CAMPUS NEWS NGU Celebrates Four Faculty and Staff Members
Four members of the NGU faculty and staff were recognized during the final spring Chapel service for university personnel in April. Honorees included Dr. Jill Branyon, distinguished professor of education and mathematics education coordinator; Dr. Gerald Roe, program director and professor of intercultural studies; Dr. George Hopson, professor of sport management and leadership and Deborah O’Gwynn, director of student accounts.
L-R: Deborah O’Gwynn, Dr. Jill Branyon, Dr. Gerald Roe, Dr. George Hopson
Board Affirms
Core Statements Affirming the University’s Statement on Human Flourishing and the Baptist Faith and Message 2000, NGU’s board of trustees joined in a prayer and dedication ceremony at the site of a major campus renovation project at their spring meeting the Tigerville Campus.
The University’s Statement on Human Flourishing, adopted by the NGU board in June 2020, underscores the institution’s deep- rooted commitment to a biblical worldview. The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 is the most recently approved version of a document designed to serve as Southern Baptists’ “statement of faith and message to set forth certain teachings which we believe.”
Following the meeting, board members participated in a “Prayer and Dedication Ceremony” in front of the university’s Donnan Administration Building, which is undergoing a $9.7 million renovation to become the home of NGU’s College of Business and Entrepreneurship. Approximately 100 people participated in the ceremony, which included writing Bible verses or short messages on a steel beam that will be used in the construction project.
Prior to joining NGU, Branyon served in Kenya for more than 20 years with the International Mission Board. She also taught in Lexington School District One for three years. Branyon has spent 46 years in the classroom. She is a past recipient of NGU’s Lamar Chapman Meritorious Service Award and has received the Golden Gift Leadership Challenge Scholarship.
“I came to NGU at a time of transition in my life. I knew I needed to stay in the U.S. to help my parents. NGU became my new mission field and my new family,” Branyon said. “I have taught here for 20 years and enjoyed it very much. God has blessed my life here, and I have had the privilege to disciple many students. One of my favorite parts of working at NGU, along with the Christ-centered campus, has been working with Third Culture students, such as missionary kids. I will continue to teach a few courses and support the College of Education for a while longer.”
Prior to his role at NGU, Dr. Roe served as senior pastor of three churches and the Director of Missions for the Massachusetts Baptist Association. He was appointed by the North American Mission Board as director of associations for the Massachusetts Baptist Association. Roe joined the North Greenville faculty in 2003.
“I have not gone to work a single day in the last 20 years,” he said. “I have done exactly what I wanted to do in the very place I wanted to do it. Higher Christian education was last thing I envisioned myself doing. However, instructing the next generation of missionaries, pastors, and other church leaders has provided a joy and satisfaction I could never have imagined.”
Following a 35-year career in administrative roles at K-12 Christian schools, Dr. Hopson came to NGU in 2007 to serve as the director of institutional research and effectiveness and liaison to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Hopson later moved to a full-time faculty position, serving as a professor of sport management and leadership.
“I am thankful the Lord has given me the opportunity to be at NGU for all these years and that he has provided strength for the tasks and provided good friends over the years,” Hopson said.
O’Gwynn joined NGU in 2018 and is a member of the leadership team in the Office of Student Services. She has served in higher education for 25 years, previously working at Palm Beach Atlantic College, Oklahoma Baptist University, and Oklahoma City University.
“It has been a blessing to serve at NGU and to help students and their families move toward completing their degrees,” she said. “God has blessed the mission of this university, and seeing that in the lives of our graduates is a great joy.”
NGU.EDU | 19
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36
