This past year saw radical changes in socio-political life around the world. In the midst of this, The Association for Religion and Intellectual Life is also in the midst of several transformations.
The organization, which traces its roots to the 1930s, is changing its name to express a direction that the association has been taking for years, and that is a move to more formally note their engagement with the “public.” The official name will now be the Association for Public Religion and Intellectual Life. With this, they are launching a new website (see news item below); launching an open access, online monthly magazine called “The Commons”; and moving their journal CrossCurrents to UNC Press. More information about each of these is available at the website, AprilOnline.org
Along with these changes is a new leadership team. Stephanie Mitchem will begin her term as President, Björn Krondorfer will step in as Vice President, while we have again split the Secretary/Treasurer position, with Judy Chen as the Treasurer and Pamela Winfield as the Secretary.
And, after nearly 30 years of leadership, Charles Henderson announced his retirement as both the Executive Director of ARIL, and the Editor of CrossCurrents, effective at the end of 2020. Charles saw the organization through a number of changes in economic ups and downs, and new arrangements for the journal. Stepping in as Executive Director of APRIL and Editor of CrossCurrents is S. Brent Rodríguez-Plate.