Regular Faculty
Amy Holmes-Tagchungdarpa, Chair
Associate Professor, Religious Studies & Asian Studies
B.A., Victoria University of Wellington; Ph.D., Australian National University
Areas of specialization: Buddhism in Tibet, the East and South Asian Himalayas, and beyond.
Michael Amoruso
Assistant Professor, Religious Studies
B.A., Lehigh University; M.A., University of Chicago; M.A., Ph.D., University of Texas, Austin
Areas of specialization: death, race, and urban religion in the United States and Latin America.
Sohaib Khan
Assistant Professor, Religious Studies
B.S., Lahore University; M.A., Duke University; Ph.D., Columbia University
Areas of specialization: Islamic legal studies; anthropology of Islam; histories of capitalism; comparative studies of South Asia and the Middle East.
Kristi Upson-Saia
Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs; David B. and Mary H. Gamble Professorship in Religion
B.A., University of Washington; M.Div., Princeton Theol. Sem.; Ph.D., Duke University
Areas of specialization: late ancient Mediterranean religions; dress and performativity; history of medicine, health, and healing
Non-Tenure Track Faculty
Kimberly A. Diaz
Visiting Instructor, Religious Studies
B.A., University of California San Diego; M.A., University of California Riverside; Ph.D., University of California Riverside (in progress)
Areas of specialization: religious history of the modern Americas; liberation theory and praxis
Chelsie May
Visiting Assistant Professor in Jewish Studies, Religious Studies
B.A., University of California, Los Angeles; M.A., Brandeis; Ph.D., University of Chicago
Areas of Specialization: SWANA Jewish history; Relations between SWANA Jews and other communities of color; diversity in Jewish identities and history.
J Selke
Visiting Instructor, Religious Studies
B.A., DePauw University; M.A., University of California, Riverside; Ph.D., University of California, Riverside (in progress)
Areas of specialization: U.S.-based Religion, New Religious Movements, Histories of the Devil, Religion and Popular Culture, and Trans Studies in Religion
Affiliated Faculty
Season Blake
Assistant Professor, Philosophy
B.A., Bryn Mawr College; M.A., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Ph.D., Indiana University
Susan Blake's teaching and research interests include theory of knowledge, early Chinese philosophy, philosophy of perception, philosophy of language, and philosophy of mind.
Lan T. Chu
Professor, Diplomacy and World Affairs
B.A., M.A., New York University; Ph.D., George Washington University
Chu’s research and teaching interests focus on the political role of religious institutions, the Catholic Church and global politics, faith diplomacy, religion and international relations theory, inter-religious dialogue, political ideologies (theory and practice), and the political liberalization processes of former and existing communist countries.
Meimei Zhang
Assistant Professor, Asian Studies
B.A., Beijing Foreign Studies University; M.A., Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
Emeriti/ae Faculty
David B. and Mary H. Gamble Professor in Religion, Religious Studies, Emeritus (1980-2018)
Religious Studies
Area of specialization: Buddhist philosophy.
Professor, Religious Studies, Emeritus (1989-2019)
Religious Studies
Area of specialization: American religious history