The Pluralism Project at Harvard University

Senior Staff

Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Sciences
Director, The Pluralism Project

Bio

Full-size Photo

Articles and Talks

Curriculum Vitae [PDF]

Research Director

Elinor began working for the Pluralism Project as a student field researcher in San Francisco; she was a section editor for the CD-ROM On Common Ground: World Religions in America and co-editor of World Religions in Boston: A Guide to Communities and Resources. She has been involved in "Religious Diversity News" since its inception in 1997. She developed the Women's Networks Initiative, and was a content advisor for Acting on Faith: Women's New Religious Activism in America. Elinor co-produced and co-directed the documentary film Fremont, U.S.A., together with Rachel Antell. She completed her B.A. in anthropology and international studies, with a core in religious studies, from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota (1988); she earned her Master of Theological Studies degree from the Harvard Divinity School (1996). Elinor currently leads the case study initiative.

Assistant Director

Kathryn began her work with the Pluralism Project as a student researcher on the Women's Networks initiative in 2000. Her own research for the Project has been focused on women's interfaith organizing, which formed the basis for our 2007 Radcliffe Seminar on "Women's Interfaith Initiatives After 9/11." As assistant director, Kathryn manages student research, runs our summer internship program, provides administrative and financial oversight, and participates in a number of local and national initiatives, conferences, and events on behalf of the Project. Kathryn received her B.A. in psychology, religion, and women's studies from St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota (1999) and her Master of Divinity degree from Harvard Divinity School (2003). She is currently serving on the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches.

Research Coordinator

Erin recently graduated from Harvard Divinity School with a Master of Theological Studies degree where she primarily focused on the intersection of religious experience, art, and visual culture. Originally from Los Angeles, she received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley with a double major in English and Art History. Erin has been working with the Pluralism Project for two years on various projects including Religious Diversity News and profiling organizations that work at the intersection of arts and activism. She is especially interested in how visual art, song, and dance help to create religious and cultural identity in contemporary faith communities. She will continue these projects moving forward, as well as coordinating Project research.

Web Assistant

Ryan is a doctoral student in the Committee on the Study of Religion at Harvard. He graduated from Brown University in 2001 with an A.B. in Greek & Sanskrit and Religious Studies. He is currently working on a dissertation on The Great Dharma-Lamp Dhāraṇī Scripture, a sixth-century Chinese Buddhist spell. In addition to content updating for the Pluralism Project site, Ryan is assisting with a major redesign involving XHTML/CSS and PHP/MySQL.

Current Research Associates

Senior Research Associate

Kimberly received her Master of Theological Studies degree from Harvard Divinity School in 2009 and her BA in religious studies and political science from Connecticut College in 2007. She is currently working toward her JD at Boston College Law School. Kimberly is interested in the intersection of religion, law, and politics, with a particular focus on the civil rights of religious minority groups. As a senior research associate at the Project, she works primarily on Religious Diversity News.

Research Associate

Kate received her BA from Connecticut College in 2008 with a double major in Religious Studies and English. She is currently a Master of Theological Studies student at Harvard Divinity School, focusing on Religion, Ethics and Politics. Kate's interests lie in the intersection of religion and culture, particularly as related to issues of religious accommodation, religion and the media, and sacred space. At the Pluralism Project, Kate will be responsible for staff email, editing Religious Diversity News, and providing support for our women's networks initiative.

Research Associate

Sabrina received her BA in social anthropology from Harvard College in 2009. Her interests lie in interfaith dialogue and education as well as the integration of religions and cultures into US society. At the Pluralism Project, Sabrina will be responsible for updating the website and assisting with the redesign of the World Religions in Boston site interface.

Intern

Margaret Clendenen is a rising senior at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, where she is double majoring in Sociology and Religious Studies.

Intern

Jonathan is a rising senior at Harvard College, where he concentrates in the Comparative Study of Religion with a focus on the Modern West. Originally from Knoxville, Tennessee, he has done anthropological work on mosque controversies in Greece and Boston, and is particularly interested in how American religious groups use entertainment and popular media to promote their messages.

Intern

Josh is currently pursuing a Master of Theological Studies at Harvard Divinity School, where he is focusing on comparative theology to learn across religious boundaries while remaining faithful to his home tradition of Christianity. Originally from Las Vegas, he received a B.A. in Philosophy, with minors in Communication Studies and English, from Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA. During his first year at Harvard, Josh researched the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization, Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries, and the Boston branch of Soka Gakkai International. He plans to write a thesis comparing Sufi practices in Tehran, Iran, with the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises.

Intern

Claire is a rising senior at Wellesley College, where she is a double major in Sociology and Religion, with a concentration in Buddhist Studies.

Intern

Sohini is a rising sophomore at Wellesley College where she is planning on double majoring in South Asia Studies and Theater Studies. As a South Asia Studies major, Sohini plans to focus on studying religious conflict and religious pluralism in South Asia.

Intern

Abhishek is a recent graduate from Clark University, where he earned a degree in Sociology and Government & International Relations. While at Clark his senior independent study was titled, "Religious nationalism as a tool for identity formation in India: Deconstructing pluralism and demonizing 'the other'" which was based on an ethnography of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS). His current academic interests include religion and youth, the intersection between religion and politics in South Asia, and inter-religious dialogue.

Intern

Jason Smith is a recent graduate from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, where he double majored in Religion and Philosophy and received a Concentration in Linguistic Studies. He is particularly interested in Roman Catholic Theology and the Church's post-Vatican II approach to interreligious dialogue. His senior project was entitled "Contemporary Catholic Theology: An Analysis of Inclusivism and Interreligious Dialogue." His current interests include the study of Christian and Jewish communities in Boston and engagement in interreligious dialogue.

Intern

Megan is a rising senior at Tufts University majoring in Religion with a concentration in Women and Religion. She is also earning minors in Drama and Africa in the New World.

Intern

Julia is a rising senior at Harvard College, concentrating in the Comparative Study of Religion with a focus on Buddhism and Christianity. A native of Waltham, MA, she is interested in studying these traditions in the American context. She hopes to consider the intersection of religion and American public life for her thesis in the fall.

Intern

Kamille is a rising senior at Harvard College, where she is seeking a B.A. in the Comparative Study of Religion. Within the Comparative Study of Religion, she is primarily focused on the intersection between Islam and the West. Kamille is particularly interested in the way that identities engage and interact to forge new identities within religious as well as cultural contexts. A Memphis native, Kamille spends much of her time during that academic year working with Earthen Vessels, a Catholic non-profit organization based in Cambridge. She also works with the Harvard Model United Nations conferences for college and high school students.