The Value of Religious Studies in an Age of Budget Cuts

Pressure on humanistic disciplines like religious studies is enormous in the modern academy. From budget cuts and threats of downsizing, the professionalization of students and the instrumentalization of higher ed, to the adjunctification of faculties and STEM orientations that demand ever-increasing career-oriented outcomes for graduates, religious studies departments are no longer self-justifying in many colleges and universities. This Special Topic Forum, recorded at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Religion, explores how religious studies departments have been and can be successful in defending their programs in the face of budget cuts or other pressures, and thus how we articulate the "value" of the study of religion to administrators and boards, to the broader academy, to funding sources like donors and legislatures, and to the public at large. Panelists, from community colleges, and private and public institutions, will share their experiences of navigating funding crises and share strategies for how to articulate the many "values" of the study of religion. Panelists: Susan E. Hill, University of Northern Iowa Charles A. Kimball, University of Oklahoma Vasudha Narayanan, University of Florida Grant H. Potts, Austin Community College Erik Owens, Boston College, Presiding