University Chaplain and Director of the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life

Brown University • Providence, RI

12d • Hybrid

About The Position

The University Chaplain and Director of the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life is a visionary, collaborative, and experienced leader who cultivates religious and spiritual life for Brown’s more than 11,000 undergraduate, graduate, and medical students, as well as faculty, staff, and alumni. Rooted in Brown’s commitment to religious freedom, pluralism, and intellectual openness, the role advances spirituality, faith, and interfaith engagement. The Chaplain serves people across a broad range of religious and spiritual identities and perspectives, including those who are secular, humanist, questioning, or exploring meaning and purpose.

Reporting directly to the Vice President for Campus Life, the Chaplain provides strategic oversight and leadership of the Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life and serves as a senior leader in the Division of Campus Life. The role advances student success, holistic well-being, inclusive community, belonging, open inquiry, developmental advising and mentoring, leadership, and engagement across differences. The position is pastoral and strategic, educational and institutional, grounded in care and guided by intellectual, ethical, and civic engagement. It also has a dotted-line relationship to the Associate Vice President of Campus Life for Community and Belonging to support operational alignment with affinity and belonging centers.

The Chaplain leads a diverse chaplaincy team and sustains partnerships with affiliated religious organizations and communities. The role advances religious and spiritual literacy, interreligious dialogue, pastoral care, meaning-making, community care, and constructive engagement across differences. The Chaplain provides visible leadership during grief, crisis, conflict, and community disruption and collaborates across Brown to integrate religious, spiritual, ethical, and meaning-making dimensions into the broader student experience.

Requirements

• Advanced degree in divinity, theology, religious studies, higher education, student affairs, or a closely related field.
• At least 10 years of progressive leadership experience in higher education chaplaincy, religious and spiritual life, student affairs, ministry, or another complex multifaith or mission-driven environment.
• Experience supervising and developing diverse teams, managing organizational change, and overseeing complex budgets and operations.
• Deep commitment to spirituality, faith, interfaith engagement, pluralism, religious literacy, open inquiry, and engagement across differences.
• Understanding of contemporary college student development, including students’ exploration of meaning, purpose, identity, belonging, spirituality, faith, and community.
• Ability to navigate intersections of religious, spiritual, cultural, and political identities and build trust across significant differences.
• Experience providing pastoral care and responding to grief, crisis, conflict, or community disruption in a complex academic or communal setting.
• Strong administrative, communication, relationship-building, and advancement capabilities, and ability to work effectively with students, staff, faculty, senior leaders, alumni, and external partners.
• Exceptional public speaking and writing skills, with ability to engage religious, spiritual, secular, questioning, and skeptical audiences with authenticity and respect.
• Ability to cultivate belonging, facilitate dialogue, and support constructive engagement across religious, ideological, and cultural differences.
• Ability to integrate spirituality, ethics, meaning-making, and religious literacy into university intellectual, civic, and student life.
• Judgment, emotional steadiness, discretion, and professional boundaries in high-stress, grief-stricken, polarized, or rapidly changing environments.
• Ability to build collaborative relationships with autonomous affiliated religious organizations while maintaining institutional clarity, trust, and accountability.

Nice To Haves

• Professional religious, spiritual, or pastoral formation is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic oversight and leadership of the Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life.
• Serve as a senior leader within the Division of Campus Life and advance its commitments to student success, holistic well-being, inclusive community, belonging, open inquiry, developmental advising and mentoring, leadership, and engagement across differences.
• Lead a diverse chaplaincy team and sustain strong partnerships with affiliated religious organizations and communities.
• Advance religious and spiritual literacy, interreligious dialogue, pastoral care, meaning-making, community care, and constructive engagement across differences.
• Provide visible leadership during moments of grief, crisis, conflict, and community disruption.
• Collaborate across Brown to integrate religious, spiritual, ethical, and meaning-making dimensions into the broader student experience.
• Shape a forward-looking model of religious and spiritual life responsive to Brown’s legacy and the evolving needs of students and higher education.

Benefits

• Benefits are available at Brown University; the posting refers applicants to Brown University’s benefits page but does not specify individual benefits.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior