Joseph Vaughn’s courage a model for all at Furman to embrace

Joseph Vaughn’s steps across Furman University’s campus on Jan. 29, 1965 carried the weight of his courage and conviction and led him up the steps of the James B. Duke Library  – a moment immortalized in bronze at Joseph Vaughn Plaza.

Sixty years and two days later, hundreds of members of the Furman and Upstate communities gathered there for Joseph Vaughn Day to hear thoughts about Vaughn and to take the Walk of Honor to Daniel Chapel where Furman University President Elizabeth Davis spoke, Jackie Carson ’00 who was honored by the Black Alumni Award and student  Soukeyna Pitroipa ’25 received a standing ovation for her speech.

Marcus Tate ’12, Joseph Vaughn’s cousin, lights a candle in honor of Vaughn during the Joseph Vaughn Day Commemoration at Daniel Chapel on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

But it’s not only Vaughn’s bravery that day that people celebrate. It was his tenacity, said Furman President Elizabeth Davis.

Marcus Tate ’12, Joseph Vaughn’s cousin, lights a candle in honor of Vaughn during the Joseph Vaughn Day Commemoration at Daniel Chapel on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025.

“We celebrate Joseph Vaughn for what he also did on Saturday, January 30, 1965. He stayed,” Davis said.

And he wasn’t the only one. Vaughn made lifelong friends with Sarah Reese ’71 and Lillian Brock Flemming ’71, who were among the first Black students to enroll after the university desegregated. Flemming shared with the crowd Friday that Vaughn’s accolades don’t often include his status as “best friend ever” or “best cheerleader.” He encouraged them when they struggled to find a place at Furman.

Flemming recalled how Reese was ready to leave Furman one weekend. Vaughn put his foot down.

“Wait just a minute, neither of you are going to quit,” Flemming recalled him saying. “We have to lead the pathway for other young kids to follow. This is bigger than the three of us all together.”

Carrying their courage forward

Inside Daniel Chapel, Marcus Tate ’12, lit a memorial candle for his cousin. Remarking on Flemming’s story, Davis said everyone at Furman can embody Vaughn’s resolve.

“Furman University will continue to celebrate our courageous students for many years to come,” she said.

Lillian Brock Fleming ’71 speaks at Joseph Vaughn Plaza in front of the James B. Duke Library as part of the Joseph Vaughn Day commemoration on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

Students like the roughly 1,300 Black alumni who followed in Vaughn’s footsteps, said Black Alumni Council President Rev. Reggie Garrett ’98. Included in their ranks is Idella Goodson Glenn ’84, for whom the annual Outstanding Black Alumni Award is named.

Glenn worked for 18 years as Furman’s director of multicultural affairs and assistant vice president for student development. She was also a friend, a big sister and a role model, Garrett said. As Glenn took to the lectern to present the award, she said it was going to someone who embodied the encouraging mentorship Vaughn demonstrated: Former Paladin head women’s basketball coach Jackie Carson ’00.

“To be connected to anything bearing your name is an honor,” Carson told Glenn as they embraced.

Carson went from undergraduate star player to a 13-year career as Furman’s head women’s basketball coach. She’s now the ACC’s senior associate commissioner for women’s basketball, and every step of the way, she said, she tried to be the kind of mentor to her players that Glenn was for her. She was part of a long line of Black women who paved the way for generations more to come.

A crowd of students, faculty, staff and community members takes the Walk of Honor to Daniel Chapel as part of the Joseph Vaughn Day commemoration on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. Photo by Nathan Gray, Furman University.

Continuing that legacy was the final call to action shared by Pitroipa, a Hearst Fellow and international student from Burkina Fasso who gave the closing remarks. She praised the passionate courage of students like Vaughn and all others who have stepped forward and ensured they were represented on Furman’s campus.

“It is time that we empower students to act boldly and with bravery to create change for social justice on campus and globally,” she said. “The world is waiting on us and looking at us to address them.”