A Long and Continuing Journey: Bert King ’26

Written by Chris Worthy

Bert King ’26 is on a path of lifelong learning.

“It’s a long journey.”

Indeed, Bert King, EdD ’26 has been on a path learning the next thing, then the next, for 81 years. And he has no plans to stop anytime soon. Retirement? That’s just more time to learn, lead and share.

King’s first steps in higher education were at Western Carolina University, where he earned his undergraduate degree before heading straight for the United States Marine Corps.

“I went to Officer Candidate School, and then to the Basic School, and then to Vietnam in 1969,” he said. “I spent 26 years in the Marine Corps.”

After leaving the service, King started a residential construction business in Western North Carolina. He also earned a master’s degree in Human Resource Development from Western Carolina.

“And in addition to that, I have been a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church,” he said.

Now, he adds a new title to his resume, completing Converse University’s Doctorate in Professional Leadership in May 2026.

Leadership Beyond the Classroom

King’s dissertation, “The United Methodist Church (UMC): A Phenomenological Research Study of The Role of Church Leadership and The Trend of Disaffiliation,” was born from that deep connection to the denomination and his quest to understand its changes and how they relate to leadership. Since completing his degree, King is revisiting the topic through conversations with stakeholders.

“I’m going back to the people that I interviewed, and I’m sharing with them my findings about the leadership within the church, either good or bad, either positive or negative,” he said. “It’s been quite an experience.”

 “Every person that I encountered through this Professional Leadership course was extremely helpful to me.”

Bert King ’26

King acknowledges that he was quite a bit senior to his EdD classmates, which he said “made it interesting. But every person that I encountered through this Professional Leadership course was extremely helpful to me. Everyone was very courteous and kind, and all those other Boy Scout words. I enjoyed it. I had a great time.”

So what exactly would lure a near-octogenarian back to the classroom? Pure joy.

“I love education,” he said. “I love learning. I just really do.”

Dr. Ray Royalty, Major General (Retired), U.S. Army, Dissertation Chair and Assistant Professor of Leadership in Converse University’s Professional Leadership Program, connected with King through their shared military service and King’s devotion to expanding his knowledge through the study of leadership.

“Driven by passion, commitment and resilience, Bert was engaged, disciplined and motivated to lean toward success as the only acceptable outcome in his mind.”

Dr. Ray Royalty

“Having had the opportunity to serve as Bert King’s dissertation chair, it has been a time of watching Bert seeking and finding new knowledge leading to doctoral research with a purpose,” Royalty shared. 

“Driven by passion, commitment and resilience, Bert was engaged, disciplined and motivated to lean toward success as the only acceptable outcome in his mind. Bert has been a pleasure to know as a doctoral student over the past couple years, but also becoming an enduring friend that reflects his commitment to the US military, the Converse community, and our nation.”

Limitless Opportunities for Learning

Throughout his multiple career paths, King has shared his knowledge by teaching for a dozen years at Blue Ridge Community College and through writing about leadership concepts he learned in the Marine Corps.

“Even though it’s an authoritarian leadership, it will work in any organization within the United States – any in the world,” he said. “If you utilize these principles, you’ll be a successful leader. And so, when I saw this ad about the professional leadership degree through education at Converse University, I was just taken by it, and I thought, well, I need to do this. I thoroughly enjoyed it.”

King said the Professional Leadership courses meant the world to him, including the opportunity to explore history – some that he personally experienced – through the lens of leadership.

“I took a course in legislative decision-making,” he said. “In that course, we had a book to guide us, and there was a question about the Gulf of Tonkin and the Vietnam War, and so I researched that to try to find out how in the world we got involved in the Vietnam War.”

King’s approach to life defies age and any perceived limitations that come with retirement.

King’s approach to life defies age and any perceived limitations that come with retirement. He firmly believes “we’re never too old to learn.”

“Nobody believes me when I tell them I’m 81 years old,” he said. “They don’t believe me when I’m showing my driver’s license.”