Department of Business Administration
faculty member "Mike" Dunton received
his 40-year pin during the DMC Employee
Service Banquet on April 29.
Dedicated Economics and Business Professor John “Mike” Dunton Receives 40-year Pin
Annual service awards banquet honors employees’ long-standing commitment to the College and its students
It took the Romans only 12 years to build the Coliseum. In Athens, the Greeks built the Parthenon in 39 years. Del Mar College employees build the futures of South Texas residents through higher education. If you total the years served by the employees honored for their service on April 29, the time equates to 1,690 years – a length of time that far surpasses what it took the Egyptians to build the three pyramids at Giza.
Every spring, the College recognizes the dedication and tenure of its employees and those who have retired in the past year. During its annual employee pinning, Del Mar recognized 120 individuals, including one employee who received his 40-year pin, 17 retirees and two Board of Regents members, for their commitment to education and service to the College.
Among the honorees, faculty member John “Mike” Dunton, a professor in the College’s Department of Business Administration, received his 40-year pin. Other Del Mar College employees noted for their service and who received their 35-year pins are Robert L. Bridwell, professor of history in the Department of Social Sciences, Jo Ann M. Heymann, professor of English in the Department of English and Philosophy, and David L. Martin, professor and reference librarian in the Reference Department of the College’s William F. White, Jr. Library.
During the 40 years he has served with the College, Dunton says that he has taught 15,000 students in over 600 classes. In 2000, when the professor received his 35-year pin, Dunton noted that his students were better oriented due to the recent technology explosion compared to those enrolled at Del Mar College in 1965. “They have greater access to information and can make quick and better decisions based on what’s happening now,” Dunton said.
Five years later, Dunton says that one of the major changes that has occurred in higher education is the number of students taking Internet courses. “Internet use has greatly increased the College’s outreach efforts, and we’re also seeing more advanced placement of high schools students in our Economics classes due to the technology,” he says of the expansion of Internet use and its effects on his department. “The technology gives us access to very good students who otherwise might not have taken classes at Del Mar College. I believe the technology continues to be a great opportunity for Del Mar as an investment in [students’] futures.”
Dunton still believes learning about economics still provides valuable skills for his students. “I believe that economic classes provide an analytical base for students that will be of benefit in all of their classes and work experiences,” he says. “It helps provide a blueprint that leads to better decision making. Students also learn to adapt this blueprint to advancing technology and in making lifelong decisions.”
“I also believe that students are continuing to move away from memorization and more toward greater understanding of the concepts while also demanding those concepts have relevance in the world in which they live,” he says of his current students. “That’s a good trend.”
Dunton earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration and master’s degree in economics from the University of Wyoming. He also completed 48 hours toward a doctorate degree in economics at The University of Texas at Austin. Dunton joined Del Mar College’s faculty in 1965.