Professor Dingess was born in Logan, WV, and grew up in Chapmanville, WV. After graduating from Chapmanville High School, he joined the U.S. Navy and spent four years as an Aviation Electronics Technician working on integrated weapons technology on the F-14 B upgraded Tomcat jet. He served in Operations Southern Watch (Iraq) and Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan). After returning home, in 2002, he attended Marshall University. Professor Dingess received his M.A. in Sociology from Marshall University at Huntington, WV, in 2007, and his B.A. from the same school in 2005. Over the past decade, he mainly worked as a health care administrator in the WV Title XIX Waiver Program, serving individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. After his move to Kentucky in 2017, he worked with displaced workers helping them obtain education and/or re-enter the workforce. He has also worked as a part-time adjunct for Blue Ridge Community College since 2010. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Arts and Sciences at Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College, where he has taught since 2021. He teaches introductory sociology and social problems (American and global) courses. In addition, he teaches and researches in the areas of family and religion as social institutions. He will also be teaching sociology of religion, social movements, medical sociology, and sociology of the workplace.

M.A., Sociology, Marshall University, Huntington, WV; B.A., Regents, Marshall University, Huntington, WV