who

I am Professor and Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Ithaca College. I have been teaching here since 2006. I received my PhD in Religious Studies at the University of Iowa in 2001. Before that, I received my M.A. at Wake Forest University and my B.A. at the Hendrix College, a liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas.

I grew up in the American South, in a very small town in Arkansas, where everyone knew everybody else, whether you liked it or not. A little bit of Arkansas has stayed with me throughout my life. I am the first in my family to attend college, and I was a single mother and a struggling graduate student for over a decade. These experiences have shaped how I see myself in the world and have determined the work I want to do. I see academia as needing an intentional overhaul so people will more often use their educational skills to create public conversations about issues that matter.

My most recent book, Cowboy Apocalypse: Religion and the Myth of the Vigilante Messiah, is releasing in February 2025 with NYU Press. My first book, Godwired: Religion, Ritual, and Virtual Reality, appeared in 2012 with Routledge Press. I have been learning and writing about religion and media for as long as I’ve been teaching, that is, for over 20 years.

I am available for interviews (email or zoom or in-person). I can also travel to give in-person talks, or offer talks via Zoom. Get in touch if you want to plan something.