As part of VIPCare's continuing education programs, The Rev. Charles F. Bates, who serves as a VIPCare counselor, presented his doctoral work, "Male Liberian Immigrants' Acculturation in the United States: A Transcendental Phenomenology Investigation."
Rev. Bates' thesis centers on the research question: What is the lived experience of acculturation in Liberian male immigrants in the USA?
Currently working toward Licensure as a Licensed Professional Counselor in Virginia, Rev. Bates is an ordained elder and clergy mentor in the Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church.
He serves as lead pastor at Fishersville UMC, Staunton District, and will be the new district superintendent of the Rappahannock River District (effective July 1, 2019).
Mr. Bates received an M.S. in Pastoral Counseling, Loyola University of Maryland; an M.Div. from the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University; a B.A. in Religious Studies from VCU; and a B.S. from the College of West Africa (Liberia).
He just defended his Ph.D. dissertation at Capella University.