MURFREESBORO, NC – The 2016 Chowan University McDowell Columns Scholar Prize was presented to Paul R. Gilliam III (Trey), Assistant Professor of Religion, during the Celebration of Faculty Scholarship and Creative Achievement on Tuesday, November 15th. The prize is sponsored by the Office of the Provost and is presented to a faculty member for his or her scholarly and/or creative activities during the previous academic year. Gilliam won a cash award and a book style clock, showcasing a photo of the historic McDowell Columns Building, and engraved with his name.

Gilliam’s work is published in The Journal of Ecclesiastical History as well as Baptist History & Heritage. His first book, Ignatius of Antioch and the Arian Controversy is forthcoming from Brill Publishers in their Vigiliae Christianae Supplements Series. Last summer, Gilliam was granted Visiting Fellow status by the Cambridge University School of Divinity. Gilliam spent six weeks in Cambridge, England carrying out research for his current book project tentatively entitled William Whiston and the Apostolic Constitutions: Completing the Reformation. The North American Patristics Society awarded Gilliam with a research grant for his work in Cambridge. 

“I am most proud that I have achieved success in both teaching and research during my time at Chowan,” says Gilliam. “Often teaching and research are considered two quite different activities. However, I find that teaching and research enhance one another. Thus, the intellectual curiosity that inspires research makes me even more effective in the classroom.”

Other 2016 prize finalists included: John H. Davis, Professor of English; Gregory S. Taylor, Professor of History; Edward N. Snyder, Assistant Professor of History; and Seok Yoon, Associate Professor of Exercise Science. Past prize recipients are:  Gregory Taylor (2011), Sheryl Long (2012), John Davis (2013), Ashley Doane (2014) and Tom Brennan (2015).

“I am grateful to the Chowan University administration for their recognition of the important role that research plays in the life of the university with the McDowell Columns Scholar Prize,” Gilliam adds. “I am honored to be this year's recipient.”