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2010-11 Teaching and Learning Colloquy on
Religious Commitments in the Undergraduate Classroom

Applications due January 15, 2010
Decisions will be announced by March 1, 2010

Dates:
First Session: July 19-24, 2010 – Wabash College
Second Session: March 23-27, 2011 – Corpus Christi, Texas

Leadership Team:
Carolyn Medine, University of Georgia, Director
Joseph Favazza, Stonehill College
Kathleen Skerrett, Grinnell College
Daniel Deffenbaugh, Hastings College
Thomas Pearson, Wabash Center

Eligibility:

minimum of 7 years full-time teaching experience
teaching undergraduates full-time in a religion, religious studies or theology program/department in an accredited college or university in the United States or Canada
commitment to full participation from the opening to closing session for both workshop meetings
Read our Policy on Full Participation (click here)

Description:
Recent studies, including the HERI Report (

read here) and Barbara Walvoord’s study of undergraduate introductory courses in religion (

read here), suggest that most students come into the college classroom with expectations that their “big questions” will be addressed: e.g. self-understanding, development of personal values, and expression of spirituality. By contrast, faculty members tend to emphasize critical thinking and analytical distance as primary learning outcomes for their courses.

This colloquy of 14 faculty will address this tension between student expectations and faculty goals. We invite religious studies and theology faculty in undergraduate colleges and universities to explore teaching practices that encourage students to integrate their religious and ethical commitments with critical thinking.

Such practices might include activist pedagogies (such as service learning, feminist pedagogies, contemplative pedagogies, education for social justice) as well as more established approaches (such as reflective journaling, servant leadership, and spiritual autobiography).

Through common readings, guided conversation, and sharing and analysis of teaching practices, this colloquy will engage the relationship between informing and transforming our students.

Colloquy Goals:

1. To form a learning community of reflective practitioners rooted in conversation and cooperation

2. To develop teaching practices that enable students to:

connect critical thinking to development, commitment and action
reflect on the meaning of their commitments
integrate religious commitments with other aspects of their personal identities
interpret their commitments in a global and pluralistic context

3. To reflect on our teaching practices in the context of:

institutional missions
teaching goals and outcomes
measures and instruments of assessment
professional and personal identities
student and guild expectations

Stipend:
Participants will receive a stipend of $2,500 for full participation in the two sessions, plus local expenses and travel.

Please Note: U.S. Law prohibits the Wabash Center from paying stipends to participants with certain classes of foreign national status. The Wabash Center is, however, able to reimburse ALL participants for travel and other expenses.

Read More (click here)

Immigration status has no bearing on the Wabash Center’s selection of participants. It impacts only our ability to pay these participants a stipend. We deeply regret these restrictions but are confident that participants who are not eligible for a stipend will nonetheless find our programs valuable even without a stipend.

How to Apply:
Please send us the following application materials by January 15, 2009:

Application contact information form.
Apply online (create your own login id and password)
or Download pdf here. and print out an application to fill-in and POSTMARK by January 15, 2010.
-- -- ( Click Here to login and continue an application already placed on hold.) -- --
Academic CV (4 page limit)
Introductory letter (1 page, 500 words) describing your teaching context and your reasons for wanting to participate in this colloquy.
Brief written response to the following (750 words): Discuss one teaching practice you use to encourage students to integrate their religious and spiritual commitments with critical thinking.
Agreement to the Policy on Full Participation ( read here).

All application materials must be received by January 15, 2010. Please submit all application materials together in one packet (1 copy is sufficient). We encourage applicants to apply on line by filling out the online application form and attaching the requisite documents online.

Questions? Please Contact:
Thomas Pearson
Associate Director, Wabash Center
301 West Wabash Ave.
Crawfordsville, IN 47933
800-655-7117
pearsont@wabash.edu

Wabash Center

301 W. Wabash Avenue

Crawfordsville, Indiana 47933

wabashcenter@wabash.edu
(765)361-6047 phone

(800) 655-7117 toll-free

(765)361-6051 fax