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<\/p>\nDr. 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.<\/p>\n
When he joined the University of Lynchburg\u2019s education faculty in 2018, Cardwell did so as a longtime pastor, renowned civil rights activist, and well-respected Martin Luther King Jr. scholar.<\/p>\n
\u201cI seriously doubt there is a civil rights leader anywhere in the country that Owen didn\u2019t know, that he couldn\u2019t pick up the phone and call,\u201d said Dr. Roger Jones, a University colleague and friend. \u201cHe was a remarkable man.\u201d<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Cardwell told the audience that meeting King \u201cstarted 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 \u2026 set the course for my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cardwell earned a bachelor\u2019s degree from Virginia Seminary and College and master\u2019s degrees in theological studies, from Boston University School of Theology, and adult and continuing education and teaching, from Cambridge College.<\/p>\n
He had a PhD in multi\/interdisciplinary studies from Union Institute & University.<\/p>\n
Throughout his career, Cardwell worked to improve the lives of children, particularly children from disadvantaged backgrounds. On LinkedIn, he wrote, \u201cI 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo 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.\u201d<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
He headed the city of Lynchburg\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis fall, all incoming freshmen are taking the CliftonStrengths assessment and [receiving] coaching from a certified coach,\u201d Jones said. \u201cHe was instrumental with that and served on the task force to lay the groundwork for that. \u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was kind of the guru of strength-based coaching on campus.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\u2019t agree with all of the governor\u2019s policy decisions.<\/p>\n
While a bit surprised to be selected, Cardwell was determined not to let party lines get in the way of progress.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy position is that someone is going to be governor for four years, and it\u2019s either going to be one party or another,\u201d he said at the time. \u201cIt\u2019s not about party politics. It\u2019s about representing the hopes and concerns of my constituents.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Jones, this was classic Cardwell.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe will be remembered as a unifier, as someone who really wanted to unify communities,\u201d Jones said. \u201cThat was one of the things that he wanted to do in Lynchburg, to try to unify Lynchburg around the common vision.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe 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 \u2026 work with you to try to create the kind of community and the kind of city that everyone could be proud of.\u201d<\/p>\n
That did not, however, mean that Cardwell would compromise his values.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was driven by a strong set of values, his own faith and his beliefs,\u201d Jones said. \u201cThose were never compromised, but he was able to reach out and work with people and to find the common ground.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cardwell also was a longtime pastor, in Lynchburg and in the Richmond area. For the past four years, he pastored Lynchburg\u2019s Diamond Hill Baptist Church, a church long known for its civil rights work.<\/p>\n
University President Dr. Alison Morrison-Shetlar first met Cardwell shortly after she arrived on campus in 2019. \u201c[He] was a mentor, guide, best friend and leader whose life work was to change the lives of others for the better,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis conversations with me began in the first month of my tenure here at the University \u2026 and always began with him saying \u2018I have an idea.\u2019 The same conversations always ended with me agreeing and supporting his idea. I miss him.\u201d<\/p>\n
In an email to the campus community, Morrison-Shetlar wrote, \u201cOwen\u2019s 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 \u2014 to value them, even when there were disagreements.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe 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.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have lost an awesome leader, a determined advocate for our young people, and a warm and cherished friend.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Rev. Dr. Nathan Albert, Lynchburg\u2019s chaplain and assistant vice president for belonging, also met Cardwell shortly after he arrived at Lynchburg in 2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI met [him] the summer I was first hired here at the University,\u201d Albert said. \u201cAlthough my role was to be a chaplain, very quickly into our conversation, Dr. Cardwell was a chaplain to me.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithin 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\u2019m grateful, not only for his leadership but his spiritual leadership and guidance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lynchburg\u2019s chief inclusive excellence officer, Dr. Robert Canida II, described Cardwell as a \u201cKappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc. brother, my on-campus mentor, and my friend,\u201d and said Cardwell\u2019s \u201cpassion for always wanting better for the Lynchburg community, particularly for the unseen community members, will never be forgotten.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you, Rev. Dr. Brother Cardwell, for being you and always speaking your truth!\u201d<\/p>\n
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