CIC is pleased to offer a discipline-specific seminar, Religion/Theology/Vocation, for full-time faculty members in the field of theology and/or religious studies at colleges and universities that are members of CIC’s Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE). The seminar is intended for full-time faculty members at all levels. Participants will examine the interrelationship of the study of vocation and calling with the academic fields of theology and religious studies, exploring implications for research, teaching, and service to the institution. They will probe a variety of understandings of vocation and calling, focusing on the importance of these concepts in undergraduate education. The goal of the seminar is to provide participants with a deeper understanding of the relationship of vocation to higher education, to support their investigations of the uses and disadvantages of these concepts within theology and religious studies, and to establish a broader network of faculty members committed to exploring vocation and calling as an area of scholarship within their discipline.
Thanks to a generous grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., CIC will cover most costs of participation for those faculty members who are selected.
Scroll down for more information; alternatively, you can download this two-page flyer about the 2026 Seminar, which can be printed or forwarded to interested staff members.
About the Seminar
Over the past twenty years, the concepts of vocation and calling have become increasingly important across higher education in the United States. In college classrooms, more and more faculty members are encouraging students to think of themselves as “called” or “summoned” to use their intellect and abilities to have an impact on the world by doing good. In the wider literature of the academy, scholars are probing the significance of vocational exploration and discernment as a region of study, both within their own academic fields and in interdisciplinary settings. A new scholarly impulse has focused on questions as to what might constitute a truly good, meaningful, and flourishing life, and how those who live such lives might improve the well-being of others and of themselves. Over the past decade, CIC has sought to support these scholarly efforts through its NetVUE program, and particularly through interdisciplinary seminars on teaching and scholarship. Now, for the first time, CIC will offer seminars focused on particular disciplines, beginning with an offering for scholars in theology and religious studies.
The seminar participants will bring to the table their experiences with vocation on their own campuses, whether in teaching, research, writing, service, or inter-office cooperation, but with a focus on the academic disciplines of theology and religious studies. Any full-time member of the faculty at a NetVUE member institution is eligible to apply for the seminar. Selected participants will gather for a five-day seminar on August 3–7, 2026. Through the generosity of Lilly Endowment Inc., all seminar costs will be covered, including a generous travel reimbursement.
Participants in the seminar will be expected to:
- Hold a terminal degree in theology and/or religious studies (or a closely-related field);
- Have done some work related to vocation, whether through classroom teaching, reflective or academic writing, or institutional leadership;
- Undertake a significant amount of background reading, so that the group can start with a common framework of understanding;
- Offer a brief (10-page) seminar paper, which will be submitted to the seminar facilitators eight weeks before the seminar begins, and revised based on feedback for discussion in the seminar (and, if the applicant so desires, to be revised and expanded later and submitted for possible publication);
- Participate actively in the seminar sessions; and
- Agree to arrive at the seminar venue by early afternoon on Monday, August 3, and remain fully immersed in the event (including meals and social time beyond the scheduled sessions of the seminar) through lunch on Friday, August 7, 2026.
Seminar discussions will cover a range of activities that can enhance vocational exploration in undergraduate education. Some attention will be given to direct work with students, whether through classroom teaching, advising co-curricular activities, or mentoring. However, this will not be the primary focus of the seminar. (Faculty members who would prefer to focus on integrating vocation into their classroom teaching should instead seek nomination for a different NetVUE summer seminar, Teaching Vocational Exploration.) The primary focus of this seminar will extend beyond classroom applications to include research, writing, and institutional leadership on the topic of vocation. Because all members of the seminar will be faculty members in the fields of theology and religious studies, the primary point of focus will be that discipline’s understanding of vocation and calling, and its consideration of both theoretical and practical elements of that work.
Current Status
The seminar will take place on August 3–7, 2026, at a location in the Midwest. Up to 12 participants will be selected by competitive application. Anyone in the field of theology and/or religious studies who serves as a full-time faculty member at a NetVUE member college or university may apply for the seminar. Unlike other NetVUE seminars, a nomination is not required; however, applicants must submit a letter of recommendation from someone in the field who knows their work (including their engagement with issues of vocation and calling). The recommendation may come from within or outside the applicant’s institution. The application deadline is Friday, January 16, 2026. Selected participants will be notified in February for the following summer’s seminar.
Seminar Leaders
Jason Mahn holds the Conrad Bergendoff Chair in the Humanities at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, where he also serves as professor of religion and director of the Presidential Center for Faith and Learning. Trained as a constructive theologian, Jason writes about existentialist themes (especially those in Søren Kierkegaard), theological anthropology, eco-theology, secularity and religious faith, and—his current focus—grace and giftedness in our neoliberal and meritocratic culture. He has written or edited six books, including most recently Neighbor Love through Fearful Days: Finding Purpose and Meaning in a Time of Crisis (2021), which lifts up the vocations of former students, and So That All May Flourish: The Aims of Lutheran Education (2023), which grapples with institutional callings among ELCA colleges and universities. Jason writes regularly for Vocation Matters, the NetVUE’s blog; he also contributed “The Conflicts in Our Callings: The Anguish (and Joy) of Willing Multiple Things” to the second book in the NetVUE Scholarly Resources Project, Vocation Across the Academy: A New Vocabulary for Higher Education. He holds a BA from Gustavus Adolphus College, an MA from Luther Theological Seminary, and a PhD from Emory University.
Nicole (Niki) Johnson is professor of religious studies and chair of the department of interdisciplinary humanities at the University of Mount Union, where she also serves as director of the Peacebuilding & Social Justice program. Her main teaching and research interests include religious conflict and peacebuilding, interfaith cooperation for peace, faith-based social justice, and what it means to be educated in the liberal arts tradition. She is the co-author of Faithful Witness in a Fractured World: Models for an Authentic Christian Life (2019) and editor and chapter contributor for Humanities Perspectives in Peace Education: Re-Engaging the Heart of Peace Studies (2021). Her article, “Liberation From and For: The Vocation of the Educated Person,” served as the lead article in a special issue of Christian Scholars Review, edited by NetVUE Executive Director David Cunningham (July 2023). She earned her BA in religious studies and political science from Westminster College (PA), an MA in applied theology from Wheeling Jesuit University, and a ThD in practical theology and church history from Boston University School of Theology.
Application Details
Those who wish to participate in the seminar should apply through the online application portal. Applicants will be asked for basic contact information, and then will need to upload a single document that includes the following three items:
- A statement of interest (no more than two pages) indicating
- reasons for wishing to participate in the seminar;
- current understanding of and experience with the theoretical and/or practical asepcts of vocation and calling;
- reflections on the relationship of this understanding and experience to the disciplines of theology and/or religious studies; and
- the anticipated results of the seminar for the applicant’s career trajectory (whether in terms of academic publication, pedagogical innovation, or institutional service);
- An abbreviated curriculum vitae (no more than five pages), which lists educational path, work experience, publications, conference papers, and other forms of professional engagement, taking particular note any vocation-related experience or products; and
- One letter of recommendation from a colleague in the field, either at one’s own institution or elsewhere, describing why the applicant would be a good candidate for the seminar. (Please provide your referee with a link to this webpage for a full description of the seminar.)
Application Deadline: Friday, January 16, 2026
Selection of participants will be announced February 2026
Location and Expenses
The seminar will take place August 3–7, 2026, at a location in the Midwest. Thanks to generous support from Lilly Endowment Inc., CIC will cover most seminar costs, including materials, lodging, and meals, and will provide a travel reimbursement of up to $900 per participant.
Contact Information
For questions about the seminar or the application process, contact Rachael Baker, NetVUE associate director, at (616) 526-7939 or rbaker@cic.edu.
Other NetVUE Seminars
CIC also offers four other NetVUE summer seminars, each of which is described on a separate webpage:
For early- to mid-career faculty whose primary interest is in incorporating vocational exploration into their classroom teaching.
Designed for staff who direct campus programs or serve in other long-term administrative capacities, but who do not also hold faculty appointments.
For faculty members and staff who are considering ways of contributing to the wider national conversation about vocation and calling.
For faculty members and staff who have taken on administrative roles (associate deans, assistant provosts, and the like) and who would like to explore campus-wide projects that encourage vocational exploration.
About NetVUE
Learn more about NetVUE, including the array of programs and services that are available to member institutions.
To report a technical problem with the website, or to offer suggestions for navigation and content issues, please contact Alex Stephenson, NetVUE communications coordinator, at astephenson@cic.edu.