Religious Studies Professor to Explore Her Artistic Side as a KBS Artist-in-Residence

Blaire Morseau started doing beadwork 20 years ago, first learning how to create on a loom and then teaching herself beaded embroidery. Her beaded creations even helped pay her rent when she was a graduate student at the University of New Mexico. Morseau is now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Michigan State University and an 1855 Professor of Great Lakes Anishinaabe Knowledge, Spiritualities, and Cultural Practices at MSU.

Continue ReadingReligious Studies Professor to Explore Her Artistic Side as a KBS Artist-in-Residence

First MSU Faculty and Alum Selected for Artists-in-Residence Program at W.K. Kellogg Biological Station

Michigan State University’s College of Arts & Letters will be well represented this year among the Farmscapes to Forests: Kellogg Biological Station Long-Term Ecological Research Artists-in-Residence Program. The 2025 artists-in-residence will include an assistant professor, post-doctoral research associate, and recent graduate, all from MSU's College of Arts & Letters. They will be joined by an artist from New York to…

Continue ReadingFirst MSU Faculty and Alum Selected for Artists-in-Residence Program at W.K. Kellogg Biological Station

First Cohort of Students Graduate from M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership, Global Cultures, and Social Enterprise Program

The first cohort of M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership, Global Cultures, and Social Enterprise students graduated this month from Michigan State University. Launched in Fall 2023, the M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership, Global Cultures, and Social Enterprise is a result of several years of discussions among faculty in the Department of Religious Studies who recognized the growing need to provide graduate students with…

Continue ReadingFirst Cohort of Students Graduate from M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership, Global Cultures, and Social Enterprise Program

Lecture Series Showcases Strong Connection Between Religious Studies and MSU Libraries’ Special Collections

Religious Studies faculty will discuss how the MSU Libraries' Special Collections informs their teaching and research as part of the Collecting Religion Lecture Series offered this semester. Hosted by MSU Libraries and organized in collaboration with the Department of Religious Studies, the series will highlight how rare and historical primary sources bring Religious Studies to life. The series kicks off…

Continue ReadingLecture Series Showcases Strong Connection Between Religious Studies and MSU Libraries’ Special Collections

Religious Studies Alum Awarded Prestigious International Fellowship

Mustafa Syed, a Michigan State University alum who graduated in Summer 2024 with a B.A. in Religious Studies, has been named a Schwarzman Scholar and will join an elite group of future global leaders selected from around the world for this prestigious graduate fellowship program. He is MSU’s second Schwarzman Scholar in the 10-year history of the award.

Continue ReadingReligious Studies Alum Awarded Prestigious International Fellowship

Tracing the Roots of Indigenous Science Fiction and Futurisms in America

A photo of a Star Wars stormtrooper that hangs in Blaire Morseau’s home epitomizes both her childhood passions and current research pursuits. The photo appears in a frame with a unique Southwest design, a favorite find bought from a Native artist when Morseau was a graduate student at the University of New Mexico. Now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Michigan State University and an inaugural 1855 Professor of Great Lakes Anisshinaabe Knowledge, Spiritualities, and Cultural Practices...

Continue ReadingTracing the Roots of Indigenous Science Fiction and Futurisms in America

College Welcomes 41 New Faculty and Staff Members

This year the College of Arts & Letters welcomes 41 new faculty and staff members. These faculty and staff members were recognized during the College of Arts & Letters’ 2024 Faculty and Staff Welcome Reception on Sept. 30 at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center.

Continue ReadingCollege Welcomes 41 New Faculty and Staff Members

Professor Follows in Father’s Footsteps by Receiving William J. Beal Outstanding Faculty Award

In recognition of his scholarly excellence, instruction, and extensive outreach, Mohammad Hassan Khalil, Professor of Religious Studies, Adjunct Professor of Law, and Director of the Muslim Studies Program at Michigan State University, recently was awarded the William J. Beal Outstanding Faculty Award. And remarkably, he is the second person in his family to receive this prestigious honor. “My father was…

Continue ReadingProfessor Follows in Father’s Footsteps by Receiving William J. Beal Outstanding Faculty Award

Religious Studies Students Honored for Outstanding Achievements

The Department of Religious Studies at Michigan State University recently held its 2024 Undergraduate Symposium and Awards Presentation, which shined a spotlight on undergraduate research and the outstanding achievements of its students. Six of those students – Hady Omar, Shawn Sandhu, Noah Sanker, Kaitlyn Sears, Moaid Shaik, and Mustafa Syed – presented their Religious Studies research during the event, which took place April 5. 

Continue ReadingReligious Studies Students Honored for Outstanding Achievements

Ask the Expert: How Is Spirituality Expanding Beyond Religion?

Spirituality is declining in the United States if you focus on religious affiliation, but that isn’t the whole story according to Morgan Shipley, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Michigan State University. A recent Pew Research Center survey reports that 28% of U.S. adults say they are religiously unaffiliated. By digging a little deeper, Shipley finds the religiously unaffiliated, sometimes…

Continue ReadingAsk the Expert: How Is Spirituality Expanding Beyond Religion?