Kaufman Updates
Permanent link for Kaufman On Campus: A Semester in Review, and Looking Forward | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on December 17, 2024
I remember the whirlwind of my first month at the Kaufman Interfaith Institute. Suddenly, what felt like minutes after my final interview (though in retrospect it must have been at least a few days later), I found myself helping to organize an interfaith concert and dialogue with two international music groups, each traveling in from different countries and each with riders to fulfill. There I was with my degrees in Religious Studies, my new employee ID, and not a single clue where to begin renting instruments like a doduk or kopuz. We were off to the races – interfaith in action! – and I was still unsure where I should park.
This December marks the end of two and a half semesters that I’ve been at GVSU with Kaufman, and I still have not gotten used to the pace at which a semester flies by. All of a sudden, here I am reflecting upon what we’ve accomplished over the past three and a half months when it feels like yesterday that I was meeting students and handing out swag at Campus Life Night before the first day of classes.
My priority this past semester was the creation of various spaces of deep listening and authentic ‘being’. Even in my short time at the Institute, I have seen that Kaufman’s programming is at its best and truly thrives when it is deeply and authentically rooted in the needs of the community or communities which it hopes to engage – and I could not hope to create spaces of meaningful conversation and exploration on campus without knowing what those needs are. Low stakes meet-and-greet spaces of connection like the Multifaith Mixer saw great success and interest, as did more intimate spaces such as our weekly Listening Spot where students could share about their days – good, bad, or somewhere in between – in a judgment-free zone. The Interfaith Student Council made its debut on campus this semester, as well, and the enthusiasm for interfaith conversations and connections I’ve seen from these students brings me joy and great hope for future student-led initiatives both on campus and out in the wider community.
The desire for meaningful connection is strong; creating spaces and experiences in which those connections can and do flourish is something with which we continue to experiment. Our Winter 2025 campus programming is centered on this goal.
In January, we will be hosting a “Know Your Neighbor” panel discussion and dinner for the GV community, during which several friends of the Kaufman Institute in their 20s and 30s will explore the importance of interfaith friendships and share about their own religious, spiritual, or secular identities and experiences. Utilizing a model that has shown great success in the community, we will encourage attendees to dig deep into their own stories, lean into intentional and vulnerable conversation with others around worldview, and explore the similarities and differences of our lived experiences while breaking bread together.
Our February event comes out of a growing partnership with Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. which led to a great event with Kristin Kobes Du Mez and David Gushee this past March. Next year, three authors – Cait West, Dr. Sara Moslener, and Dawn Burns – will lead us through a conversation on surviving the harmful effects of religious trauma and purity culture by utilizing writing to process and heal. These (im)Pure Michigan authors will shape the spaces by sharing from their works of fiction, memoir, and academic research in two sessions, one on the Allendale Campus intended for Lakers and one in Grand Rapids open to the public. More and more, we have seen the need for trauma-informed spaces within which students are actively supported as they experience the stories of others and delve into their own; the “Writing Religious Wrongs” sessions will do just that.
Finally, in March, we are thrilled to host Syda Segovia Taylor as this year’s Rabbi Phillip Sigal Interfaith Leadership Lecturer. Syda is the founder and executive director of Organic Oneness, a nonprofit organization in Chicago which centers its mission around racial and environmental justice. She is a member of the Bahá’í community and camps her approach to social justice in the Bahá’í writings on the fundamental oneness of humankind. The planning process for the Interfaith Leadership Lecture has already yielded moments of powerful alignment between Syda’s work and that of the Kaufman Interfaith Institute. We look forward to ushering in the Spring season with her!
Next semester will undoubtedly feel like a whirlwind, just like that first month – in many ways, it already does – but I am grateful for this moment to pause, reflect, and find myself in great anticipation about what is to come.
Multifaith Mixer Sept 2024
Liz and the Listening Spot couches
Tabling Event: Letters of Gratitude
Kaufman Campus Intern Chloe at the Letters of Gratitude event
Posted by Liz English on Permanent link for Kaufman On Campus: A Semester in Review, and Looking Forward | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on December 17, 2024.