor, youth minister and lecturer to deacon, elder, and district superintendent. He was ordained deacon in the Mississippi Conference in 1971 and elder in 1974. He transferred to the Virginia Conference in 1975, where he served as pastor of rural, small town, suburban and center city churches. He was the Superintendent of the Norfolk District when he was elected to the Episcopacy on February 27, 2001. 

As an elder in the Virginia Conference, Whitaker served as president of the Board of Discipleship, vice-president of the Board of Global Ministries, and chair of the Division of Elders of the Board of Ordained Ministry. He was involved in a number of community service agencies, including hospice, sheltered workshops, a soup kitchen, and tutoring of inner city children.

About Florida Southern College
Florida Southern is a four-year, private, co-educational liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The college offers more than 40 undergraduate majors and a master of business administration degree accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Located in Lakeland, Fla., the college is home to the largest, single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world. 

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