Job Title: Director of Religious Life
Location: Durham, NC, United States
Driving distance to Durham: Yes
Posting Dates: June 25, 2024 - August 1, 2024
Job type: Full-Time
Organization type: Nonprofit/NGO
Job tags: Nonprofit
Salary range: $60,000-$70,000
Contact Name: Bruce Puckett
Contact Email: bruce.puckett@duke.edu
Contact Phone: (919) 684-2909
Organization leadership includes Duke Divinity alumni: Yes
Organization hiring manager includes Duke Divinity alumni: Yes
Job Description:

The Director of Religious Life has the broad responsibility of Duke Chapel’s oversight of Religious Life at Duke, including the care and coordination of religious life leaders and their groups; campus ministries; and interfaith engagement programs and activities for Duke students, staff, and faculty members. The Director will engage best practices in interfaith engagement within the university setting and be an active contributor in campus, regional, and national conversations. The Director also has a role in the pastoral care of Duke students, with special attention to chaplaincy on campus and opportunities for residential ministry, and in the Christian worship life of the Chapel. This person will serve as part of the ministry team of the Chapel and report to the Assistant Dean of the Chapel.

Work Performed (45%) Religious Life – Oversee, support, and advocate for the work of Religious Life at Duke (community of 22 approved organizations and their staff). Build community among Religious Life staff by convening regular staff meetings and semester retreats, and other gatherings as needed. Coordinate and encourage joint religious and spiritual programming for the community, including interfaith vigils in response to crisis events, interfaith gatherings of celebration, and service projects designed to facilitate student interaction across faith traditions. Network closely with other branches of the university to help integrate Religious Life groups into campus life and stay informed about campus issues, procedures, and policies. Invest in the Religious Life groups themselves by interacting with campus ministers and students and understanding the resources they have to share. Actively promote the ministries of the individual Religious Life groups at every opportunity. Participate in campus councils related to student and religious affairs on campus. Track and oversee annual budget related to the Chapel’s Religious Life programming. Provide administrative oversight of endowment distributions that are intended for Religious Life. Monitor and maintain accurate annual statistics and documentation of Religious Life activities. (40%) Interfaith Engagement – Lead and nurture co-curricular interfaith engagement and understanding across the university. Serve as the Chapel’s primary guide for building religious diversity on campus and an ambassador for the Chapel in interfaith work, programming, education, and relationships at the wider university. Create imaginative and engaging co-curricular programming of interest to students, staff, and faculty at the university to deepen understanding of and respect for religious difference. Build and strengthen networks across the university to enrich the long-term life of interfaith engagement and encourage interfaith understanding, religious literacy, and cooperation. Pursue opportunities for interfaith civic engagement, especially utilizing the input and leadership of Duke Student Government’s director of religious affairs. Explore emerging residential ministry opportunities within Duke’s residential system. Build on emerging campus chaplaincy initiatives to provide interfaith chaplaincy services for students (e.g., QuadEx Chaplains and participation in the on-call system). Meet with students individually as appropriate, especially in times of urgent need. (5 %) Staff Supervision – Supervise and support the University’s Hindu and Buddhist chaplains. (5%) Liturgical Leadership – Participate in worship at Duke Chapel on Sundays and weekdays throughout the year; provide leadership in these services on a regular rotation and as needed. (5%) Other duties – Perform other related duties incidental to the work described herein. The above statements describe the general nature and level of work being performed by individuals assigned to this classification. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and duties required of personnel so classified.