Ferrum College News

Ferrum College Announces the Addition of Three New Board Members

Ferrum College announces the addition of three new members to the Board of Trustees: alumna Amanda Cox ’04, F. Abe Dymond, and Jeffrey C. Pugh. Their terms will begin July 1, 2022.

Cox is an external affairs manager for Appalachian Power responsible for oversight and implementation of local and county governmental affairs, community relations, and providing assistance with local/regional economic development.  She also serves as a registered lobbyist in Virginia and participates in the General Assembly sessions in Richmond.  Additionally, Cox has taken Appalachian Power’s Rural Broadband Initiative from a study concept through to the first connection of customers, and continues to serve as a resource to a variety of stakeholders on the issue.

Prior to joining Appalachian Power, Cox served as the President/CEO of the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce and its Partnership for Economic Growth where she positioned the Chamber to become the lead entity for small business development, leveraged workforce partnerships to increase the Chamber’s capacity to deliver business services, and secured a 5-Star rating with the US Chamber of Commerce for the first time in the organization’s history.

She currently serves on multiple state, regional and local boards and has a bachelor of science in Business Administration from Ferrum College and a master of business administration from Radford University. 

Cox lives with her husband, Jonathan, and two children in Franklin County, VA.

Dymond is a supervisory compliance officer with the Agricultural Marking Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. He is a trusted leader adept at initiating change in organizations at all stages of maturity. Dymond leverages multi-disciplinary skills to improve collaboration across organizations, build teamwork, and improve processes that synchronize the organization with mission, vision, and values. He creates reliable, targeted messaging focused on alignment of core values and organizational activity and is an expert in organizational governance design.

Dymond received a bachelor of arts in English from Ripon College, a Juris Doctor from Hamline University School of Law, a master of business administration with a concentration in finance from Carlson School of Management, and a master of laws in military law from The Judge Advocate General’s School.

Pugh is professor emeritus of Religious Studies, former Distinguished University Professor, and Maude Sharpe Powell Professor of Religious Studies at Elon University. An influential teacher, mentor, and author, Pugh regularly comments on state and national issues. His ambitious research has resulted in six books, ranging from Nazi-era theologians Karl Barth and Dietrich Bonhoeffer to his work in religion and science.

Pugh’s most recent book, “The Homebrewed Christianity Guide to the End Times: Theology After You’ve Been Left Behind,” was published by Fortress Press in 2016 as part of a series sponsored by the popular Homebrewed Christianity podcast that takes a unique approach to helping delve into key Christian concepts, figures and ideas. He has also made numerous presentations at professional meetings and conferences, written articles, book chapters and book reviews for various publications, and served eight years as a member of the board of directors of the International Bonhoeffer Society.

Pugh earned his master of divinity degree from Wesley Theological Seminary, and a master’s degree and doctorate in theological and religious studies from Drew University Graduate School. His graduate research focused on systematic and historical theology and he continued that work during his career at Elon. He received Elon’s Daniels-Danieley Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2000 and the Distinguished Scholar Award in 2010.