http://www.fteleaders.org/ en Copyright 2012 2012-01-30T15:45:11+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-preparing-a-strong-graduate-application/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-preparing-a-strong-graduate-application/ This is the first of a series of excerpts from the Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars workshops at the 2009 Annual Meetings of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and Society of Biblical Literature (SBL). In partnership with the AAR, SBL and its regional organizational affiliates, FTE hosts recruitment workshops and conferences that invite promising students of color to consider the pursuit of the Ph.D. or Th.D. in religious, biblical, and theological studies.  Click Here to Watch Video   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2011-11-09T19:56:07+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/beyond-the-borders-of-identity/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/beyond-the-borders-of-identity/ On Saturday, June 4th, FTE doctoral and dissertation fellows attended the panel Scholarship in Dialogue with Diaspora: A Reflective Conversation. Drs. Diakite, Hucks, Braga, Hopkins, and Lartey reflected on experiences with African and African diasporic communities. Among others, the theme of identity played a critical role in the reflections. The thrust of these comments was that theological and religious discourse in both the church and academy must resist the tendency to define Christian identity in terms of a bipolar, exclusionary logic that consecrates a hierarchy in which the Christian is naturally superior to the heathen. As Christian pastors, preachers, and educators, we must begin to think about ways of conceiving our personal, congregational, and denominational identities in ways that admit the ambiguity of distinctive qualities between saved and sinner, church and world, “us” and “them.” Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2011-06-09T12:16:37+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/colonizer-or-co-learner/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/colonizer-or-co-learner/ "Are you traveling to colonize or are you traveling to be a co-learner?" This was the query posed by Dr. Margaret Aymer to FTE fellows at the closing panel discussion at the 2011 Leaders in the Academy Conference. After all, in the pursuit for excellence in scholarship in our fields of theological education, we are on a quest. This quest encompasses, as Dr. Emilie M. Townes proclaimed in celebration of the great legacy of Dr. Sharon Watson Fluker, great oeuvres along the way.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2011-06-07T14:37:51+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/reflections-on-the-samuel-dewitt-proctor-conference/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/reflections-on-the-samuel-dewitt-proctor-conference/ Having the opportunity to attend the 2011 Samuel Dewitt Proctor Conference was a transformative and liberating experience. Within created sacred space, we dialogued and engaged with highly informative, woefully skilled, and intellectually astute pastors, ministry workers, and lay persons whose Christian convictions were to uphold the banner of love, mercy, and justice. The issues of liberation and justice were central to the conference theme. Weight was given to imagine the ways in which this liberation and justice can be experienced in the lives of humans today whose bodily realities vehemently speak towards their need for justice, love, mercy, and liberation. Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2011-02-11T17:47:03+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-new-academic/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-new-academic/ “Academic” is one of those words that reminds us about the importance of context. It can refer either to the scholarly profession or to a trivial enterprise. So when the Society of Biblical Literature’s annual meeting is described as an academic conference, I find myself at a vocational fork in the road.  “Which kind of academic am I going to be?” Never had I felt the weight of this decision more than last May, when I had learned I would present at the November 2010 meeting. With the help of my mentor and 2010 SBL president Vincent L. Wimbush, I came to learn that...   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-12-10T19:28:55+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/demonstrating-dexterity/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/demonstrating-dexterity/ “The Book of Eli” opens with a shot of a rotting corpse lying motionless in the midst of dark, dank woods as an emaciated cat nibbles at its toes. This is the harsh, post-war setting of Denzel Washington’s character, Eli. In this post-apocalyptic tale, the lone Eli travels great distances, endures horrific living conditions, encounters treacherous enemies and demonstrates superhero dexterity as he journeys West with a book. It seems, for Eli, getting this particular book to its appointed destination is a matter of life or death. Some days, I feel like Eli. Like many of my FTE Dissertation Fellow colleagues, it seems I am called upon to demonstrate superhero dexterity with my research topic. Daily, I encounter colleagues that may not always have my well-being in mind, and compared to many of the associates I had prior to beginning my doctoral program... Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-11-22T14:13:12+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/my-experience-at-the-aar-conference/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/my-experience-at-the-aar-conference/ I was able to attend this year’s American Academy of Religion (AAR) meeting in Atlanta, GA, and it was a great opportunity to witness the national and international scope of people invested in the study and practice of various religious traditions.  Not only was I able to reconnect with many of the other FTE Doctoral Fellows as we shared our thoughts and feelings about our immersion in study—I was fortunate to engage former mentors and scholars who had encouraged me to pursue my current doctoral studies.  Extended conversations and meals with professors who I had not seen in years and friends at other academic institutions helped to provide me a sense of the progress we all make in our intellectual journeys, even as many of us are just beginning them. I gained a sense of what AAR is for scholars of religion, and the annual meeting is more than a chance to engage in professional networking.  It was an opportunity to... Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-11-19T13:21:28+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-eight-habits-of-highly-successful-doctoral-fellows/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-eight-habits-of-highly-successful-doctoral-fellows/ How does a doctoral student prepare for and learn to successfully negotiate a doctoral program? During my years of working with highly gifted fellowship recipients here at FTE, I have had the opportunity to both observe and help impart behaviors and practices that set these achievers apart. I’d like to share these eight habits of success with you... Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-10-27T19:07:52+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-doctoral-diversity-deficit-we-have-work-to-do/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-doctoral-diversity-deficit-we-have-work-to-do/ What students are often surprised to find is just how many unwritten rules there are to the “game of the academy.” Through dialogue with graduate students and faculty they come to understand that doing well in a graduate program is not just about being smart, it is about being strategic...   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-09-29T14:33:34+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-job-interview-and-you/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-job-interview-and-you/ We are entering the season of job searches, interviews, and (hopefully) offers.  Here are a few interview tips for the newly and nearly minted academics on the market. First, be as clear as possible about your own career goals: do you want to teach at a seminary? a university or college? aiming for research and writing or administration? So you are invited for an interview.  If you accept, think about the school and the fit first. For instance, is the school in your own religious tradition? Is the school too liberal or too conservative?  After you accept the invitation, realize that an interview is an opportunity for the hiring unit and the candidate (you) to discover whether they can work well together.  So, your preparation for the interview is very important.    Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-08-24T12:00:10+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-search-for-authenticityand-a-job/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-search-for-authenticityand-a-job/ It seems to me that job searches are all about being authentic. The time-consuming preparation of application materials can really be an opportunity for a person to re-examine her/his direction in life. This idea of “vocation” guides my thinking on this matter. To what am I being called to do? The reality is that I have had to revisit that question several times in my life.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-07-06T18:40:29+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-right-question/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-right-question/ “Why are you doing a PhD?” – Drs. Manigault-Bryant and Walton encouraged the first-year students to find the choruses in our praisesongs for the Ph.D. We were in search of, as Dr. Walton succinctly identified, our animating impulse for the next four to ten years. I first said out loud: “I don’t know.” I then gave pieces of the puzzle in an effort to make narrative meaning of my presence. The “I don’t know,” at the moment, felt like enough. Indeed, Dr. Iva Caruthers challenged this year’s group of motley doctoral fellows with a charge: we do not have to know the right answers to the wrong questions, Caruthers contended. Rather, we are able to say “I don’t know” in the face of the right questions. “Why are you doing a PhD?” – a right question. Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-06-29T16:19:30+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/fte-leading-paradigm-shifts-by-interrogating-leadership/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/fte-leading-paradigm-shifts-by-interrogating-leadership/ As it is always on the cutting edge – making space for new scholars, engaging esteemed faculty, and unapologetically re-shaping the space of the religious academy – FTE has once again found an opportunity to point emerging (and beginning) scholars of religion and theology into a critical and apropos dialogical interrogation.  By acquiring a new moniker for the summer gathering of doctoral students and faculty, this fellowship program has simultaneously instigated several questions and challenged the ways that we might have uncritically approached them.  Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-06-14T10:59:59+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/good-christian-leadership/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/good-christian-leadership/ Over the past two days, I have been inspired to reflect on my contribution to the academy, in relation to a gifted and talented group of colleagues, in the context of a significant historical shift. We are African American leaders. What does that mean? What does that mean today amidst the current political climate?   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-06-13T11:19:34+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/what-season-are-we-in/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/what-season-are-we-in/ Live from the 2010 FTE Leaders in the Academy Conference: Theological Education and African American Religious Leadership: New Paradigms, Perspectives, and Paradoxes "What season are we in, and why are we sometimes hesitant to discuss what that season really means?" Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-06-12T15:45:56+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/celebrating-the-journey/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/celebrating-the-journey/ On May 22, 2010, I will be in the Princeton University Chapel, adorned in my commencement regalia, eagerly anticipating the moment when my name will be called and I am welcomed into the company of scholars. As hard as I will try to maintain my cool...   FTE "On Call" Blog, Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2010-05-20T13:33:16+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/teaching-religion-and-theology-in-a-context-of-violence-and-conflict/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/teaching-religion-and-theology-in-a-context-of-violence-and-conflict/ This is a podcast of a lecture delivered by Dr. Marcia Y. Riggs at the opening dinner of the 2007 FTE Doctoral Conference. Dr. Riggs is the J. Erskine Love Professor of Christian Ethics at Columbia Theological Seminary.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-10-19T15:25:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/25-things-you-should-know-before-applying-to-a-ph.d.-program-in-religi/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/25-things-you-should-know-before-applying-to-a-ph.d.-program-in-religi/ 25 Things You Should Consider Before Applying to a Ph.D. Program… Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-10-05T14:31:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/ask-dr.-sharon-funding-for-the-ph.d.-part-1/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/ask-dr.-sharon-funding-for-the-ph.d.-part-1/ Getting into a doctoral program is one thing but having the resources to complete the degree is sometimes quite another… Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-09-28T14:12:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/remind-me-why-did-i-want-to-do-this-again/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/remind-me-why-did-i-want-to-do-this-again/ This morning I arose hoping for a refreshing moment and by noon that moment found me. I was grading students' quizzes from my morning Greek course, when I received an email announcing a new post on Dr. Emilie Townes' blog, One Black Woman Thinking Theologically. It was not, however, her new blog entry that caught my attention. It was an earlier post titled, "Collegial Scholarship," which drew my gaze… FTE "On Call" Blog, Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-09-21T14:05:07+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-south-african-athlete-and-intersexuality-what-does-biblical-studies-/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-south-african-athlete-and-intersexuality-what-does-biblical-studies-/ In recent weeks the global public has been witness to a discussion of human sexuality, specifically with regard to gender identification because of questions raised about the biological sex of South African track star, Castor Semenya. Ms. Semenya’s biological sex has been questioned because of what some have deemed her supposed masculine appearance and her dominance in her sport of choice, in spite of her birth certificate that categorizes her as female.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-09-14T13:54:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-timeline-for-applying-to-graduate-school-ph.d-th.d/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-timeline-for-applying-to-graduate-school-ph.d-th.d/ While this is an approximate outline, it offers the key steps in applying to a graduate program.  You should start planning the summer before your final year in college/master’s programs or at least a year before you wish to start graduate school.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-09-07T13:39:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-success-as-a-graduate-student/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-success-as-a-graduate-student/ These 14 insightful tips for success are lessons from the experiences of graduate students who learned how to navigate both the political and technical aspects of the Ph.D. journey. Dr. Marbury presented these suggestions to first year Ph.D. students at t he 2009 FTE Doctoral Conference in Nashville, TN. A podcast of the session will be coming soon on our ITunes podcast channel, FTE Calling Cast.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-08-31T13:16:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-reflection-on-the-importance-of-diversity-in-the-academy/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/a-reflection-on-the-importance-of-diversity-in-the-academy/ An excerpt from an interview FTE recently conducted with Dr. Emilie M. Townes, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of African American Religion and Theology at Yale Divinity School   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-08-26T12:52:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/facing-the-reality-considering-the-job-market-while-pursuing-the-ph.d/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/facing-the-reality-considering-the-job-market-while-pursuing-the-ph.d/ It's no secret that the job market in the humanities is an extremely competitive one. With the number of newly minted PhDs coming out of graduate institutions each year significantly exceeding the number of faculty positions available nationwide, "competitive" is probably an understatement.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-08-24T20:28:55+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-300-a.m.-wake-up-call/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/the-300-a.m.-wake-up-call/ "What gets you up at 3:00 in the morning?" I pose this question to students who approach me with an interest in doctoral work in religion.   FTE "On Call" Blog, Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-08-12T14:39:48+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/race-gender-and-graduate-school/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/race-gender-and-graduate-school/ This article reports on a 1997 study that indicates that race and gender are significant factors in determining the quality of graduate school experiences. African-American students reported that mentoring, advising, and departmental environment were their most important concerns with regard to the quality of their graduate school experience. Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-07-24T20:18:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/surviving-and-thriving-in-the-biblical-academy/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/surviving-and-thriving-in-the-biblical-academy/ There are some stories that I simply cannot share in public. Of those that I can, highlights include having senior white faculty whom I read as a student and taught as a professor come up to me after my first SBL paper, invite me to apply for a job, send me a book to review and bring me in for a prestigious endowed lecture. Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-07-23T20:08:15+00:00 http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-writing-the-personal-statement/ http://www.fteleaders.org/blog/entry/tips-for-writing-the-personal-statement/ The Personal Statement plays an extremely important role in the admissions decision. The majority of applicants to any Ph.D. program are generally qualified to enter a doctoral program, but not all of these students can be admitted.   Nurturing the Next Generation of Scholars 2009-07-23T16:16:04+00:00