From the Dean of Students

Candace Kant

Being Dean of Students is challenging, interesting, exciting, and rewarding all at once. When prospective students first hear about Cherry Hill Seminary, the Dean of Students is the one they approach with questions. From day to day, I never know what those questions are going to be, but I always learn something in the process of responding.

Over time, I have noticed that there is a pattern to the inquiries. The most commonly asked question goes something like this, "I heard about you from a friend. Can you tell me more about Cherry Hill Seminary?" This question is the most fun to answer because it means that I can introduce someone to possibly a life-changing experience. I direct the person to our website, then ask her or him to take a look at our catalog, which we have devoted years to developing, anticipating questions and amending or adding material as questions change or situations evolve. I invite the questioner to come back to me as I know that she or he will have more questions after looking at the catalog.

Another frequently asked question has to do with our mode of delivery. Students wonder if we have any classes online. I am very happy to tell them that yes, indeed, all of our classes are online. Many students live in remote areas or are not in a position to uproot and move to a physical campus. Our online classes make Cherry Hill Seminary very accessible as well as environmentally-friendly.

There appears to be a high degree of interest in becoming a Pagan military chaplain, so I get many questions about that. As of yet, there are no Pagan chaplains in the military - so someone is going to be the first one. I remind the questioner that a military chaplain serves all faiths. I then suggest that the M.Div. is the best program for someone who is interested in this area, as we have patterned our program after those at Christian seminaries that have been accepted by the Department of Defense.

As of 2009, the U.S. Department of Defense approves chaplains of "new" denominations solely on the basis of complete packages. This means that candidates need to personally present themselves qualified, with education from an acceptable school and with ordination or other endorsement from an acceptable ecclesiastical body. Because no Pagan seminary and no Pagan endorsing body has thus far been accepted, we won't find out whether the Department of Defense accepts our degree as appropriate until a candidate comes forward who meets all of the other criteria and is eligible to be reviewed. One of the challenges in this area is accreditation, which leads me to the third most frequently asked question.

I caution prospective students that Cherry Hill Seminary is not yet accredited, but that we are working towards that goal. Accreditation is a very expensive process involving such things as a physical office, salaried key staff and chairs, and a hefty application fee. I am confident in communicating to the inquirer that the education provided by Cherry Hill Seminary is of the highest academic standards, and a student who completes our classes and programs can be assured that her or his education is second to none in our field.

The inquiries I receive from prospective students show the breadth and depth of our Pagan community. I am truly honored to be able to serve our community as CHS Dean of Students.

Important Dates

For Students

Dec 1 Insights 3 classes end

Dec 15 Fall classes end

Full calendar

For Faculty

Nov 17 Insights 2 grades due

Dec 15 Insights 3 grades due

Faculty Spotlight: David Oringderff

Thank you and congratulations Dr. David Oringderff, Chair of the Department of Pastoral Counseling and Chaplaincy, for ten years of service to Cherry Hill Seminary!

David is the co-founder of the Sacred Well Congregation and a veteran of over twenty-seven years in military and civilian law enforcement and intelligence work. In addition, he is a Subject Matter Expert consultant to the department of Defense Armed Forces Chaplains Board on Alternative Religions, Sects, and Cults, and he has recently published Cults and Criminals.

David began teaching at CHS in 2003 at the invitation of Judy Harrow, who was then Chair of the Department of Pastoral Counseling. Since then, he has taught a variety of courses in the program, including Personality Theories, Survey of Counseling Theories, Survey of Psychological Assessment, and Pagan Pastoral Counseling. Developing and teaching the Pastoral Counseling and Chaplaincy Program's Pagan Apologetics course with Don Larson in Spring 2012 stands out as one of his most interesting and fun teaching experiences.

David has served as Chair of the Department of Pastoral Counseling and Chaplaincy since January 2012, but it is his work as a teacher of which he is most proud. "Teaching is my passion. I accomplished a lot as chair, but that's administrative. . . . I really enjoy teaching." His favorite memories of working at CHS involve his teaching. "I enjoy every class I've taught, from the classes with a number of students to the independent study that I've done for a couple of the students. It's just been a very nice and rewarding experience."

Sandra Harris, M.Div., Pagan Pastoral Counseling

Reflecting on the impact of his teaching at CHS and on the students with whom he has worked, the student who stands out the most for him is Sandra Harris, for whom he served as both instructor and thesis committee chair. "I taught her first course years ago and helped her through, and she was actually our first M.Div. graduate. And so I sort of take special interest in her." David cites Sandra's work as one of the biggest milestones in his experience at Cherry Hill Seminary. "Her thesis was based on . . . show[ing] that a degree from Cherry Hill Seminary was equivalent in content and validity as a degree from an accredited seminary. . . . She took that thesis and [applied to be a board certified chaplain], and part of that process is that there's a committee that reviews the educational requirements of applicants. . . . She got the education checked off based on her Cherry Hill degree, and her thesis demonstrated that. So that sort of shows we're in the greater academic community, that we have attained this recognition, which will help us as we move on toward formal accreditation."

Looking to the future of CHS, David stresses that he is most anticipating accreditation. "Because I work a lot with the military, and we've got a lot of fine young military people who want to become military chaplains, and of course, it's a very rigid procedure to be accepted as a chaplain in the military. The biggest hurdle is the educational requirement. And so they're stuck. They have to go to a traditional seminary, or they have to go to a traditional seminary; there's just no alternative. Yet. Until we reach that point."

David highlights the impact of his participation in the CHS community. "Personal growth, getting to know the students, getting to know the staff, making friendships, having exchanges and dialogues with staff and students. Those contribute a lot to my personal growth, as well." Reflecting on his ten years of service, he shares, "It's just been a wonderful and rewarding experience for me and hopefully I've been able to help our students and the institution over the years."

Cherry Hill Seminary congratulates Dr. David Oringderff--thank you for ten years of service to the CHS community!

Samhain to Yule Scholarship Drive!

Cherry Hill Seminary encourages you to Tie A Bow on 2013 by contributing to our Fall Scholarship Drive.

We have had an exciting year at CHS--partnering with the University of South Carolina for a Spring Symposium featuring Ronald Hutton, developing Insights courses, launching the Pagan Life Academy, developing Rhizomes cluster courses for small groups--but we couldn't do any of this without your support.

Now, as we look ahead to 2014, we hope you will help us as we seek to fund January scholarships for deserving CHS students. Our goal is to raise $5,000 between Samhain and Yule (from October 31 to December 21).

What can $5,000 do? It can fund tuition for one semester for two master's degree students, two certificate students, and ten Insights students, while also providing a full Pagan Life Academy set for two prisons!

Please take this opportunity to give or pledge now.

In the Library

Christine Grewcock CHS Librarian

Digital Commons Network was launched about a year ago to provide free access to full-text works from academic institutions. There are currently over 801,000 works from 306 institutions.

The interface is very visual with a multi-colored wheel in which each color represents one of ten disciplines. As you move out from the center of the wheel, you can explore sub-disciplines within disciplines and subjects within sub-disciplines. When you click a discipline, sub-discipline, or subject, you get a list of article titles with authors and institution. You can then click on the article title to go to the institution website and download the article.

To visit the CHS Library, first visit the CHS Classroom Login page and sign in. Then, in the "My courses" menu on the right side of the page, click on CHS Library.