5 Questions With DU’s New Director of Spiritual Life

Sarah Pessin is no stranger to the study of spirituality—she is a professor of philosophy and Jewish thought, after all.

But the practice of spirituality is what she’ll be taking on in her new role as director of spiritual life at the University of Denver, helping students get in touch with their spiritual sides and running faith-based initiatives.

The DU Newsroom caught up with Pessin to learn about how spirituality factors into university life.

What does your role as the director of spiritual life entail?

Located within Student Affairs and Inclusive Excellence and connected to the work of the 4D Experience, part of my new role is to support students in their pursuit of spiritual wellness broadly defined—including meaning-making in relation to lives and careers of purpose, existential and ethical explorations, spiritual and religious identities, and interfaith opportunities.

I see my role as working with a wide range of students—undergraduates and graduates—

as well as partnering with multiple campus and community partners. I’ll help run some new initiatives, such as a Spiritual Supper Club, Spiritual Storytelling, a “Holiday Hellos” project and more! And we are of course also continuing to mold the position as we learn more about how to best support students.

What part do you believe spirituality plays in higher education?

Especially broadly defined to include a wide range of human relationships to self, world, neighbor and beyond, spirituality is a deep part of so many of our experiences—from music to meditation, from hiking to holidays and from poetry to prayer. So, it becomes helpful, I think, to give students and other community members at DU more opportunities to reflect on and live into whatever spirituality means to them.

It’s okay if not everyone resonates with the idea of spirituality, but again, especially when we leave room for people to define it in ways that make sense to them, it becomes an aspect of higher education well worth exploring more.  

What’s the biggest misconception about interfaith studies?

Interfaith work is often thought of solely as an invitation to break bread with and befriend new people. And while I of course love that—and have done and will continue to do a lot along those lines—sometimes interfaith work is about learning to feel protective of neighbors’ ability to practice different spiritual and religious views and values, even when that makes us somewhat uncomfortable. It’s an invitation to learn to hope with and for neighbors from a wide range of backgrounds—and sometimes that can feel uplifting and sometimes that can come with a great deal of awkward complexity. And interfaith studies is about learning to engage in both of these ways.

Is part of your role mentoring students?

The new role is part-time, so I still work with students in a mentoring role all the time. I teach courses for both graduate and undergraduate students, I have advised a number of student dissertations in the Joint Doctoral Program in the Study of Religions between DU and the Iliff School of Theology, and last year I worked closely with the Undergraduate Student Government president during my time as American Council on Education Fellow.

Being able to work with and learn from students in a wide range of curricular contexts helps me in my research, my teaching and my new role because it helps me think more expansively across a wide range of curricular and co-curricular opportunities. Whether it’s my courses on coexistence and philosophy of religion, or my new course on interfaith civics, working closely with students remains a key source of motivation and inspiration to me.

What’s the best part about working at DU?

The people. I have really enjoyed collaborating with such a wide range of campus partners on projects over the years; it makes me feel that there are still infinite possibilities ahead.

For more information on spiritual life at DU, visit the organization’s website at https://studentaffairs.du.edu/spiritual-life.