Invocation.............................................................................................................................Dr. Richard Price Dean of Chapel
Hymn of Praise
Lift Every Voice and Sing...........................................................................................James Weldon Johnson
Lift every voice and sing, Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise
High as the list’ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Sing a song
Full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song
Full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on till victory is won.
Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chast’ning rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
We have come
Over a way that with tears has been watered. We have come, Treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from the gloomy past, Till now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.
God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who hast brought us thus far on the way; Thou who hast by Thy might, Led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Lest our feet stray from the places our God, Where we met Thee, Lest our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world, We forget Thee; Shadowed beneath Thy hand, May we forever stand, True to our God, true to our native land.
Welcome............................................................................................................................................Dr. Lucas
Ride On
Greetings...........................................................................................................Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson Chairman, VUU Board of Trustees
Ms. An’Jou White President, VUU National Alumni Association
Mr. Rodney Manning President, Student Government Association
Miss Destiny Love & Mr. Keyondre Hunt
Miss & Mr. Virginia Union University
Mr. Vjaughn Ingraham President, Graduate Student Council
Introduction of Speaker...................................................................................................................Dr. Lucas
Musical Offering
City Called Heaven...........................................................................................................Josephine Poelinitz
Address.........................................................................................................................Bishop J. Drew Sheard
Presiding Bishop and Chief Apostle Church of God in Christ, Inc.
Special Presentation..........................................................................................................................Dr. Lucas
Alma Mater.................................................................................................William H. Yancey, Class of 1933
Bishop John Drew Sheard was born on January 1, 1959, in Detroit, Michigan, to the late Bishop John Henry Sheard and the late Mother Willie Mae Sheard. He was saved at a young age under the pastorate of the late Bishop John Seth Bailey and later acknowledged his call to the ministry.
He obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Education and a Master of Education in Mathematics from Wayne State University. In 1988, he began his pastoral ministry at Great Emmanuel Church.
Bishop Sheard has worked diligently locally and nationally and in various civic capacities, including as International Youth Department President for the Church Of God In Christ, Inc., Vice-Chairman of the Church Of God In Christ, Inc.’s Auxiliaries in Ministries (AIM) convention, and Chairman of the Auxiliaries in Ministries (AIM) convention.
Bishop Sheard has received multiple honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees and has been inducted into the prestigious Morehouse College Martin Luther King, Jr. Board of Preachers. In 2009, he and his wife, Lady Karen Clark-Sheard, founded Karew Records, a faithbased record label focusing on various forms of gospel, Christian, and inspirational music.
Bishop Sheard was elevated to the office of jurisdictional bishop in 2010. Then, in 2012, he was elected to the Presidium of the Church Of God In Christ, Inc. In 2021, the delegates of the General Assembly re-elected Bishop Sheard as a member of the Presidium of the Church Of God In Christ, Inc., and subsequently, he was elected to the Office of the Presiding Bishop as Chief Apostle, the leader of the worldwide organization.
As a humanitarian, he donated to pastors across the country in need due to natural disasters. Later, he organized and led an ecumenical effort to raise $100,000 to support ministerial leaders during COVID-19 and other life-threatening catastrophes.
His accomplishments as the eighth leader of the Church Of God In Christ include raising $2.5 million through the "I Love My Church" Initiative in less than a year. Developing a partnership with Waste Management (WM) that trains and employs formerly incarcerated individuals at a living wage.
In 2023, Bishop Sheard formed an innovative partnership with Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, the Tennessee Department of Children Services, and the Shelby County Department of Children Services to provide transitional housing for juveniles entering the state's foster care system. His financial acumen and extraordinary stewardship enabled him to eliminate the Church Of God In Christ's entire debt in 2023.
Bishop Sheard and Lady Karen Clark-Sheard have two children, Kierra Sheard Kelly and John Drew Sheard, II; one son-in-love, Jordan Kelly; and three grandchildren, Jacob, Kali Drew and Khloe’-Drew.
ALMA MATER
William H. Yancey, Class of 1933
Union, we’ll e’er revere
The cause for which you stand.
Union! Majestic light, Send rays throughout the land; Thy hallowed grounds and dear old walls, May they forever be, Dear Union we still love thee; Thy hallowed grounds and dear old walls, May they forever be, Dear Union we still love thee.
O, for the happy hours we spend On that cherished and sacred hill; Our “Dream of Joy” to us attends, With truth and virtue to instill Thoughts of by-gone days at thy shrine Fill my raptured soul with ecstasy, Alma Mater, my praises are thine! You are God’s gift to humanity.
Union, we’ll e’er revere
The cause for which you stand
Union! Majestic light, Send rays throughout the land; Thy hallowed grounds and dear old walls, May they forever be, Dear Union we still love thee; Thy hallowed grounds and dear old walls, May they forever be, Dear Union we still love thee.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson ’79, Chairman
Dr. Roland E. Moore ’69, Vice Chairman
Ms. Necole Parker ’93, Secretary
Mr. Kenneth M. Jones, II, Treasurer
Ms. Jeannie P. Baliles
Mr. Lawrence P. Bancroft
Ms. Kenya A. Blake
Dr. Darran T. Brandon ‘14
Dr. Lucille M. Brown ’50
Dr. James E. Coleman, Jr.
Mr. Tyrone E. Dickerson
Ms. Carolyn Jacobs ’64
Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr.
Mr. Darius A. Johnson
Dr. Waddell G. Jones, Jr.
Dr. Hakim J. Lucas
N. Scott Phillips, Esq. ’83
Dr. Pamela Kiecker Royall
Dr. Lance D. Watson ‘86
Dr. Howard-John Wesley
Ms. Anjou C. White ‘87
Dr. Theron Williams ‘83, ‘86
Honorary Trustees
Mr. Steve D. Bullock ‘59 (Vice Chairman Emeritus)
The Honorable Walter E. Fauntroy ’55
Dr. Frank Royal ’61 (Chairman Emeritus)
Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. (Trustee Emeritus)
The Panther Society
The Panther Society was established by vote of the Board of Trustees on November 4, 2011, to honor former members of the Board of Trustees who have provided years of commendable service to the Board and to the University. They are bestowed the honor of a lifetime relationship with Virginia Union University through their induction into this Society.
Robert B. Arthur (2004–2011)
John H. Bocock (2012–2020)
Marilyn T. Brown (2000–2021)*†
Thomas E. Capps (1988–2000)
Thomas N. Chewning (2001–2011)
Roscoe D. Cooper, Jr. (1994–2011)
J. Carter Fox (1989–2006)
Mary A. Gordon (2013–2022)
Paul D. Koonce (2011–2016)
Benjamin J. Lambert, III (1972–2013)*
Diane Leopold (2016–2023)
Cornell L. Moore (1982–2011)
Claude G. Perkins (2009–2017)
Frank S. Royal, Sr. (1971–2011)
William A. “Bill” Royall, Jr. (2016–2020)*†
Cessar L. Scott (1985–2011)*
Shirley W. Vaughan (2004–2018)*
Wyatt T. Walker (1996–2002)*
Mark R. Warner (1996–2002)
L. Douglas Wilder (1996–2003)
Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr. (2001–2018)
(The years in parenthesis indicate the time of service on the Board of Trustees) † Inducted Posthumously *Deceased
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