|
Unsung Heras and Hero
As director, it is often my privilege to sign a letter of welcome to new staff like those who have entered our ranks in recent months, Sarah Whedon as chair of TRH, Bob Patrick as chair of MAL, David Oringderff as chair of Pastoral Counseling, Scott Martin as Librarian and Candace Kant as Dean of students. Without these valuable and talented scholars, we would be unable to tout CHS as the "leading provider of education and practical training in leadership, ministry, and personal growth in Pagan and Nature-Based spiritualities," per our newly-updated mission statement.
But it's equally, indeed, vitally important to recognize those who have worked with us year after year. Two important anniversaries passed in the spring without notice, so I'm devoting this column to the praises of two of my personal heras.
Keri Alley of Bangor, Maine, came to us in April 2010 as Administrative Assistant. Staying  on top of such foundational work for any organization requires a special sort of person, but Keri does this from more than a thousand miles from me. As a single mother of three and leader in her Pagan community, one would think Keri has her hands full. But in 2011 she eagerly volunteered for the job of Social Networking Coordinator and has considerably livened our FaceBook page, reaching thousands of new people. Keri sends out faculty and staff personnel packages, ensures that our important documents are all installed on a server-based filing system, orders your student IDs and much more. Thank you, Goddess Keri!
Selina Rifkin, Executive Assistant to the Director, is the longest-serving staff member. Selina and I  both began working as staff about the same time at the beginning of 2008. She originally signed on as our Moodle and web tech, but soon showed that her talents were far broader. Selina has organized and coordinated summer intensives, written a curriculum for inmates (still in testing phase), and assisted me with tasks, thinking and decisions too numerous to list here, along with having complete responsibility for the Moodle classroom, our listserves, faculty emails, and such. Thank you, Goddess Selina!
And one more person has been with us since early 2008, Scott Mohnkern, Wizard of All Thin gs Technical, an absolutely es sential role in a school which is all distance education all of the time. And yes, Scott, you are a God! Thank you!
- Holli Emore, Executive Director
|
|
Important Dates
For Students
Sep 10 - Fall classes begin
Sep 17 - Drop/Add deadline
Oct 7 - Foundations 1 classes end
Oct 8 - Foundations 2 classes begin Nov 4 - Foundations 2 classes end
Nov 5 - Foundations 3 classes begin
Nov 12 - Spring registration begins
Dec 2 - Foundations 3 classes end
Dec 16 - Fall classes end
Full calendar
For Faculty
Sep 14 - Spring course proposals due to dept. chair
Oct 21 - Foundations 1 grades due to office
Nov 18 - Foundations 2 grades due to office
Dec 16 - Foundations 3 grades due to office
Dec 30 - Grades due to office by instructors
|
|
Save This Date!
Late-breaking news:
Cherry Hill Seminary is very excited
to be hosting world-renowned historian Ronald Hutton, in a collaboration with the University of South Carolina, for a two-day conference next April 12-13, 2013. Details to come, meanwhile make your plans to be in Columbia, S.C., during its most beautiful time of the year on a beautiful Jefferson-style historic campus.
|
|
|
Welcome to new Chair Sarah Whedon
 Sarah Whedon, Ph.D., on September 1 assumed the duties of Chair of the Department of Theology & Religious History. Many of you will know Sarah from the classroom as she has taught for CHS for several years. Passing the baton for this important position is Christine H. Kraemer, Ph.D., whose shoes are large ones to fill. Get to know Sarah better by reading our recent interview with her.
Please share a little about your spiritual path.
Like many Pagans, I've traveled a winding path. As a teen I found Witchcraft on the shelves of my local public library. Eventually I found my way to Reclaiming and served as a teacher and priestess in my local communities. From there I became a student in the Anderson Feri Tradition and Morningstar Mystery School. In the past few years I've largely stepped back from identifying with traditions and working in groups both public and private, though I still treasure all I've gained from those associations. I trust this path will present more twists and turns before it's through.
What else do you do when not teaching for CHS?
I'm passionate about health, justice, and spirituality in reproduction. I'm founding editor of Pagan Families, a site that explores all facets of the childbearing year for Pagans, and I recently published my pregnancy book, Birth on the Labyrinth Path, with Patheos Press. I also volunteer with the Bay Area Doula Project and ACCESS Women's Health Justice. But what takes up most of my time and energy is mothering my two little girls, one who's about to be three years old and one who's about to be three months old.
What will you bring to your position as department chair and what do you hope to accomplish?
I earned a Ph.D. in Religious Studies with an emphasis in Women's Studies. I've taught at small liberal arts colleges as well as huge universities, so I know a thing or two about what makes for excellence in an academic institution. I also care deeply about the mission of Cherry Hill Seminary and have really enjoyed getting to know my students at CHS. I hope the CHS community will always feel that my virtual office door is open.
Congratulations, Sarah, and thank you for your gift of service to Cherry Hill Seminary!
|
|
Foundations (4-week sessions)
Session One September 10 through October 7:
Pagan Elders and Ancients: Maxine Sanders - Daryl Morazzini
Basic Shamanism: The Self - Valentine McKay-Riddell
Session Two October 8 through November 4:
Synchronicity and Divination - Angela Farmer
Basic Shamanism: Communication with Others - Valentine McKay-Riddle
Death & Dying: A Pagan Overview - Jennifer Bennett
Session Three November 5 through December 2:
Composing Effective Eulogies and Obituaries - Macha NightMare
Pagan Spiritual Autobiography - Daryl Morazzini
Basic Shamanism: Community Service - Valentine McKay-Riddell
Pagan Community Education (full semester)
Vivianne Crowley
Master's (full semester)
|
 Fall Parties Will Benefit Scholarship Fund
For those who heard about the Hypatia Society drive in the spring but just couldn't throw a house party then - fall party season is around the corner and contributions made during that drive will be put in a new scholarship fund. What's not to like?
|
Fall Festival-Goers: CHS Flyers Online
|
|
From Our CHS Librarian
 Thank you, Scott Martin, for writing a valuable document for our students and faculty about ways to locate academic literature!
Access this free resource here.
To our students and faculty - when looking for materials, you can always check our main web site under About, For Students, or For Faculty - Materials.
|
|
|
