Shorter University alumnus and faculty member Ben McFry will be the featured speaker at Shorter’s fall commencement exercises Friday. Approximately 525 students will graduate during the ceremony that will begin at 10 a.m. at The Forum in downtown Rome. Tickets are required for admission.

A Shannon native, McFry graduated from Shorter in 2004 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a minor in German after studying for two summer terms at Salzburg College in Austria and supporting himself by rebuilding engines at a local automotive machine shop. He began graduate study in 2004 at the University of Georgia, where he taught Asian-American, World and Western World literature. In 2007 he earned a master’s degree in comparative literature and returned to Shorter as a faculty member that same year.

In 2009 McFry earned a doctorate from UGA.

The same year, he became the department chair for English and Modern Languages at Shorter. McFry teaches English, German, Philosophy and Humanities to traditional, adult and international students in courses in the traditional and professional studies programs. He is currently associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences overseeing the Humanities and Social Sciences Division.