Phillis Sheppard

Award-winning filmmakers Karen Hayes and Pamela Tom will speak at Vanderbilt University’s 2025 Martin Luther King Jr. Day commemoration. The kickoff event is scheduled for 5 to 6:15 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 15, in Sarratt Cinema. Hayes and Tom will discuss their new film, A Better Way: James Lawson, Architect of Nonviolence, insights into the filmmaking process, their time with the Rev. James Lawson, Lawson’s connections with Vanderbilt and Nashville, and the impact of his work in the broader Civil Rights Movement. Read More

The Jean and Alexander Heard Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives has fully digitized the Rev. James M. Lawson Papers and made these materials available to the general public, giving students, scholars and historians a more complete picture of the distinguished activist’s life and legacy. The collection is available online through the JSTOR digital library of academic journals, books and primary sources.  Read More

Faculty are invited to utilize Vanderbilt's Institute for the Advancement of Higher Education, or AdvancED, for training and support as they explore new ways to connect with students, whether on campus or online. Read More

Vice Chancellor for Outreach, Inclusion and Belonging and Chief Diversity Officer for Vanderbilt University, André L. Churchwell hosted a discussion with faculty members about the history and importance of Juneteenth in observance of the federal holiday. In addition to the conversation, on June 16 the Black Cultural Center hosted “Juneteenth: Celebration of Freedom," Vanderbilt’s annual event celebrating the holiday. Read More

Join us for dinner and conversations on womanists’ responses to the need for creative, courageous and socially responsive leadership. During this roundtable discussion, womanist scholars and practitioners will challenge and help us imagine ways to advance the work of social justice. Read More

We Shall Overcome: Civil Rights and the Nashville Press, 1957-1968, a photography exhibition on loan to Vanderbilt Divinity School from the Frist Art Museum, illuminates key moments in Nashville’s struggle for racial equality, including the leadership of the Rev. James Lawson. Read More

Vanderbilt University will launch the James Lawson Institute for the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements during a livestreamed celebration featuring the Rev. James Lawson and keynote speaker John M. Seigenthaler on April 7. Read More

Nashville’s newest public high school will be named in honor of the Rev. James Lawson, a civil rights icon and Vanderbilt University Distinguished Professor, emeritus. Read More

Lifelong Learning at Vanderbilt Divinity School, a new curricular-based program open to the community, aims to expand the public discussion surrounding religious issues. Read More

Vanderbilt Divinity School and the College of Arts and Science will honor one of the university's most revered alumni with the launch of the James Lawson Institute for the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements. Read More

Twenty-nine prominent faculty from across campus comprise Vanderbilt University’s latest endowed chair honorees. They include scholars working in diverse areas—from election analysis and lung cancer research to the nascent field of neurolaw, exploring the brain mechanism underlying legal decision-making. Read More

A new partnership between the Divinity School and Mental Health and Chaplaincy, a national program of the Veterans Health Administration, will relaunch a doctor of ministry program at Vanderbilt. Read More

Political science professor Cindy Kam will lead a new steering committee to guide actions and areas for study for an initiative focusing on women students, faculty and postdocs, announced earlier by Provost Susan R. Wente. Read More

A Divinity School Relevant Religion class Dec. 3 will explore the reality of experiencing spiritual trauma while doing the work of justice and sharing stories and practices for restoring hope. Read More

Phillis Sheppard traces her early interest in the role of religion and culture in self-understanding to growing up in a family with some powerful church women. Read More

View a complete list of new university faculty for the 2014-15 academic year. Read More