Dr. Whitaker Awarded Zachary T. Smith Fellowship

The Wake Forest Faculty Fellowship Program provides financial support designed to honor our best teacher-scholars. Professor Jarrod Whitaker, Associate Professor in the Department of Religion, has been awarded the Zachary T. Smith Fellowship, a two-year award beginning July 1, 2012. This fellowship provides support for a faculty in the arts, the humanities, and the social sciences, with priority given to faculty promoted to associate professor since the award was last made. It is worth noting that Dr. Whitaker—following in the footsteps of Professors Ilesanmi, Foskett, Ford, and Neal—is now the 5th consecutive newly tenured faculty member in the Department to receive a Wake Forest Faculty Fellowship.

Dr. Simeon Ilesanmi – Deacon Profile in The Old Gold and Black

In the latest addition of The Old Gold and Black Dr. Ilesanmi was interviewed for their Deacon Profile section. Find out more about Dr. Ilesamni’s interest in the field of religion and ethics and why he became interested in this field, research that he is currently working on, and how he has seen the religion department grow during his time at Wake Forest. Read more here >>>>

 

 

Dr. Mary Foskett – Promoted to Full Professor – Speech at the Phi Beta Kappa Intiation Ceremony

Congratulations to Dr. Mary Foskett for being awarded promotion to Full Professor.

Dr. Foskett addressed students at the Phi Beta Kappa annual awards dinner. In her speech she underscored the values and skills new Phi Beta Kappa inductees will take with them out into the world. Read More>>>

Department Faculty Hold Major Leadership Roles within the Disciplines of Biblical and Religious Studies

Several Department faculty hold important leadership positions within the fields of religious and biblical studies. Dr. Hoglund has served as the Executive Director of the Southeast Commission for the Study of Religion (SECSOR) since 2009. SECSOR, which hosts an annual meeting each spring, promotes the scholarly study and teaching of religion in the Southeast and the professional development of members of its sponsoring and affiliate societies in the Southeast: The American Academy of Religion (AAR/SE), the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL/SE), and the American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR/SE). Dr. van Doorn-Harder serves on the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Religion (AAR). With over 10,000 members, the AAR is the largest learned society and professional association of teachers and scholars in the field of religious studies. Finally, Dr. Foskett serves on the governing board, the Council, for the Society of Biblical Studies (SBL). Founded in 1880, SBL is the oldest and largest learned society devoted to the critical investigation of the Bible from a variety of academic disciplines.

 

 

Dr. Ron Neal – Release of new book – Democracy in Twenty-First Century America: Race, Class, Religion, and Region

Congratulations to Dr. Ron Neal on the upcoming release of his new book, Democracy in Twenty-First Century America: Race, Class, Religion, and Region. Fundamentally concerned with the racial and economic crisis of democracy in the United States, this book engages the new face of inequality in America and the new challenges presented to the American democratic project. Read More >>

 

Dr. Nelly Van Doorn-Harder – Release of new book – The Emergence of the Modern Coptic Papacy (The Popes of Egypt, Volume 3)

Dr. Nelly van Doorn-Harder recently published The Emergence of the Modern Coptic Papacy (The Popes of Egypt, Volume 3). This third and final volume of The Popes of Egypt spans the five centuries from the arrival of the Ottomans in 1517 to the present era. For more information concerning her publication, check out the Inside WFU web page. Read More >>

 

Dr. Stephen Boyd – Release of new book – Making Justice Our Business: The Wrongful Conviction of Darryl Hunt and the Work of Faith

Dr. Stephen Boyd just released his most recent book, Making Justice Our Business: The Wrongful Conviction of Darryl Hunt and the Work of Faith. Read more information about his book in a recent article from the Winston-Salem Journal as well as on the Inside WFU web page. A copy of his book can be purchased at the Wake Forest University bookstore. Read More>>Dr. Steve Boyd’s piece, “The Presumption of Innocence,” discussing his relationship with the Winston-Salem community, Darryl Hunt, and the Darryl Hunt Project for Freedom and Justice, was featured in the Winston-Salem Journal. Look for more on this topic in Professor Boyd’s forthcoming book Making Justice Our Business: The Wrongful Conviction of Darryl Hunt and the Work of Faith

Dr. Jarrod Whitaker – Release of new book – Strong Arms and Drinking Strength: Masculinity, Violence, and the Body in Ancient India

Congratulations to Dr. Jarrod Whitaker on the recent publication of his new book, Strong Arms and Drinking Strength: Masculinity, Violence, and the Body in Ancient India. Dr. Whitaker examines the ritualized poetic construction of male identity in the Rgveda, India’s oldest Sanskrit text, arguing that an important aspect of early Vedic life was the sustained promotion and embodiment of what it means to be a true man.