In the warm late afternoon foothill breeze of the summer evening, you are invited to bring a blanket or folding chair and hear from scholars as they share a bit about their doctoral research and studies.

Our speaker this evening is Najeeb Syeed. As a scholar, she co-designed a doctoral program in Interreligious Education and is directing dissertations on topics including resilience in interreligious learning, decolonial models for interreligious programs, Christian-Buddhist peacemaking in Southeast Asia, Black Muslim community practical theologies of community development, interfaith activism models on mass incarceration. She has designed and taught a dozen graduate courses in interreligious education such as: Comparative Theologies and Pedagogies of Restorative Justice. Islam, Women and Social Movements. Urban Education. Peace Education. Interfaith Leadership and Dialogue. Pedagogies of Interreligious Education. Indigenous/Hybrid Religious Communities’ Activism. African American Islams. Transformational Muslim Leadership Models, Managing and Developing the Interreligious Non Profit. Negotiation and Mediation. She was awarded the Fisher Faculty Teaching Award in 2014 for her excellence in teaching. In 2017 she received the Scholar-Activist Award from Auburn Seminary, and in 2020 received instructor of the year award. She has worked with other universities to develop interfaith education models. For example, she co-designed and co-taught the first interreligious education course offered by Chicago Theological Seminary with Susan Thistlethwaite and Rachel Mikva.

Please bring a picnic dinner and enjoy some light refreshments, music, and the captivating thoughts of three wonderful speakers….and, don’t forget to invite your friends.