Board of Elections Official to Speak at Graduation

Rev. Jerry W. Spruell, director of the Edgecombe County Board of Elections and an Edgecombe Community College trustee, will give the keynote address during Commencement at ECC on Saturday, May 8.

The Rev. Jerry W. Spruell, director of the Edgecombe County Board of Elections and an Edgecombe Community College trustee, will give the keynote address during Commencement at ECC on Saturday, May 8.

Commencement will mirror last year’s event as the College celebrates the Class of 2021 with a Drive-Thru Graduation Parade.

Remarks by Rev. Spruell, ECC trustees Dr. Jerry Price and Gloria Wiggins-Hicks, and ECC President Dr. Greg McLeod will be livestreamed at 8 a.m. The Drive-Thru Graduation Parade will begin on the Tarboro campus at 10 a.m.

“Last year, our drive-thru parade was a big hit with our graduates and their families,” explains Dr. McLeod. “Graduates were very creative in decorating their cars, and they had a great time celebrating along the parade route around campus, cheered on by College faculty and staff.

“While COVID-19 restrictions are slowly being lifted, it would be ill-advised to fill our auditorium with more than 1,000 individuals who would sit shoulder-to-shoulder, so we are opting to hold another drive-thru event to assure the safety of our graduates and their families as well as our employees.”

As the longest serving member currently, Rev. Spruell has been a member of the ECC Board of Trustees since 1994. He is an Edgecombe County Board of Commissioners appointee to the board.

He has served as director of the Edgecombe County Board of Elections for 13 years. Prior to this position, he retired from American General Financial Services after 31 years.

A resident of Tarboro, Rev. Spruell serves on the board of Meals on Wheels and as board chairman of the Tarboro Housing Authority. Prior volunteer posts include service on the Edgecombe County Board of Health, Chamber of Commerce and United Way boards, and founding member of the Global TransPark.

Rev. Spruell attended Martin County Public Schools and is a graduate of Oak City High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Elizabeth City State University and attended Shaw University Divinity School.

He received an honorary doctorate from Covenant Theology Seminary in Greenville. An ordained Baptist minister, Rev. Spruell is pastor of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in Farmville and pastor of Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church in Ayden.

For more information on ECC’s Commencement, please call (252) 618-6526.