By J. E. Barker
University Relations

MURFREESBORO – Chowan University will be making special awards presentations to honor Hertford County Sheriff Juan Vaughan and former Murfreesboro Town Councilwoman Gloria Odum at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 3 in Turner Auditorium for the annual Reverend George T. and Luvenia B. Rouson Memorial Lecture.

Admission is free and the event is open to the public.

This year’s special guest lecturer will be Dr. Glen Bowman, Professor of History and Director of International Programs at Elizabeth City State University, speaking on “Two Roads to True Liberation: The Visions of Calvin Scott Brown and Peter Weddick Moore.”

Reverend and Mrs. Rouson were noted Hertford County religious leaders whose legacy of religious stewardship, family values and community service lives on today in the lives of their children, former students, co-workers and county residents.

“The purpose of this event is to recognize Christian values, brotherhood, stewardship, and the importance of family,” stated local historian Alice Eley Jones, “To recognize good Christians who do good deeds for their community.”

This year’s Futrell-Ruffin Community Service Award will honor Hertford County Sheriff Juan E. Vaughan, Sr. He is serving his fourth term as Sheriff of Hertford County. He was appointed Sheriff in December 1997. He began his law enforcement career as a Deputy Sheriff in Hertford County, in February 1981. In July of 1988, he accepted a position as Surveillance Officer with the NC Department of Corrections.

Sheriff Vaughan currently serves on several Boards and Committees including the Roanoke Chowan Domestic Violence Task Force, the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission, the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association, the National Sheriffs’ Association, and the Criminal Justice Executive Advisory Committee of Halifax Community College. He is the Chairman of the Criminal Justice Partnership Program.

Sheriff Vaughan is a member of Parkers Grove Baptist Church, where he serves as a Trustee. He received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Fayetteville State University. He is a loving husband, father and grandfather.

Sheriff Vaughan is very concerned about the welfare of our children, therefore, he works closely with the school system to insure their safety. He has diligently worked hard to reduce /stop the sell of drugs and crime rate in Hertford County. He truly enjoys serving the citizens of Hertford County.

This year’s Minnie Wood Perkins Humanitarian Award will honor Gloria Odum. She served on the Murfreesboro’s Town Board from 2005 until 2015. Odum resigned from the Town Council over the summer to move to Durham to be closer to her children. She will always be remembered for her 10 years as commissioner of Parks and Recreation. In that job and through those duties, she set up summer camps, established youth league sports for all the sports: T-ball, flag football, soccer, and basketball. She worked with Communities in Schools of Hertford County to help provide support systems for students. She also has encouraged local health screenings and nutritional seminars in the community.

Odum was very persistent in her efforts to improve the parks in Murfreesboro where families could enjoy a beautiful, safe environment. In December, Murfreesboro’s mayor John Hinton officially declared that the pavilion at Riverside Park has been named in Odum’s honor because of her dedication and hard work to bring the concept to fruition. Odum’s educational journey began in Louvenia Rouson’s kindergarten and she is proud to have been educated in the Hertford County School system.

Glen Bowman is Professor of History and Director of International Programs at Elizabeth City State University. Originally from suburban Philadelphia, right outside of Quakertown, Pennsylvania, he has been at ECSU since 1999. He earned his Ph.D. in History at the University of Minnesota. At ECSU, he teaches a variety of upper-level and lower-level courses in History and has published widely in academic journals. He served as chair of the Department of History and Political Science from 2008-2011. As Director of International Programs, he serves as faculty advisor to the Multicultural International Student Organization and works towards improving global education and outreach.

In 2005, he established the Leonard Ballou Memorial Fund, which has supported student travel scholarships and has funded activities addressing the recruitment and retention of students. The funds have come from the royalties from The Razor’s Edge, a critical thinking text/World History reader Bowman authored that was in print for almost a decade. In July 2015, he published the book “Elizabeth City State University, 1891-2016: The Continuity of a Historical Legacy of Excellence and Resilience.” He also writes a weekly column for the “Daily Advance” on ECSU and local African-American history. Dr. Bowman speaks regularly at community gatherings about the history of African-American education and of Elizabeth City. He can be reached at gcbowman@ecsu.edu.