Category Archives: Series

The REL blog has a variety of ongoing series that are routinely updated.

6 Questions with Markus Harris

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We have a series that features grads that have ended up doing a pretty wide variety of things after leaving their REL classes (graduating either recently or a little while ago).  So we posed a few questions to each and let’s see what we learn.

1. When were you enrolled at UA and what major(s) and minor(s) did you graduate with?

Greetings! I had two tenures of enrollment with the University of Alabama. The second tenure is where I found a home with Religious Studies. I graduated in the Spring of 2011 with a B.A in African American Studies and a minor in Religious Studies.

2. When you first came here from high school, what did you think you wanted to do for a career?

Ha! When I first came to UA, I was going to be a Computer Scientist!

3. Any memories from your REL classes in Manly Hall that stand out and, more importantly perhaps, that you can share without incriminating anyone?

All of the things!! Were it not for the consideration given to me, I am not sure that I would have made it out with a degree. The Politics of Authenticity! It was at Manly where I learned what it meant to truly be a Scholar!! I will always cherish the time spent with Dr. Murphy in “History of Christian Thought.”

4. So what have you ended up doing and what path led you there? Tell us a little about your career now.

Currently, I am a Coordinator for the Lyle School of Engineering at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. I also teach ESL at Richland College, and I do some private consulting for Higher Education. Fate has brought me here, existentially! Ha! I will complete a Ph.D. in History eventually.

5. Is it fair to think that some of your REL undergrad classes or skills continue to be useful to you? If so, do you have any examples?

I know that the experience I was afforded as an undergrad learning and growing in Religious Studies has certainly contributed to my current space in the world. For example, I facilitate English learning classes with people of conflicting religious backgrounds. Sometimes, it can get really interesting!

6. If you now gave some advice to your earlier self, the one in classes in Manly Hall, what would that be?

Listen and read much more! Pay more attention to Dr. McCutcheon, Dr. Trost,  and Dr. Simmons! Drink more coffee! Hang out with Betty more!! Speak up more (if you can imagine that)!

Summer Plans: Prof. McCutcheon

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We asked the faculty what they were up to this summer; after all, just because the Spring semester is done doesn’t mean they’re all off gardening. And so this is what we learned…

Apart from writing the annual report and getting the Department ready for the new semester in the Fall, Professor McCutcheon has a few projects bubbling away, such as the second edition to his intro book, Studying Religion, which he plans to tackle and complete this summer. He’s also working on narrowing down the contents to an anthology that Walter de Gruyter, in Berlin, has contracted, as a follow-up to Jacques Waardenburg’s once well-known volume, Classical Approaches to the Study of Religion (a 1973 collection that was recently reissued, in a new edition, with a preface from McCutcheon). Picking up in the 1960s, about where Waardenburg’s volume ends, he plans to represent the trends and scholars of importance to the field’s last fifty years, adding a substantive introduction to the book (though maybe not quite the 80 pages of the earlier volume’s introductory chapter). He’s also finalizing the manuscripts for a few things that will be published this summer, such as a co-edited collection of interviews with the late Jonathan Z. Smith (in fact, his friend and co-editor, Willi Braun, is now giving the index one last proofing) and a couple new sets of his own essays (the first with Equinox and the other with de Gruyter). So if he can check all that off his list by August he’ll be a happy camper.

Summer Plans: Prof. Newton

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We asked the faculty what they were up to this summer; after all, just because the Spring semester is done doesn’t mean they’re all off gardening. And so this is what we learned…

This summer Prof. Newton — who will be joining us here ay UA in the Fall — will be wrapping up the last of his teaching commitments at Elizabethtown College. In addition, he’ll be working on the final edits for his first book, Identifying Roots: Alex Haley and the Anthropology of Scriptures (Equinox 2019) as well as working on an essay for NAASR on religion, race, and ethnicity. He’ll also be getting his ducks in a row to to launch some new research (i.e., his second book, based around talks he’s given to the department) and teaching projects (i.e. his Islam class in the Fall) once he gets to Tuscaloosa.

Summer Plans: Prof. Loewen

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We asked the faculty what they were up to this summer; after all, just because the Spring semester is done doesn’t mean they’re all off gardening. And so this is what we learned…

The first item on Prof. Loewen’s summer 2018 agenda is to present at the 2018 Derrida Today conference at Concordia University in Montreal (May 23-26). The presentation, “Historicizing the Orthodox, Anglophone Philosophy of Religion,” is based on his recently-published book. There are two projects on the docket for June: one week will be dedicated to revising a journal article about teaching, “The Data Is in the Details: Designing a Critical Online Introduction to Studying Religion” (which is based on what he learned while designing the online course REL 104 “Religion in Pop Culture”) and the remainder of June and all of July will focus on writing a book chapter about “evil” for the Global-Critical Philosophy of Religion seminar. The summer will likely be capped off with a week-long intensive course on “digital literacies” at Mary Washington University for the 2018 Digital Pedagogy Lab, and the completion of a an “instructional supplement” page and links on College of Arts and Sciences’ Teaching Hub. In, around and between all of this will be a family vacation to Quebec with a curious four year-old, completing some home renovation projects and building up a new ride!

Summer Plans: Prof. Trost

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We asked the faculty what they were up to this summer; after all, just because the Spring semester is done doesn’t mean they’re all off gardening. And so this is what we learned…

This summer, Prof. Trost will be traveling to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, to ponder a possible project on pilgrimage and to meet with a person who is writing a chapter for the volume that he is editing. Then he will be in Thessaloniki, Greece, with Catherine Roach, who will be teaching a course as part of a Fulbright Scholars exchange.  He plans to meet with academics who teach New Testament at Aristotle University with an eye toward future collaboration. Following this trip, he will be in London to meet with one of the co-editors of his book, Love Across the Atlantic.

Summer Plans: Prof. Jacobs

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We asked the faculty what they were up to this summer; after all, just because the Spring semester is done doesn’t mean they’re all off gardening. And so this is what we learned…

Prof. Jacobs is working on a variety of projects this summer. The first on his list is completing a manuscript entitled: Life Must Go On! Sol Lurie, the Kovno Ghetto, and the Murder of Lithuanian Jewry. He’ll also be drafting an article (“The Nexus Between Religion and Human Rights”), editing a chapter (“Judaism and Violence”) for the book, Religious Violence Today: Faith and Conflict in the Modern World, and working on a conference proposal entitled “The Antisemite as Litterateur: The Novels and Other Writings of Harold Covington.”

 

Summer time = Research & Writing time

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Well, May graduation is over and, unless they’re staying in town for summer school or for work, students are packing up and heading out. And whether they’re staying in Tuscaloosa or traveling, now’s the time that faculty shift gears and tackle a variety of projects. Because our work in the classroom is far more visible than our research, we thought we’d ask them what they’re up to this summer. So watch for these posts, beginning tomorrow.

6 Questions with Joe Kimbrough

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We’ve started a new series, featuring grads that have ended up doing a pretty wide variety of things after leaving their REL classes (graduating either recently or a little while ago).  So we posed a few questions to each and let’s see what we learn.

1. When were you here & what did you graduate with?

I arrived in September or October 2005, after Hurricane Katrina. I graduated in May 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies with a minor in Philosophy.

2. When you first came here from high school, what did you think you wanted to do for a career?

I planned a seminary trip to become a pastor.

3. Any memories from your REL classes in Manly Hall that stand out and, more importantly perhaps, that you can share without incriminating anyone?

“Without incriminating anyone,” huh? You’re not making things easy, Dr. McCutcheon. This could take a minute…. All right, I recall a meeting with Dr. Tim Murphy. Dr. Murphy led my independent study at the time. He wanted an update after Spring Break. I reached the door at the same time as my buddy, Zach Day. Murphy told us both to come in and see what happens. Dr. Murphy, Zach, and I had one of the best brainstorm sessions. Everyone tossed theorists about. We each shared a perspective based on our current project. Plus, we dreamed of where our individual projects could lead us. Oh sure, the goals were reached. The three of us came away with a touch of clarity and a dozen new rabbit trails. I enjoyed the simple exploration of it all.

4. So what have you ended up doing and what path led you there? Tell us a little about your career now.

The best description I have: I daylight as a tobacconist and moonlight starting up a ministry project. I worked a number of odd jobs after graduation. I, even, returned to Bama to get a master’s degree. In 2015, I landed as store manager for The Briary in Homewood, AL. Also, I write stories, perform in churches, and promote artists through the Storytelling Apologetics Project. So I control inventory and plan stories. Meanwhile, I sell pipes, tobacco, and cigars and rehearse for storytelling performances. Plus, I play webmaster for both positions. Never thought I would end up here, but my career path is a fun ride.

5. Is it fair to think that some of your REL undergrad classes or skills continue to be useful to you?

Absolutely, not only is it fair but also completely accurate. I talk daily about Derrida, Plato, and Chesterton with customers. I might even suggest that sales are like adapting to different professors. Plus, I find the same rules for editing papers apply to editing stories .I could go on, but suffice it to say: my time in Manly definitely benefits me daily.

6. If you now gave some advice to your earlier self, the one in classes in Manly Hall, what would that be?

Look down the course list, and take that one class simply because it looks interesting. Yeah, I know it doesn’t fit with anything else at the moment. However, that class will have the most fascinating benefits one day.

That’s Joe, above, pictured with his wife Jessica.

6 Questions with Kristi Crowell

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We’ve started a new series, featuring grads that have ended up doing a pretty wide variety of things after leaving their REL classes (graduating either recently or a little while ago).  So we posed a few questions to each and let’s see what we learn.

1. When were you enrolled at UA and what major(s) and minor(s) did you graduate with?

I have a Bachelors of Arts majoring in Religious Studies and minoring in Advertising (2007). I was slated to double major, however, in my final semester I discovered that I needed extra, unplanned classes for the Advertising major so I decided to drop it to a minor.

2. When you first came here from high school, what did you think you wanted to do for a career?

I wasn’t really certain what I wanted to do, only that I wanted to attend UA. I knew that I didn’t want to be one of the standards: lawyer, doctor, teacher or engineer. The mother of one of my friends suggested Public Relations so that’s what I originally declared. After my first semester, I switched to Advertising.

3. Any memories from your REL classes in Manly Hall that stand out and, more importantly perhaps, that you can share without incriminating anyone?

I took REL 220 Survey of Asian Religions in my second semester. I won’t name the professor but that class was messy and all over the place and I loved it. I was hooked and declared REL as a second major. I learned that everything that I thought could be clearly defined was much more subjective. It was truly eye opening when I sat in a certain someone’s class and we discussed things like soil and dirt. It was also extremely fun! The department as a whole was small and close.

4. So what have you ended up doing and what path led you there? Tell us a little about your career now.

When I graduated in 2007, I became a restaurant manager for Logan’s Roadhouse. I opened and operated locations in the Birmingham and Huntsville areas. In 2013, I joined the Waffle House team as the Area People Director. I supported 28 restaurants across North Alabama and Northeast Mississippi. I joined Edward Jones Investments in January 2018.

5. Is it fair to think that some of your REL undergrad classes or skills continue to be useful to you? If so, do you have any examples?

My REL background has been instrumental in my success. I use things that I learned in my REL classes daily. Not only did it teach me how to think critically, it also helped me hone my communication skills.

6. If you now gave some advice to your earlier self, the one in classes in Manly Hall, what would that be?

Don’t let others discourage you from your choice of major. Careers as a whole are much more fluid and there are humanities graduates that are very successful. A business degree isn’t your only option if you don’t want a career in one of the standards: law, medicine, education, or engineering.