In Defense of an Undergraduate Education
Bill Bonner’s diatribe against undergraduate education at UVA in the name of Thomas Jefferson and Rabbi HIllel demonstrates the same lazy habits of thinking and writing that I try to drill out of my first year undergraduates. Here’s what he could learn from reading R. Hillel more closely.
Contributing Scholars
Karen Leslie HernandezI am a Theologian with a focus on Christian-Muslim Understanding, as well as religious fundamentalism and extremism. I write, teach and lecture on Islam, Christian-Muslim relations worldwide (past and present), Jesus in the Qur'an, Al Qaeda, Islamophobia, and theological responses to terrorism. I have a Master of Sacred Theology in Religion and Conflict Transformation from Boston University School of Theology, '11; a Master of Theological Research in Christian-Muslim Understanding from Andover Newton Theological School, '07; and a BA in Peace and Justice Studies with a concentration in Islam from Wellesley College, '05. I've published with the Women's United Nations Report Network, Onislam, The American Muslim, and The Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue. Along with Palestine/Israel, Turkey, and Spain, my experiential/research work includes traveling to and living in India three times looking at Christian-Muslim-Hindu relations, as well as Muslim women's lives in the slums of Mumbai. I also had the privilege to serve on three panels at the Parliament of World Religions in Melbourne, Australia in 2009. From what I can tell, I am the only Theologian that is a woman, a Latina, and a Catholic/United Methodist, doing this type of work in the United States. In my spare time, I spend time with my daughter when she is home from college, practice yoga, read, love the theatre, and run with scissors whenever possible. I am also Associate Director of Communications with State of Formation.
Ikhlas SaleemI'm currently a Masters of Theological Studies student at Harvard Divinity School concentrating in women, gender sexuality and religion, specializing in Islamic Studies and graduated from Wellesley College. I enjoy traveling to warm climates, long dinners with friends and riding my bike through Cambridge and Boston.
Caitlin Michelle DesjardinsCaitlin Michelle Desjardins is a 3rd Year M.Div Student at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary. Her academic interests include Children's Spirituality, Death and Grief, Food Justice/Agrarian Issues, intersections of Literature and Theology, Contemplative Spirituality and Sexual Ethics. After spending a summer with the Sisters of Grandchamp, an ecumenical community of Sisters in Switzerland, she has a burgeoning interest in monastic expressions of faith. She also enjoys exploring the history and practices of Buddhism. Caitlin is a classical harpist, teaches gardening and writing in local elementary schools, and can often be found drawing with chalk or in the children's section of the library. Caitlin was a 2011 Fund For Theological Education Ministry Fellow and she drinks copious amounts of tea. You can contact her via e-mail (caitlin.desjardins@gmail.com).