/news/new-south <span>The New South</span> <span><span>awillia2</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-03-09T00:38:14-05:00" title="Sunday, March 9, 2025 - 00:38">Sun, 03/09/2025 - 00:38</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">In her new book, The Jewish South: An American History, Shari Rabin finds unexpected stories of the lives of Jews in the South.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2025-03-21T12:00:00Z">Fri, 03/21/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Aimee Levitt</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>In 1669, the colonial government of Carolina, which encompassed most of what is now Georgia and North and South Carolina, adopted the Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina. This document specifically promised religious freedom for Jews, heathens, and other dissenters from the Anglican church. At a time when much of Europe was still embroiled in religious wars, this was historic and even radical.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4292">91ֱ�� Research Review</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25386">Jewish Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/shari-rabin" hreflang="und">Shari Rabin</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/jewish-studies" hreflang="und">Jewish Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-cte-images field--type-list-string field--label-hidden field__item">Yes (Individual Images)</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Cookie Moon</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/research-review/01/shari_rabin_cookie_x_oberlin_760x570.jpg?itok=hOuEhMcL" width="760" height="570" alt="A stylized digital illustration of a grand synagogue with arched windows, ornate towers, and a Star of David above the entrance, set between two tall palm trees."> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-flex-content field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden vertical-spacing--basic field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40683" class="paragraph paragraph--type--pb-el-bq paragraph--view-mode--default"> <blockquote class="blockquote--distinguished" data-text-size-giant> <p>I wanted to make space for different kinds of Jewish histories than the ones we expect.</p> </blockquote> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40359" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <figure class="captioned-image obj-left"><img alt="The book cover of The Jewish South: An American History by Shari Rabin. The cover features a historical illustration of a grand synagogue with Gothic architectural elements, set against a gradient sky transitioning from teal to warm tones." height="300" src="/sites/default/files/content/research-review/01/shari_rabin_thejewishsouth-bookcover.jpg" width="199"> <figcaption><em>The Jewish South: An American History</em> by Shari Rabin</figcaption> </figure> <p>But when Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and Religion Shari Rabin went back to the text, she found it was not exactly a shining example of religious toleration. While the Fundamental Constitutions did promise that the Anglican church dissenters wouldn’t be ostracized, it wasn’t in the interest of allowing them freedom and self-expression. “They’re all going to be treated nicely,” she explains, “in the hopes that this will make them become Anglicans.”</p> <p>This anecdote appears in Rabin’s book, <em>The Jewish South: An American History</em> (Princeton University Press, 2025), which tells a far more complex story than has been previously depicted. Most histories of Jews in America tend to concentrate on the Northeast; in turn, many histories of the South overlook Jews, who are historically a small minority. Rabin’s account begins in 1492 with Spain and Portugal expelling Jews whose descendants would eventually settle in Charleston and ends in the 1960s with the Civil Rights Movement. In between, <em>The Jewish South</em> looks at the ways Jews were both included and held apart from Southern society—and how Jews themselves responded.</p> <p>Like Jews everywhere, Jews in the South had a range of attitudes and beliefs. They had different levels of religious observance; sometimes quarreled bitterly about politics; and held office in both the Republican and Democratic parties. “It was important to me to think about Jewish history in the South capaciously and to not reproduce narrow expectations of what a Jewish person was or is or looked like,” Rabin says. “I wanted to make space for different kinds of Jewish histories than the ones we expect.”</p> <p>Though she relied on existing work about Jews in the South for <em>The Jewish South</em>, Rabin also conducted archival research. One of her most interesting finds, discovered with the help of student research assistant Sarah Naiman ’23, was a collection of amnesty petitions filed by Jews after the Civil War who were seeking to recover their United States citizenship.</p> <p>“There was this whole cache of documents written in May and June of 1865 laying out their cases, explaining why they had supported the Confederacy and why they had stayed there,” Rabin explains. “There has been this assumption in Southern Jewish history that Jews in the South were Confederates and were loyal to the region they lived in. But you find in this set a lot more ambivalence—people saying, ‘I didn’t like the Confederacy, but I didn’t want to abandon my interests.’ And there’s one extraordinary example of a person saying, ‘I regret everything. I should have left.’”</p> <p>In Rabin’s account, Jews had no special relationship to slavery. They didn’t necessarily operate the slave trade (which is an old antisemitic conspiracy theory), but they did, like many other upwardly mobile Southerners, rely on enslaved laborers to run their households. Many didn’t feel any moral ambivalence about this; it was a way, as Rabin puts it, to participate in whiteness and both display and achieve economic success. There is evidence that a small number of those enslaved Black people identified as Jews.</p> <aside class="pull obj-right"> <div class="basic-box basic-box--light"> <h2 class="small-headline">Student Researcher</h2> <ul class="list--clean"> <li>Sarah Naiman ’23</li> </ul> </div> </aside> <p>Still, Jews were reminded of their otherness during some periods more than others. Rabin found accounts of the murder of three Jewish merchants by the Ku Klux Klan during Reconstruction, though she cautions that there may have been other factors at play besides antisemitism. “They’re seen as outsiders,” she says. “They’re seen as foreign; they’re seen as aligned with Republican anti-racist politics. As merchants, they have complicated financial relationships with both white and Black Southerners. So it’s a swirling array of factors that contribute to the murders.”</p> <p>Rabin also notes that when white supremacists felt more threatened, they tended to focus their attacks on Jews; for example, in the 1950s and ’60s, at the start of the Civil Rights Movement, there was a rash of bombings of synagogues and Jewish community centers, in large part because many associated Jews with the movement for Black civil rights.&nbsp;</p> <p>In the future, Rabin hopes historians will continue to mine the archives to learn more about Jews in the South and how they lived. “There’s a vast array of stories to be told,” she says. “<em>The Jewish South</em> is my telling from the material that I found. I hope that it provides an unexpected view of the South that is also an unexpected view of Jewish history and ultimately of American history more broadly.”</p> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40357" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <hr> <p><em>Chair of Jewish Studies Shari Rabin is a scholar of modern Judaism and American religions. She earned a master’s in philosophy and a doctorate in religious studies at Yale University and is the author of </em>Jews on the Frontier: Religion and Mobility in Nineteenth-Century America<em> (NYU Press).</em></p> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div class="field field--name-field-bio-card-el-biography field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <div class="biography-card"> <figure> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_260/public/content/biography/image/sharirabin-042.jpg?itok=aU3zzrsV" width="260" height="347" alt="Shari Rabin"> </figure> <div class="biography-card__content"> <h2><span>Shari Rabin</span> </h2> <ul class="item-list list--clean" style="margin-top: 0px;"> <li class="professional-title">Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and Religion</li> <li class="professional-title">Chair of Jewish Studies</li> <li class="professional-title">Chair of German</li> </ul> <a class="view-more" href="/shari-rabin">View Shari Rabin’s biography</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40383" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <h2 class="small-headline" style="margin-top: 1.25rem;">About the Illustration</h2> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right" data-cte style="margin-bottom: 1.75rem;"><img alt="An uncropped version of the illustration featured at the top of the page." height="332" src="/sites/default/files/content/research-review/illustrations/shari_rabin_cookie_x_oberlin_final_1_2.jpg" width="260"> <figcaption><em>Click the image to expand</em></figcaption> </figure> <p class="subhead" style="color: var(--darkgray);">Illustrator: Cookie Moon</p> <blockquote data-add-quotes data-no-attribution> <p>An illustrator’s inspiration is filtered through the task at hand. In this piece, the universal elements of Jewish life shine in tandem with the details of Jewish life in the American South. There’s a quiet integrity in belonging to a minority faith community—reflected in everything from the distinctiveness of dress to the varying degrees of adherence to tradition. Through a calm color palette and a simple scene, I believe this illustration is faithful to both the spirit and specificity of the time and place described in the article.</p> </blockquote> <p class="icon-text"><span aria-label="Phone" class="icon-text__icon fas fa-fw fa-link" style="color: black;"></span><a href="https://www.illustrationdivision.com/cookie-moon" target="_blank">Cookie Moon’s portfolio</a></p> <p class="icon-text"><span aria-label="Instagram" class="icon-text__icon fas fa-brands fa-instagram"></span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/thecookiemoon" target="_blank">@thecookiemoon</a></p> <hr class="hr--light" style="clear: both; margin: 1.25rem 0;"> <p><a class="view-more" href="/node/488025">Return to <em>91ֱ�� Research Review</em></a></p> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40358" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <p class="header-tag no-show" id="header-tag">91ֱ�� Research Review</p> <style> .no-show { display: none } </style> <script> (function() { var header = document.querySelector(".story-header"); var headerTag = document.getElementById("header-tag"); header.insertBefore(headerTag, header.firstElementChild); headerTag.classList.remove("no-show"); })(); </script> <!-- change photo credit to image credit --> <script> (function() { var credit = document.querySelector(".top-combo__figure .figure__credit"); credit.innerText = credit.textContent.replace("Photo credit","Image credit"); })(); </script> <!-- sidebar --> <style> aside .list--clean li { margin-bottom: 0.25rem; } aside ul.list--clean { margin-top: .5rem; font-family: var(--font-sans-serif); font-size: 0.875rem; } aside .basic-box { margin: .5rem 0; max-width: 240px; } aside .basic-box .small-headline { font-size: 1rem; } </style> <!-- hide bio card quote, adjust quote spacing --> <style> .biography-card blockquote { display: none } .body-centered-layout blockquote.blockquote--distinguished { margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: -1rem; } </style> </div> </div> </div> Sun, 09 Mar 2025 05:38:14 +0000 awillia2 488228 at /news/happy-return <span>Happy Return</span> <span><span>tapplega</span></span> <span><time datetime="2024-01-30T09:50:42-05:00" title="Tuesday, January 30, 2024 - 09:50">Tue, 01/30/2024 - 09:50</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>It’s been a few semesters since Samia Mansour was a <a href="/node/65666">religion</a> student at 91ֱ��. In the years that followed her graduation in 2010, she worked for 91ֱ�� College Hillel and for Cleveland-area nonprofits that support interfaith couples and families, as well as women and gender non-conforming individuals. Along the way, she completed a master’s degree in social work from Case Western Reserve University.</p> <p>In fall 2023, Mansour returned to campus as assistant dean and director for the <a href="/node/4241">Office of Religious and Spiritual Life</a>. It’s a role that interacts closely with students and complements the work of her colleague, Multifaith Chaplain <a href="/node/30801">David Dorsey</a>.</p> <p>We caught up with Mansour in her first weeks on campus, to learn more about her student years and the journey that brought her back.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>You originally came to 91ֱ�� from nearby Canton, Ohio. What appealed to you about it at the time?</strong></p> <p>So many things! 91ֱ�� was the first school I visited, and I absolutely fell in love. I compared every other school I visited to 91ֱ��, so when it came time to apply, I knew 91ֱ�� was my no. 1. 91ֱ�� was so different from the community and school I was coming from, and even though it's not far from where I live, I used to joke that I needed a passport to come to 91ֱ��.&nbsp;</p> <p>I felt like a big fish in a small pond in high school. I had so many dreams, interests, and things I was passionate about, and I didn't feel I had a place to put that energy. I was a first-generation and low-income student as well, so I knew that college was my only real chance to make it out and be able to pursue my passions. 91ֱ��'s historic achievements inspired me; I felt represented by the progressive and inclusive campus environment. I appreciated the commitment to global learning, and I loved the quirkiness of 91ֱ�� students. My life was changed by my decision to become an Obie.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>How did your career path take shape?</strong></p> <p>I honestly didn't come to 91ֱ�� with any specific career aspirations. My first goal was to make it to college, and I knew I wanted to find a path to do good in the world. I was confident I would find my way and wanted to keep my options open.</p> <p>Looking back, I think I had a hard time imagining all the possibilities of what could be. As the first in my family to attend college, no one I knew had a job or career they loved—work was a means to a paycheck. Folks didn't have an opportunity to pursue their passions, and so I didn't know what it would look like if I did. I started by taking classes that piqued my interest and ultimately found that I couldn't stop taking courses in the Religion Department. I was on a spiritual journey of my own, and once I opened that door, there was no closing it. Every role I've held after 91ֱ�� has been in the realm of religious and spiritual life.</p> <p>A few years after graduating, I decided to get my master's in social work. I believe that social work skills are universally transferable; you can find social workers in all kinds of organizations and roles. I knew that in whatever position I took, I thrived when working with people and supporting them on their path. And so social work felt like a natural fit. It opened up many possibilities for where my future career could go and gave me a lot of tangible skills.&nbsp;</p> <p>I often wished that I was one of those people who knew exactly what they wanted to be in the world; I thought that would be so much easier! But I am grateful for my journey, the incredible people I've met, and the experiences I've had along the way.<br> &nbsp;<br> <strong>Tell us about your role on campus.</strong></p> <p>My role is focused on working with student groups, supporting student needs as they relate to religious and spiritual life, and working collaboratively with other departments in the <a href="/node/415091">Center for Intercultural Engagement</a>. However, I am still learning what this role is and can grow into, and I am open to learning more from folks on campus about what they would like to see from our office.</p> <p><strong>What's your favorite thing that's changed about 91ֱ�� since you were a student?</strong></p> <p>There are many new opportunities for student support and career development that I don't remember from when I was a student. New courses and concentrations and professors—I wish I could be a student again! Student life has evolved in a wonderful way since I was here before, and I love to see all of the collaboration and restructuring that better serves student needs.&nbsp;<br> &nbsp;<br> <strong>What's your favorite thing that hasn't changed?</strong></p> <p>Womb chairs, ExCos, OSCA, Art Rental, Organ Pump, TGIF, Winter Term, the Feve, Blue Rooster.<br> &nbsp;<br> <strong>What's one thing you would hope every student knows about the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life?</strong></p> <p>Religious and spiritual exploration is a lifelong journey. Whether you identify as traditionally observant, open-minded skeptic, spiritually curious, or grounded in your faith, we are here for you without judgment.<br> &nbsp;</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">91ֱ�� was Samia Mansour’s top college choice. Now years removed from her graduation, she chose it all over again.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2023-12-08T12:00:00Z">Fri, 12/08/2023 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3709">Religious and Spiritual Life</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2368">Alumni</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2360">After 91ֱ��</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3960">Center for Intercultural Engagement</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/samia-mansour" hreflang="und">Samia Mansour</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/david-dorsey" hreflang="und">David Dorsey</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Tanya Rosen-Jones ’97</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/rs179677_samiamansour-006_lpr.jpg?itok=tGMGpHHD" width="760" height="551" alt="Samia Mansour headshot."> </div> Tue, 30 Jan 2024 14:50:42 +0000 tapplega 466829 at /news/shari-rabin-awarded-research-fellowship-national-endowment-humanities <span>Shari Rabin Awarded Research Fellowship from National Endowment for the Humanities</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2021-01-07T14:00:49-05:00" title="Thursday, January 7, 2021 - 14:00">Thu, 01/07/2021 - 14:00</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The project builds on Rabin’s first book, Jews on the Frontier: Religion and Mobility in Nineteenth-century America, which traced the development of American Judaism in the period of westward expansion, focusing on how ordinary Jews created religious lives in new places.</p> <p>“Now, I am working on a particular region and expanding the timespan, tracing how shifting local conditions shaped the status of Jews and the development of Jewish religious life,” says Rabin, who recently published an article&nbsp;dealing with Judaism in the U.S. South in <em><a href="https://tif.ssrc.org/2020/02/28/space-place-rabin/">The Immanent Frame</a></em>, and co-authored a piece forthcoming in the Journal of Southern History. This new book project will tell a more expansive history across four centuries.&nbsp;</p> <p>Rabin explains that much of her scholarly work has been interested in understanding how Jewish religious life develops in places where people might be surprised to find it.&nbsp;</p> <p>“This can probably be traced to my own upbringing in Wisconsin and my family's move to Georgia when I was 13, which felt like a very abrupt culture shock at the time,” she says. “I left after high school, but my mother still lives in Atlanta, and before coming to 91ֱ�� I lived and taught for four years in Charleston, South Carolina. Moving in and out of the South, I have been struck by how southern Jews have developed a strong sense of regional identity, even as their history highlights broader—if sometimes underappreciated—themes in Jewish, southern, and American histories. In particular, studying Jews in the South centers important questions about race, religion, and how they operate and intersect in different contexts.”</p> <p>With the fellowship, Rabin will undertake research trips to the National Archives in Washington, D.C., the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati, and various archives throughout the South (pending COVID-19 travel safety protocols).</p> <p>Rabin notes that while there are “quite a few Jewish community histories focused on particular southern cities,” as well as a number of edited volumes and more focused monographs, this project is the first attempt at a single-authored scholarly narrative.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The closest antecedent is Eli Evans’ <em>The Provincials</em>, published in 1973, which is a mix of memoir, travel writing, and history, and which initiated the field of scholarship that I am now drawing and building upon.”</p> <p>Rabin’s interest in southern Jewish history has found its way into the courses she teaches, including "Introduction to Jewish Studies: Sacred Spaces and Promised Lands" and "American Religious Traditions.” Her scholarly work will also be incorporated in “Judaism in the U.S.: State, Synagogue, and Beyond" this spring.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>“I love introducing students to Charleston's fascinating Jewish history (it is home to the second oldest extant synagogue building in the U.S.) and to material on southern Jewish foodways. In the future, I would also love to work with students in some capacity on regional Jewish histories and cultures of the Midwest. I find that taking a more localized approach can be a really powerful way to understand the complexities and layers of human experience, and focusing on Jews in particular offers a different perspective on places we think we know.”</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2021-01-07T12:00:00Z">Thu, 01/07/2021 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Amanda Nagy</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and Religion <a href="/shari-rabin">Shari Rabin</a> has received a fellowship from the National Endowment for Humanities to pursue research and writing leading to publication of a book narrating the history of Jewish people in the American South, from 1669 to the present day.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2363">Academics &amp; Research</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2414">Faculty</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25386">Jewish Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/shari-rabin" hreflang="und">Shari Rabin</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/jewish-studies" hreflang="und">Jewish Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and Religion Shari Rabin.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Tanya Rosen-Jones '97</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/images-2021/sharirabin-trj-news.jpg?itok=EtyFA2pk" width="760" height="570" alt="Portrait of Shari Rabin."> </div> Thu, 07 Jan 2021 19:00:49 +0000 anagy 314916 at /news/hayley-segall-20-awarded-jacobs-prize-study-religion <span>Hayley Segall ’20 Awarded Jacobs Prize for the Study of Religion</span> <span><span>hhempste</span></span> <span><time datetime="2020-07-28T14:01:42-04:00" title="Tuesday, July 28, 2020 - 14:01">Tue, 07/28/2020 - 14:01</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Hayley Segall, a <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion">religion major</a> from Potomac, Maryland, has been awarded the Jacobs Prize for the Study of Religion.</p> <p>The Jacobs Prize for the Study of Religion is made possible by Tilia Jacobs ’88. The award recognizes one graduating religion major who gives the best answer to the question, “Why is the academic study of religion important?” with a $25,000 award.</p> <p>“The Jacobs Prize itself seemed a bit surreal,” says Segall. “It provided an open opportunity to reflect on my field with the possibility of an incredibly generous award. While the essay prompt seemed, on the surface, simple, I stared at a blank page for literally months trying to figure out how to articulate what the study of religion is and means to me. Regardless of whether or not I won the prize, the challenge to write out an answer was a meaningful process in and of itself.”</p> <p>Segall was encouraged to apply for the prize by professors and peers. “Trying to write a substantive piece with so few guidelines, and with a substantial award at stake, felt intimidating to say the least,” she says. “The support and inspiration I garnered from <a href="/cindy-chapman">Cindy Chapman</a>, my capstone professor, and my religion major peers were essential in my decision to apply.”&nbsp;</p> <p>Segall will use the award money to support her graduate studies at the University of Chicago Divinity School, where she will pursue a master’s degree in divinity. After graduate school, she hopes to begin a career in interfaith dialogue and diplomacy.</p> <p>Outside of the classroom, Segall cites the invaluable encouragement and support she received from her housemates, friends, and teammates. “They constantly hyped me up and challenged me to be my best self throughout my entire 91ֱ�� experience: academically, athletically, and personally. I’m very lucky to have such strong Obie support systems that consistently build me up in the moments I need it most.”</p> <p>At 91ֱ��, Segall was a participant and facilitator for the Barefoot Dialogue Program, and she worked for the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/rhetoric-and-composition">Department of Rhetoric and Composition</a> as a speaking and writing associate. She was also a member of the 91ֱ�� College Field Hockey team for three seasons.</p> <p>When thinking about how the award may affect the pursuit of her studies, Segall says, “I hope this prize allows me to continue to challenge ingrained assumptions and push forward in respectfully learning about and appreciating others’ cultural and spiritual beliefs and experiences.”</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2020-07-28T12:00:00Z">Tue, 07/28/2020 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Hillary Hempstead</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25451">Writing and Communication</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/cindy-chapman" hreflang="und">Cynthia (Cindy) Chapman</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/writing-and-communication" hreflang="und">Communication Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Religion major Hayley Segall ’20.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Courtesy of Hayley Segall</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/hayley-segall.png?itok=GIMydL75" width="760" height="570" alt="woman sitting in front of a pond and large building in the background."> </div> Tue, 28 Jul 2020 18:01:42 +0000 hhempste 300981 at /news/sophia-brewer-thompson-20-awarded-fulbright-english-teaching-assistantship-bulgaria <span>Sophia Brewer Thompson ’20 Awarded Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Bulgaria</span> <span><span>hhempste</span></span> <span><time datetime="2020-05-25T10:15:29-04:00" title="Monday, May 25, 2020 - 10:15">Mon, 05/25/2020 - 10:15</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Sophia Brewer Thompson ’20, a double major in religion and gender, sexuality, and feminist studies, has been awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Bulgaria.&nbsp;</p> <p>Thompson was inspired to apply for the Fulbright program because she was drawn to Fulbright's teaching philosophy and emphasis on community engagement beyond the classroom. “I have loved teaching for many years, I have a deep appreciation for creative, language-based education,” she says. “I also spent my childhood learning traditional Balkan music and dance, so this particular program seemed like a great fit for me.”</p> <p>During her Fulbright year, Thompson will teach English in a Bulgarian public school. While abroad, she hopes to learn more about Bulgarian language, culture, and landscapes, along with further developing her teaching skills and engaging with the community outside the classroom.</p> <p>Thompson’s prior experiences with teaching also spurred her interest in the Fulbright opportunity. At 91ֱ��, Thompson served as an America Reads tutor for three years. She also worked for the Peer Support Center and co-facilitated two Intro to Peer Helping Skills courses during her senior year.</p> <p>During her four years at 91ֱ��, the Berkeley, California, native was a <a href="/bcsl/programs/bonner-scholars">Bonner Scholar</a>, a member of the acapella group Nothing But Treble, worked as a student supervisor at the <a href="/advancement/annual-fund">91ֱ�� Annual Fund</a> call center, and volunteered at <a href="https://www.oberlincommunityservices.org/">91ֱ�� Community Services</a>.</p> <p>After her experience in Bulgaria, Thompson plans to secure a role working in development and advancement. She eventually would like to return to her background in religious studies and attend divinity school.</p> <p>“It has been a long road to get to this point,” says Thompson. “I want to thank all of my mentors, friends, and family who have supported and guided me along the way.”</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2020-05-23T12:00:00Z">Sat, 05/23/2020 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Hillary Hempstead</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2410">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2381">Bonner Center</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25361">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs" hreflang="und">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Sophia Brewer Thompson ’20 will teach English in Bulgaria.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Della Copes-Finke ’20</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/sophia-bt.png?itok=2QVUn-J2" width="760" height="570" alt="woman in v-neck smiling with tree blossoms in background."> </div> Mon, 25 May 2020 14:15:29 +0000 hhempste 251811 at /news/visionary-academic-leader-named-dean-college-arts-and-sciences <span>Visionary Academic Leader Named Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2019-12-16T12:04:00-05:00" title="Monday, December 16, 2019 - 12:04">Mon, 12/16/2019 - 12:04</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>David Kamitsuka has been appointed dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at 91ֱ�� College&nbsp;following an extensive national search. <a href="/node/4921">Kamitsuka</a> has served as acting dean since the summer of 2018, and he will begin his new role on January 1, pending approval by the Board of Trustees.</p> <p>An award-winning teacher, accomplished scholar, and visionary administrator, Kamitsuka has served 91ֱ�� for 26 years.&nbsp;He chaired the steering committee for 91ֱ��’s Academic and Administrative Program Review, which produced the landmark <a href="/sites/default/files/content/about-oberlin/aapr/aapr_final_report.pdf">One 91ֱ�� Report </a>that recommends a range of programmatic and operational initiatives that will ensure 91ֱ��’s excellence, relevance, and financial sustainability for generations to come. The One 91ֱ�� Report received the overwhelming endorsement of the General Faculty and unanimous approval from the Board of Trustees, launching a five-year period of implementation.</p> <p>"David brings to this role deft leadership, a deep appreciation for what makes this institution distinctive, and an enduring love for 91ֱ��," said President Carmen Twillie Ambar. "We saw all of those qualities in abundance over the last year and a half, as David took on two extraordinarily challenging roles. In both, he truly excelled, and this institution is already better for his service. David is the right leader to continue building on that momentum."</p> <p>Prior to his appointment as acting dean, Kamitsuka served as senior associate dean, and associate dean of the curriculum in the College of Arts and Sciences. He led the development of the Academic Advising Resource Center and the Peer Advising Leaders program for first-year students.</p> <p>Kamitsuka was the founding director of the <a href="/studioc">91ֱ�� Center for Convergence</a> (StudiOC), which develops innovative learning communities that bring together courses from the college and conservatory, thereby affording students opportunities to make connections across disciplines and develop rich interactions with faculty and classmates. Kamitsuka was also the founding director of 91ֱ��’s First-Year Seminar Program, which offers seminars that span the arts and humanities, social and behavioral sciences, and the natural sciences and math divisions.</p> <p>"After a broad search and in-depth interviews with strong candidates from across the nation, we came to understand that the very best candidate for 91ֱ��’s future is already here,"&nbsp;said Yumi Ijiri, professor of physics and chair of the search committee. "I want to thank my fellow committee members, along with the many students, staff, and faculty who assisted the search process in various ways: helping to identify possible candidates, participating in listening sessions, suggesting search procedures, and attending finalist interviews."</p> <p>A scholar of religious studies, Kamitsuka joined the college in 1993, as an assistant professor. He has served as chair of the Jewish Studies Program, the Middle East North African Studies Program, and the Department of Religion.</p> <p>Kamitsuka has been selected to serve on numerous academic and administrative committees during his tenure at 91ֱ��. He was a member of the Strategic Planning Steering Committees in 2004-05 and 2014-15, and has served multiple times on elected faculty governance committees such as the College Faculty Council and the Educational Plans and Policies Committee.&nbsp;He has also served as chair of the Student Life Committee and the Presidential Religious and Spiritual Life Task Force.</p> <p>Kamitsuka previously held teaching appointments at Lafayette College and Haverford College and was a teaching fellow at Yale University. His areas of instruction and research focus on the philosophy of religion from the 17th century to the present.&nbsp;He is the recipient of 91ֱ��’s Distinguished Teaching Award and the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education.</p> <p>Kamitsuka earned a bachelor’s degree at Haverford College and master’s and doctoral degrees at Yale University, and is the author of <em>Theology and Contemporary Culture</em> (Cambridge University Press).&nbsp;He is an 91ֱ�� Shansi trustee and serves on the Advisory Committee of the Wabash Center, which supports teaching and scholarship in religious studies.</p> <p>"It is an honor to have been selected to serve as the next dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.&nbsp;91ֱ�� is a place unlike any other, with its unique history, enduring values, and distinctive modes of excellence," Kamitsuka said.</p> <p>‘‘This is an important time of challenge and renewal for higher education. I am confident that our faculty and students will seize this moment to shape the kind of institution worthy of future 91ֱ�� generations.&nbsp;I look forward to the opportunity of working with President Ambar, the Board of Trustees, my remarkable faculty and administrative colleagues, and the entire 91ֱ�� community, to build on 91ֱ��’s academic achievements, innovative spirit, and creative leadership in higher education.’’</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2019-12-16T12:00:00Z">Mon, 12/16/2019 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2363">Academics &amp; Research</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2583">College of Arts and Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2359">Administration</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/david-kamitsuka" hreflang="und">David Kamitsuka</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">David Kamitsuka has served as acting dean since summer 2018.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Tanya Rosen-Jones ’97</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/images-2019/davidkamitsuka1.jpg?itok=SoPL2oVz" width="760" height="507" alt="David Kamitsuka smiling with glasses gray suit coat and tan tie."> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-flex-content field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden vertical-spacing--basic field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div class="field field--name-field-bio-card-el-biography field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <div class="biography-card"> <figure> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_260/public/content/biography/image/david_kamitsuka-trosenjones_0.jpg?itok=K6PhfelQ" width="260" height="347" alt="David Kamitsuka."> </figure> <div class="biography-card__content"> <h2><span>David Kamitsuka</span> </h2> <ul class="item-list list--clean" style="margin-top: 0px;"> <li class="professional-title">Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences</li> </ul> <a class="view-more" href="/david-kamitsuka">View David Kamitsuka’s biography</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> Mon, 16 Dec 2019 17:04:00 +0000 anagy 181446 at /news/hong-kong-academy-performing-arts-presents-cantonese-opera-scenes-nov-14 <span>Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Presents Cantonese Opera Scenes Nov. 14</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2019-11-07T10:49:03-05:00" title="Thursday, November 7, 2019 - 10:49">Thu, 11/07/2019 - 10:49</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>For years, 91ֱ�� students have enjoyed opportunities for cultural exchange through winter-term excursions to Hong Kong.</p> <p>This year, for the first time, a contingent from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts will pay a visit to 91ֱ��—and they will bring a key facet of their culture with them.</p> <p>Performers from the Hong Kong Academy’s School of Chinese Opera will present an exclusive performance of Cantonese opera scenes at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 14, in 91ֱ��’s Warner Concert Hall.</p> <p>Prior to the evening performance, representatives from the Hong Kong Academy will present “Music in Cantonese Opera: An Example in Connecting Music with Language.” It will be led by professor Leung Bo-Wah from the Education University of Hong Kong and dean Martin Lau from the Hong Kong Academy. The discussion takes place from 12:15&nbsp;to 1:15 p.m. in the Birenbaum Innovation and Performance Space, in the lower level of the Hotel at 91ֱ�� (10 E. College Street). A light lunch will be available beginning at noon.</p> <p>Admission is free to both the afternoon discussion and evening performance.</p> <p>The events are part of 91ֱ��’s <a href="/artsguide/arts-of-asia">Arts of Asia </a>series, an autumn celebration that has also showcased music, performing arts, and visual arts of Japan, India, and Bali. Arts of Asia is sponsored in part by 91ֱ�� College’s Departments of East Asian Studies, Theater, History, and Religion, as well as the conservatory and the Allen Memorial Art Museum.</p> <p>Developed more than 700 years ago, Cantonese opera is a traditional Chinese art form that illustrates stories from China’s history and lore through singing, acting, and music, with a heavy emphasis on choreography—especially in the form of martial arts and acrobatics. Cantonese opera enjoyed a surge in popularity in Hong Kong and southern China through the 1950s and 1960s, but later began to lose its cultural foothold to the burgeoning entertainment outlets of television and cinema.</p> <p>The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts’ seven-year-old degree program in Cantonese opera is intended in part to preserve the ancient form for future generations—a mission made more urgent in part because of recent political unrest in Hong Kong.</p> <p>The academy’s November 14 program at 91ֱ�� will consist of excerpts from several operas. Among them are <em>The Legend of the White Snake</em>, which introduces operatic movements typical of the northern Chinese style, and <em>The Jade Bracelet</em>, in which performers convey emotion through mime-like acting techniques. A third excerpt, <em>The Villain, the General, and the Heroic Beauty</em>, exemplifies traditional Cantonese opera and features music sung in the ancient dialect of China’s Central Plains.</p> <p>In addition to the excerpts, musicians will demonstrate various forms of percussion&nbsp;and melodic instruments that are frequently used in Cantonese opera.</p> <p>91ֱ�� Professor of Music Education <a href="/node/6816">Jody Kerchner</a> took part in a winter-term trip with 91ֱ�� students to Hong Kong in January 2019. During that visit, the group experienced an unforgettable performance of Cantonese opera at the newly opened Xiqu Center in the West Kowloon arts district.</p> <p>“It’s a full sensory buffet between these vibrant colors coming at you through costumes and makeup and scenery, as well as an incredible diversity of sounds,” says Kerchner.</p> <p>“It is exciting that we have the opportunity to experience this ancient art form and that we can actually play a role in sustaining it. We talk a lot about environmental sustainability on this campus. This is <em>cultural</em> sustainability.”</p> <p>The November 14 performance in 91ֱ�� is part of a cultural exchange for the Hong Kong Academy’s student performers, who will learn about performing arts in America in addition to sharing their own artistry. Their visit is made possible with support from the Education University of Hong Kong, with which Kerchner has had a professional relationship since 2006.</p> <p>In advance of the performance, students from Kerchner’s Community Engagement in the Schools course will visit children at 91ֱ��’s Prospect Elementary to prepare them for an in-school presentation made by performers from the Hong Kong Academy on November 13. Topics will include tonal colors of the traditional instruments used and cultural perspective pertaining to the use of costumes, martial arts,&nbsp;and other means of storytelling.</p> <p>Community Engagement in the Schools is presented through the conservatory’s <a href="/conservatory/divisions/pace">Division of Pedagogy, Advocacy, and Community Engagement</a>. It is open to students in both the conservatory and the College of Arts and Sciences.</p> <p><a class="view-more" href="/artsguide">Learn more about the arts at 91ֱ��</a></p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2019-11-07T12:00:00Z">Thu, 11/07/2019 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Erich Burnett</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>A cultural exchange highlighted by midday discussion on Chinese operatic music followed by an evening performance.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2404">Cultural Celebrations</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2385">Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25336">East Asian Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25441">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25381">History</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/jody-kerchner" hreflang="und">Jody Kerchner</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/pace" hreflang="und">Pedagogy, Advocacy, and Community Engagement</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/east-asian-studies" hreflang="und">East Asian Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater" hreflang="und">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/history" hreflang="und">History</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Courtesy Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/news_story_graphic.png?itok=5QQW6qZ_" width="760" height="570" alt="performer from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts."> </div> Thu, 07 Nov 2019 15:49:03 +0000 eburnett 178741 at /news/conversation-mohammad-jafar-mahallati <span>A Conversation with Mohammad Jafar Mahallati</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2019-03-22T11:13:08-04:00" title="Friday, March 22, 2019 - 11:13">Fri, 03/22/2019 - 11:13</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>He founded the 91ֱ�� Friendship Festival, which will be held this year on April 8. His latest volume is Friendship in Islamic Ethics and World Politics by the University of Michigan Press (2019).</p> <p><strong>You have an extensive background in peacebuilding experience through your work at the United Nations. Could you expand on that a bit?</strong></p> <p>The Iran-Iraq War was a full-fledged fratricide with no real victor and no measurable gain for either side, especially Iraq—which began the war—presenting a very complex case for just-war theories. As an Iranian diplomat, I worked with the Office of the Secretary General of the United Nations, under Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, to spend its conflict-resolution expertise on bilateral and multilateral negotiations with the goal of limiting the scope of the Iran-Iraq War and searching for avenues of peace between the two neighboring nations.</p> <p>All wars, and specifically ideological ones, suppress the potential for intrastate and interstate friendship as a dominant mode of life, an opportunity cost for which war strategists rarely account. Obsession with “punitive justice” is blinding. For many, myself included, the existential question during the Iran-Iraq War was that, even if just wars could implement punitive justice, is justice the highest moral standard by which to make decisions about war and peace and to determine how to live life and conduct human relations?</p> <p>It cost me many years of my career to learn that the answer to this question is a well-qualified ‘no.’ In spring 2007, the year I joined 91ֱ�� College, I found myself in search of a higher aspect of ethics—something that could give me a scholarly break from struggling with the ethics of war and retributive justice. I switched my attention from war and its related ethics to the ethics of friendship and its significance as the highest realm of peacemaking. My works and studies on war and peace is reflected in Ethics of War and Peace in Iran and Shi’i Islam, published by Toronto University Press in 2016. &nbsp;</p> <p><strong>You teach courses in conflict resolution and Islamic and peace studies. How would you define friendship studies as a discipline?</strong></p> <p>I worked with the United Nations for a decade, taught international relations for another decade, and spent 12 years of teaching and research on Islamic and peace studies at 91ֱ��. Bringing experiential lessons in multilateral diplomacy, together with scholarships in international relations and comparative theology, I have developed my own tripartite approach to peacemaking and conflict resolution, including: ethics of war, forgiveness, and friendship.</p> <p>The first realm, ethics of war, deals with moral arguments that can help bring ceasefire or prevent conflicts. In this realm, we question the legitimacy of wars, their various ramifications and moral limits. In the second realm, ethics of apology and forgiveness, we use moral arguments to encourage international and intra-communal apology and forgiveness to remove collective hatred and resentments that may cause cold war or cold peace. Apology and forgiveness, at their best, can promote a sense of neutrality or what we call indifference. Ethics of friendship arrives at this very point to argue that all human beings should be in positive relations. In short, I argue that indifference, whether collective or individual is not ‘normal.’</p> <p>As the world is becoming a global village, and as any damage to our environment by a country has immediate ramification for the rest of the world, friendship and friendship studies are shifting status from an option to a necessity. In fact, in January of 2018, the British government appointed a Minister of Loneliness. This means that friendship studies are advancing from the realm of academic interest to policy-making.</p> <p>These observations prompted me to develop a new religion course, Ethics of Friendship: Perspectives in Religion, Politics, Economics and Arts, which I taught for the first time in spring 2018. During the last three decades, we are witness to the flourishing of many excellent academic books emerging in friendship studies. I am pleased that 91ֱ�� is a pioneer in this realm. It’s worth noting that more than a century ago, 91ֱ�� College President Henry Churchill King wrote a book titled <em>The Laws of Friendship</em>.</p> <p><strong>What are some pathways for students who are interested in this area of study?</strong></p> <p>Based on two semesters of teaching friendship courses at 91ֱ��, and in the Middle East in two different languages, I can see that internationally, students are highly encouraged to continue their friendship studies as an interdisciplinary approach in international relations, psychology, sociology, religious studies, philosophy, literature and law studies. Many are also inspired to implement their friendship studies in practical works, NGO activities, organizational managements, conflict resolutions, and art works. In other words, whatever a student’s major, friendship studies and friendship-making can still be an academic or professional focus in their respective areas of interest. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>How and when did you get the idea for a friendship initiative at 91ֱ��?</strong></p> <p>My personal background and interest in the Muslim history of friendship studies combined with the intellectually inspiring space of our religion department encouraged me to begin my research in comparative friendship studies.</p> <p>I began using our Mead-Swing fund to invite guest speakers in friendship studies and organized my first conference in November of 2007. In 2009, my fascination with friendship studies prompted me to think about how we can transform important concepts into institutions. A Friendship Festival was one of the early ideas that came to mind.</p> <p>The Rev. Gregory McGonigle, then-director of Religious and Spiritual Life, gave full support in organizing the first festival. A few of my students also volunteered to work with us and chartered a student organization, the 91ֱ�� Friendship Circle. Together, we launched the first 91ֱ�� Friendship Festival in April 2010. It has since expanded to the 91ֱ�� Friendship Initiative.</p> <p><strong>The annual Friendship Festival will take place April 8. Do you know of any other college or university that promotes friendship studies?</strong></p> <p>To the best of my knowledge, the 91ֱ�� Friendship Festival and our friendship course is internationally unique because of its interdisciplinary nature. But as I talk about these entities in my various visits to other countries, the festival, the course, and the student organization are highly admired.</p> <p>This year, I am invited for a lecture at Rosemont College, which is launching a Friendship Studies Research and Initiatives Project for the first time. This indicates that friendship studies is gaining academic momentum.</p> <p>The main reason why friendship studies is becoming so relevant in 2019 is that the past century can be defined by four characteristics: the dominant mode of societal life and international relations in the beginning of this century were individualism and war. By the end of 2018, the two dominant modes are mass-loneliness and unilateralism. Friendship is the antidote of all four modes of unhappy life. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>I hope that the 91ֱ�� Friendship Festival would be our country’s next best cultural export to a world that is fraught with wars, unnecessary conflicts, loneliness, and unfriendly lives considered as ‘normal.’ If you push me to formulate the gist of my learning so far on friendship in one sentence, I will say the following: Both in academic studies and in policy makings related to peace, democracy and religion, these three fields cannot come to their profoundest rigor without friendship studies.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2019-04-02T12:00:00Z">Tue, 04/02/2019 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Mohammad Jafar Mahallati is&nbsp;Presidential Scholar in Islamic Studies in the religion department and Chair of Middle East and North Africa Studies. He founded the 91ֱ�� Friendship Festival, designed to celebrate and&nbsp;build community among people of all religious and cultural identities.&nbsp;</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2414">Faculty</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2390">Events</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25446">Middle East and North Africa Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Mohammad Jafar Mahallati is the Presidential Scholar in Islamic Studies and the Nancy Schrom Dye Chair in Middle East and North Africa Studies.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Jennifer Manna</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/mahallati_portrait-jennifer_manna.jpg?itok=r1DpdJ4k" width="760" height="507" alt="a professor sitting in a chair"> </div> Fri, 22 Mar 2019 15:13:08 +0000 anagy 156931 at /news/oberlin-writing-partnership-brings-new-collaboration-high-school <span>91ֱ�� Writing Partnership Brings New Collaboration to High School</span> <span><span>hhempste</span></span> <span><time datetime="2019-02-27T14:29:26-05:00" title="Wednesday, February 27, 2019 - 14:29">Wed, 02/27/2019 - 14:29</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Students who go to school in the city of 91ֱ�� have access to high-caliber resources, many of which include collaborations with the college. The <a href="https://serve.oberlin.edu/agency/detail/?agency_id=30701">Ninde Scholars Program</a> and the <a href="https://www.oberlinsites.org/">Spanish in the Elementary School</a> (SITES) program offer tutoring and language services, respectively. But until fall 2018, there was no program dedicated to offering high school students consistent in-classroom assistance with writing and composition.</p> <p>A graduate of both 91ֱ�� High School and 91ֱ�� College, Liam McMillin ’17, who majored in religion,&nbsp;worked as a tutor both on his own and in several programs, including the Ninde Scholars Program and the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/resources-and-support/wap">91ֱ�� College Writing and Speaking Associates Program</a>. Through this involvement, he identified a gap in the type of assistance offered to 91ֱ�� High School students. “While there were tutors for languages, there was a lack of English writing tutors,” says McMillin.</p> <p>Identifying this opportunity led to the creation of 91ֱ�� Writing Partnership, a program that places 91ֱ�� College students as tutors in 91ֱ�� High School. The 91ֱ�� Writing Partnership works in collaboration with the 91ֱ�� College Writing Associates Program, which provides the training framework for tutors.</p> <p>The new program is part of the <a href="/bcsl">Bonner Center’s</a> <a href="/bcsl/programs/community-work">Community Based Work-Study Program</a> (CBWSP) that enables students with a Federal Work-Study award to earn their work-study with one of the Bonner Center's community partner organizations.</p> <p>“The Community Based Work-Study Program is essentially at capacity, but through a competitive application process, we were able to take on a few new partners this fall,” says Tania Boster, associate director of the Bonner Center.</p> <p>“What was so appealing about Liam’s program is that he wasn’t just presenting this idea that he had and wanted to impose upon the high school; he had existing relationships and the trust of the teachers there. He knew there was a need in the community, and he created a program that allowed him to address the need.”</p> <p>When he launched 91ֱ�� Writing Partnership, McMillin had two primary goals. First, he wanted to improve writing aptitude for students in 91ֱ�� Public Schools. His other intention was to create an additional bridge between the college and town that would further ally the two entities.</p> <figure class="captioned-image"><img alt="student tutors in 91ֱ�� High School classroom" height="570" src="/sites/default/files/content/writingpartner2.jpg" width="760"> <figcaption>In the classroom, Conway assists high school students with how to write presentations and essays.</figcaption> </figure> <p>During fall semester, the program operated as a pilot, with three tutors placed both in the classroom and in the library’s writing center. In the classroom, tutors operate similarly to a traditional teaching assistant and provide ongoing support to the teacher. Tutors are also stationed in the school’s library and are available for drop-in sessions where any student can seek tutors for assistance.</p> <p>Sophomore comparative literature and studio art major Bridget Conway joined the program as a tutor in order to participate in the community.</p> <p>“I have been working as an English tutor for the past four or five years, so coming into my second year at 91ֱ��, I knew I wanted to dedicate more time to the 91ֱ�� community,” says Conway. “When I saw the job posting for this, I thought that it would be the perfect meeting of those two interests of mine. It’s been super rewarding, and I really like working in the community and in the high school.”</p> <p>Conway goes to the high school twice a week and assists for two periods in an eleventh-grade classroom and for two periods in the library’s writing center.</p> <p>“In the classroom, I’m helping the teacher with activities, and I’m helping the students with brainstorming and how to write presentations or essays. In the library’s writing center, I get to work with the entire school. Students there have gotten more comfortable coming up to me over the course of the semester, and I’ve built a relationship with a handful of the them. It’s really useful to be available so consistently.”</p> <p>When thinking beyond the program’s inaugural year, McMillin has aspirations to grow the program beyond its current level of classroom tutors. “I would love to have three tutors in all of the departments,” he says.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2019-02-28T12:00:00Z">Thu, 02/28/2019 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Hillary Hempstead</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>New program founded by Liam McMillin ’17 places 91ֱ�� College students as tutors in 91ֱ�� High School.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2410">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2381">Bonner Center</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2569">Alumni-Student Connections</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2368">Alumni</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25316">Comparative Literature</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25436">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/comparative-literature" hreflang="und">Comparative Literature</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/art" hreflang="und">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Twice a week, sophomore Bridget Conway serves as a tutor for writing and composition at 91ֱ�� High School </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Michael Hartman</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/writingpartner3.jpg?itok=Be1N1rfH" width="760" height="570" alt="writing tutor assisting high school student "> </div> Wed, 27 Feb 2019 19:29:26 +0000 hhempste 154031 at /news/interdisciplinary-approach-teaching-biochemistry-and-ethics <span>An Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching Biochemistry and Ethics</span> <span><span>hhempste</span></span> <span><time datetime="2018-10-29T16:27:58-04:00" title="Monday, October 29, 2018 - 16:27">Mon, 10/29/2018 - 16:27</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>A biochemist and an ethicist walk into a classroom.</p> <p>While this may sound like the beginning of a joke, at 91ֱ��, it actually happens. Recently highlighted in the <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jchemed.8b00379"><em>Journal of Chemical Education</em></a>, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Lisa Ryno and Assistant Professor of Religion Cheryl Cottine conducted a team-taught, interdisciplinary module on the biological impact and ethical implications of pesticide use. Ryno employed the module with her advanced biochemistry students, and Cottine used it to teach her sophomore-level environmental ethics students. The course takes a collaborative approach to teaching, very much in line with a number of multidisciplinary courses taking place in <a href="/studioc">StudiOC</a>.</p> <p>After becoming friends at their faculty orientation session, the idea of collaborating was top-of-mind for Ryno and Cottine. Then, the pair heard about a call for interdisciplinary projects that would be funded through 91ֱ��’s existing grant from the <a href="https://www.hhmi.org/">Howard Hughes Medical institute</a> (HHMI). They formulated a plan for a team-taught module and were awarded a small sum to realize their project.</p> <p>The module they created focuses on mechanisms and ethics of pesticide use domestically and agriculturally. Using Rachel Carson’s lauded <em>Silent Spring</em> as a primary text, they wanted to encourage students to consider the biological implications of pesticide use. To facilitate this, students would be asked to explore the chemistry of various pesticides and how they impacted biological systems and larger preservation and conservation practices. Each student would research a pesticide of their choice and then build a case for using or not using the pesticide—all while taking each potential stakeholder’s perspective into consideration.</p> <p>In Ryno’s and Cottine’s course preparations, they wanted to ensure that they would be modeling an interdisciplinary approach to teaching for their students. They wanted to, from a pedagogical perspective, fully illustrate what this type of approach could look like. Not only that, they also wanted to support students in thinking critically about the biological and ethical implications of employing pesticides.</p> <p>To assure an interdisciplinary teaching approach, the professors saw to it that all students had a baseline understanding of both ethical frameworks and pesticide mechanisms of action. They visited one another’s classroom to give students a crash course in relevant course material. Ryno lectured on pesticides to students in Cottine’s religion class, and Cottine informed biochemistry students about essential ethical frameworks.</p> <p>Cottine says that by having students understand both basic biochemistry and how to apply ethical frameworks, students were able to examine the issues at hand in a more robust way.</p> <p>“This unit gave them the tools to think about these problems from at least two very different fields. A solid answer to a tough question requires some background knowledge about how these things work. Understanding the chemical side of things, as well as understanding there are different justifications for approaching it from different ethical perspectives really enabled expansive critical thinking. Had I taught the unit myself, it really wouldn’t have been as effective,” says Cottine.</p> <p>Ryno emphasises that, overall, the unit supported students’ development as well-rounded, critical thinkers. “This unit was a good exercise in students’ critical thinking—which is wholly the goal for every professor here. We want to have students learn to be successful critical thinkers, regardless of the topic,” says Ryno.</p> <p>For many of the students involved, the pairing of subjects was illuminating. Neuroscience, biochemistry, and economics major Sohail Kamdar ’17 found the module to be different from any other science course he had taken before.</p> <p>“This module [was] extremely engaging, as it was the first time any science class I took had a combination of two entirely different subject matters that enhanced my learning and understanding of both,” says Kamdar.</p> <p>Ryno agrees that the module they used is distinctive, as ethics is not typically taught in this way in science courses: “Most of the time, when ethics is taught in the science classroom, it’s taught as research ethics. So [this module] was very different in that way.”</p> <p>For Emma Brezel ’17, the course opened her eyes to new career possibilities and set her on the path for a graduate program in bioethics.</p> <p>“At 91ֱ��, multidisciplinary learning is encouraged, but I never really considered how I could combine my interests in biochemistry and medicine with my interests in religion, anthropology, and law,” Brezel says. “I saw my interests in the humanities and social sciences as something that could inform my future choices as a health professional, but not something that could be front and center. This class motivated me to explore career options in bioethics. I was able to find a program with an emphasis on the clinical practice of bioethics, and I just completed a master’s degree in August. I'm doing research now, but I hope to attend medical school one day and work closely with a bioethics center.”</p> <p>When asked about the module’s future, Cottine and Ryno are optimistic about teaching a full course together, possibly about biomedical ethics or the ethics of poisons.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2018-10-29T12:00:00Z">Mon, 10/29/2018 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Hillary Hempstead</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2410">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2563">Grants</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25421">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25246">Biochemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25306">Chemistry</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/lisa-ryno" hreflang="und">Lisa Ryno</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/religion" hreflang="und">Religion</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/chemistry-biochemistry" hreflang="und">Chemistry and Biochemistry</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Ryno and Cottine (left to right) at their first 91ֱ�� Commencement in 2015</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">courtesy of Lisa Ryno</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/styles/width_760/public/content/news/image/ryno-cottine.jpg?itok=ZESgMp7u" width="760" height="570" alt="two women dressed in regalia at 91ֱ�� Commencement "> </div> Mon, 29 Oct 2018 20:27:58 +0000 hhempste 126241 at