Chaplaincy Fellows

Chaplaincy Fellows

College can be a time of intensive and extensive spiritual growth and exploration. The Chaplain’s Office endeavors to support the healthy development of students’ religious and spiritual lives in this tumultuous time. Many important parts of this journey happen with one’s peers; accordingly, we hope to empower a core group of students throughout the residential college system who can help engender an ethos of reflection, nonjudgmental conversation, and respectful curiosity of divergent worldviews. With the guidance of the staff of the Chaplain’s Office, Chaplaincy Fellows will be empowered to facilitate conversations rooted in life’s big questions around meaning, purpose, authentic success, and happiness. We seek students who are comfortable working with a wide spectrum of people, including those who have deeply held religious beliefs, atheists and agnostics, seekers, and everyone in between. Applications are open only to sophomores and juniors.

Essential characteristics of students in the Chaplaincy Fellowship are maturity; curiosity about different religious traditions, spiritual practices, and beliefs; ability to commit to a year-long program; a tendency to listen more than speak; precocious wisdom; and a balance of humility and charisma. Students should be prepared to lead challenging conversations that include conflicting worldviews, moral convictions, and religious practices, as well as discuss questions that have no definitive answers.

Training will be held during the 2024 spring semester and will include an all-expense paid alternative spring break trip to Washington, DC from March 9-15, 2024.  Activities planned for the trip include daily service projects, visits to various sacred sites with diverse religious communities, and cultural attractions. We will depart at noon on Saturday, March 9 and leave from Washington, DC back to campus on Friday, March 15 in the afternoon.

This spring break enrichment experience is required for all fellows and exceptions will not be made.

Responsibility: Starting the fall semester of 2024, Fellows will plan two events per semester within each college geared toward the class of 2027.  The events will be inspired by the chaplaincy’s principles of hospitality, reflection, and interfaith engagement.  Fellows will host meaningful conversations on the big questions of purpose and meaning in life, guide reflective journal writing, and lead other creative, informal activities.