Ripon scholars present at religion conference

On March 3 and 4, three students, an alumna and Professor of Religion Brian Smith attended the annual Midwest American Academy of Religion (MAAR) meeting in Muncie, Indiana. This is the regional section of the national American Academy of Religion, the professional association of Religious Studies scholars in the United States.

There were more than 100 participants from more than a dozen colleges and universities in the Midwest. Graduate, undergraduate students and professors presented papers, including:

• Noah DeBruyn ’17 of Green Bay, Wisconsin, presented “Faith and Healing: Incorporating Religion and Spirituality into Psychotherapy.” She is a psychology major with a religion minor.
• Holly Erickson ’18 of Union Grove, Wisconsin, presented ), “Preserving Humanity in an Inhuman System: An Examination of Survival Strategies of Holocaust Survivors.” She is a McNair Scholar with a major in history and a minor in anthropology.
• Ricardo Jaimes ’17 of Marinette, Wisconsin, presented “Contemporary Efforts for Environmental Sustainability within Christianity.” He has majors in environmental studies and religion majors.
• Hope Bell ’15 of St. Cloud, Minnesota, presented “From Savior to Hero: The Hollywoodization of Harry Potter.” She earned a degree in global studies.
• Smith presented the paper “The Decline of Political Empathy and the Role of Religion in the 2016 Election.”

All the students presented on panels that included professors and/or graduate students, and all their papers were well-received and discussed seriously during interactions with panel audiences.