Reggie Thomas stepped onto the Union campus in the fall of 1981 as a shy, reserved kid from Huntingdon, Tenn. The next four years proved to be instrumental in his development and in his ministry in ways Thomas never imagined.
"Union, first of all, was formative for me in social skills," Thomas said. "I've always liked people, but I learned how to interact with people. And the reason for that is there were so many different types of people here at Union. I think being able to interact with a broad array of people prepares you for life."
Thomas owes his Union experience largely to the persistence of Elizabeth Wingo, a longtime Union recruiter for whom one of the buildings in the Heritage Residence Complex is named. Thomas had felt called to ministry during his sophomore year of high school and had planned to attend a Christian college. He had narrowed his choice down to Union and one other school, but Wingo's efforts nudged him to Jackson.
"She was relentless," he said "She would not leave me alone, but she cared deeply about me. So I decided, just based on my relationship with her and the fact that she cared so deeply, to come to Union. And I'm so glad that I did."
Thomas was one of only a handful of African American students at Union at the time. In that sense, though, the university wasn't much different than Thomas' high school experience. He had navigated that well, and he decided he would duplicate that when he came to Union.
"What I've learned about race relations, especially if you're a minority student, you have two choices," Thomas said. "You can isolate or integrate. I decided I was going to try to integrate. Now, obviously that wasn't easy. I mean, obviously growing up in West Tennessee there is some systemic racism, and so I did encounter some of that here. It wasn't widespread. It wasn't bad. But I just made up my mind that I was going to navigate through that and integrate."
His efforts to connect with other students worked well, as he grew in confidence and overcame some of his initial shyness. Thomas said he was well accepted and embraced by the entire Union community — students, faculty and administrators. Though he took the initiative to get involved and integrate, the Union community reciprocated, and he said that's the heart and culture at Union.
Thomas was elected president of his freshman class and re-elected as president of his sophomore class. His junior year, a friend convinced him to run for Student Government Association president. Thomas did, and he won, becoming the first black student in Union's history to serve as SGA president. He was re-elected to that position during his senior year.
"That was probably one of my highest moments here at Union," he said. "This small-town kid from Huntington, Tenn., African American, a predominantly Anglo college. For the student body to have that kind of confidence and respect for me, it was just a moment of elation for me. It was amazing."
Thomas serving as SGA President with Dr. Robert E. Craig at the President's Reception in 1983.
Thomas was awarded the 2020 Distinquished Achievement Award for Church Ministry in 2020.
A religion major who double minored in communications and sociology, Thomas went on to earn his Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and his Doctor of Ministry degree from Fuller Theological Seminary. He has served in a variety of ministry positions — pastor, director of missions, church planter, consultant with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and campus director for Gateway Seminary — and is currently the president of PeakePotential in California, a firm that provides organizational consulting, professional development training and professional coaching.
An avid runner, Thomas has competed 39 marathons across the nation. He was the keynote speaker at Union's December 2021 commencement ceremonies and used his running experience as the basis for his address, challenging graduates to finish strong.
"Make a decision that you are going to finish the race that the Lord has called you to," he said in his address. "I want to encourage you to run strong, run well, finish strong and finish well."
For Thomas, his experience at Union prepared him for the race he is running. The relationships he built, the knowledge he gained, the leadership opportunities the university provided — he's grateful for all of it.
"I love the fact that when you graduate from Union, you're still connected," he said. "I've been graduated for 36 years, and I live 1,500 miles away. I still feel like this is my family.
Fall 2021 Gradution Address 2020 Alumni Award
Thomas speaking at Union's December 2021 commencement.
