Following on the heels of former University Chaplain David O'Leary's abrupt retirement last semester, the university is beginning a search for his replacement. But finding another University Chaplain who can live up to the reputation O'Leary built for himself may be difficult.
O'Leary — who first joined the Tufts Community in 1998 — became the first Roman Catholic to serve as the University Chaplain when he was promoted to the position in 2002.
In addition to his job as Chaplain, O'Leary taught courses within the Department of Religion and helped to foster interfaith dialogue among students and faculty.
He was vital to the launch of the Interfaith Center in 2007, which houses the offices of the Catholic, Muslim and Protestant Chaplains. It also serves as a location for worship services, meetings and other events for the campus's various chaplaincies as well as other student religious groups.
"Even though Father Dave was a Catholic by vocation, he did a really great job of reaching out to all faiths," senior Chris Gardner, the president of the Catholic Community at Tufts (CCT), said.
"Whether or not the new Chaplain is Catholic or Protestant [or a member of any other faith on campus], what really matters is that they're someone who can reach across boundaries," he said.
Chief of Staff of the Office of the President Michael Baenen agreed that in searching for the next Chaplain, the university is looking for someone who can follow in O'Leary's footsteps.
"We are proceeding with a rigorous search process to find an outstanding successor to David O'Leary," Baenen said.
In its search for a replacement, the Office of the President is taking into account voices from across campus.
"I know that they're beginning the process shortly," Gardner said. "They're going to be gathering leaders from all the religious student groups on campus that are either recognized by TCU [Tufts Community Union] or on their way to recognition, to talk about what we're looking for in a university chaplain and what someone in the role of a chaplain can do."
Baenen added that the university is looking to draw from a wide range of opinions on campus in order to focus its search.
"We are laying the groundwork for the search with a pair of stakeholder retreats this week," Baenen said. "We have invited representatives of all the student religious organizations to participate, as well as representatives from the TCU Senate and the Leonard Carmichael Society.
The participants in these retreats will include the chaplains and other faculty and staff, all of whom will get the opportunity to share their vision for the Chaplaincy as well as what they hope to see in the next University Chaplain, according to Baenen. This input will help define the qualities the university will look for in its search.
To facilitate the search, the Office of the President will appoint a search advisory committee, which will report to University President Anthony Monaco and will work in conjunction with an experienced search consultant.
"Our goal is to ensure that the next University Chaplain can provide leadership to sustain and advance a tradition of vibrant spiritual practice, profound ethical reflection and effective action to better the world," Baenen said.
According to Catholic Chaplain Lynn Cooper, the wide array of religious views that are present at Tufts may make it difficult to find a replacement chaplain who is capable of bridging those varied perspectives.
"[CCT] is a very diverse community. It [consists of] students who are very involved and very committed to their faith in ways that are very exciting," Cooper said. "They're making connections about what it means to be a college student who is religious. These are the questions at the heart of our community."
Gardner agreed that finding a good replacement will not be an easy task.
"Tufts is a very different school — it's no [Boston College]. It's not religiously affiliated," Gardner said.
"We tend to be on the more liberal side of things, which makes it harder to find someone that is what the community is looking for, someone who can balance all of the faiths and those beliefs, and how we can all work together instead of focusing on what is different," he added.
While the Reverend Patricia Budd Kepler is only serving as the University Chaplain ad interim, she knows the Chaplaincy well, having previously served in the same position. Her impressive resume also includes a stint as Director of Ministerial Studies at Harvard Divinity School, as well as Director of Women's Program for the Board of Christian Education of the Presbyterian Church, USA.
"We are fortunate that [Rev. Kepler] is serving as our University Chaplain ad interim," Baenen said. "She is uniquely qualified to provide for a smooth transition and to maintain the momentum in the Chaplaincy."
In the meantime, Gardner hopes to work with Rev. Kepler to position CCT for further growth before he graduates this May.
"One of my goals is to start expanding … having the religious groups on campus doing more things together, especially social events," Gardner said.
As President of CCT, Gardner stressed the importance of finding someone who could serve as a unifier for the diverse religious community on campus.
"I've met two individuals [O'Leary and Kepler] who are very good at balancing different faiths [so far], but it's definitely not the easiest thing," Gardner said. "Not everyone that's actively engaged in religion has that skill set."
