Dr. Owen C. Cardwell Jr., (’76)
Dr. Owen C. Cardwell Jr., the Rosel Schewel Distinguished Professor of Education and Human Development and co-director of the Center for Innovative Leadership and Professional Development, died this week. He was 78 years old.
When he joined the University of Lynchburg’s education faculty in 2018, Cardwell did so as a longtime pastor, renowned civil rights activist, and well-respected Martin Luther King Jr. scholar.
“I seriously doubt there is a civil rights leader anywhere in the country that Owen didn’t know, that he couldn’t pick up the phone and call,” said Dr. Roger Jones, a University colleague and friend. “He was a remarkable man.”
A Lynchburg, Virginia, native, Cardwell was one of two Black students to integrate E.C. Glass High School in 1962. He was 14 years old when he first met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a life-changing event he spoke about at Snidow Chapel in 2019.
Cardwell told the audience that meeting King “started a spark in me, that I had to do more than simply walk through the doors of an all-white high school. And, as I look back on that, this really … set the course for my life.”
Cardwell earned a bachelor’s degree from Virginia Seminary and College and master’s degrees in theological studies, from Boston University School of Theology, and adult and continuing education and teaching, from Cambridge College.
He had a PhD in multi/interdisciplinary studies from Union Institute & University.
Throughout his career, Cardwell worked to improve the lives of children, particularly children from disadvantaged backgrounds. On LinkedIn, he wrote, “I believe that children are not problems to be solved, but rather assets to our community and that every adult can be and should be asset builders.
“So many adults did not get that support as children and are now socially and emotionally underdeveloped. I am committed to walking along with people to assist them in becoming all they can be.”
Cardwell continued that work at Lynchburg. In 2022, he launched Good Gangs, a grant-funded program aimed at area high school-aged children who have been referred to the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice for crimes committed or issues like truancy.
He headed the city of Lynchburg’s branch of the Search Institute, a national initiative that focuses on instilling values in children. He also championed the CliftonStrengths program at the University of Lynchburg.
“This fall, all incoming freshmen are taking the CliftonStrengths assessment and [receiving] coaching from a certified coach,” Jones said. “He was instrumental with that and served on the task force to lay the groundwork for that. …
“He was kind of the guru of strength-based coaching on campus.”
In July of 2023, Cardwell was appointed by Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin to the Virginia African American Advisory Board. He had applied for the position and gave honest responses during a phone interview, including that he didn’t agree with all of the governor’s policy decisions.
While a bit surprised to be selected, Cardwell was determined not to let party lines get in the way of progress.
“My position is that someone is going to be governor for four years, and it’s either going to be one party or another,” he said at the time. “It’s not about party politics. It’s about representing the hopes and concerns of my constituents.”
According to Jones, this was classic Cardwell.
“He will be remembered as a unifier, as someone who really wanted to unify communities,” Jones said. “That was one of the things that he wanted to do in Lynchburg, to try to unify Lynchburg around the common vision.
“He will be known as someone who valued all people. Whether he agreed with you or disagreed with you, you knew he would respect you and value you as a person and … work with you to try to create the kind of community and the kind of city that everyone could be proud of.”
That did not, however, mean that Cardwell would compromise his values.
“He was driven by a strong set of values, his own faith and his beliefs,” Jones said. “Those were never compromised, but he was able to reach out and work with people and to find the common ground.”
Cardwell also was a longtime pastor, in Lynchburg and in the Richmond area. For the past four years, he pastored Lynchburg’s Diamond Hill Baptist Church, a church long known for its civil rights work.
University President Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar first met Cardwell shortly after she arrived on campus in 2019. “[He] was a mentor, guide, best friend and leader whose life work was to change the lives of others for the better,” she said.
“His conversations with me began in the first month of my tenure here at the University … and always began with him saying ‘I have an idea.’ The same conversations always ended with me agreeing and supporting his idea. I miss him.”
In an email to the campus community, Morrison-Shetlar wrote, “Owen’s work was all about creating a community where everyone could thrive. He had this remarkable ability to connect with people from all walks of life — to value them, even when there were disagreements.
“He stood firm in his own beliefs, rooted deeply in his faith, yet he always sought common ground, always with a focus on nurturing the growth and development of our youth.
“We have lost an awesome leader, a determined advocate for our young people, and a warm and cherished friend.”
The Rev. Dr. Nathan Albert, Lynchburg’s chaplain and assistant vice president for belonging, also met Cardwell shortly after he arrived at Lynchburg in 2019.
“I met [him] the summer I was first hired here at the University,” Albert said. “Although my role was to be a chaplain, very quickly into our conversation, Dr. Cardwell was a chaplain to me.
“Within that brief conversation, he affirmed my calling and gifts and encouraged me to do good work and pursue justice in my work on this campus. I’m grateful, not only for his leadership but his spiritual leadership and guidance.”
Lynchburg’s chief inclusive excellence officer, Dr. Robert Canida II, described Cardwell as a “Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc. brother, my on-campus mentor, and my friend,” and said Cardwell’s “passion for always wanting better for the Lynchburg community, particularly for the unseen community members, will never be forgotten.
“Thank you, Rev. Dr. Brother Cardwell, for being you and always speaking your truth!”