Conratulations to Professor Winnifred Sullivan
The Evening of Celebrations held on January 27th, honored three IU Bloomington faculty members who were named as Provost Professors: Kathleen Bardovi-Harlig, Peter Guardino and Winnifred Sullivan, all from the College of Arts and Sciences.
“Professors Lederman, Bardovi-Harlig, Guardino and Sullivan have brought great distinction to Indiana University through their exemplary research and have enriched the lives of countless students through their teaching and mentorship,” Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs Eliza Pavalko said. ”It is a great pleasure to see them receive the recognition they so richly deserve.”
Professor Sullivan received her Ph.D. in history of religions/history of Christianity and her J.D. from the University of Chicago. Her work on the intersection of religion and law is internationally recognized.
“Ministry of Presence,” Sullivan's 2015 book, received an American Academy of Religion Book Award for Excellence, the highest award in her field. For the broader impact of her work on the public sector, she was recognized by a Martin E. Marty Award for the Public Understanding of Religion from the American Academy of Religion in 2017.
Central to Sullivan’s research is a challenge to assumptions about religion and law and the assumption that lines of “separation” are clear and legible. She focuses on court cases to cast doubt on its very possibility. Her research is recognized by leading organizations and institutions in both legal and religious studies alike.
Sullivan served as a co-investigator on a major collaborative research initiative funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and she served as director of the newly created IU Center for Religion and the Human. Sullivan's work as a teacher and mentor has been invaluable to not only her students at every level, but to junior and well-established scholars as well.
The Sonneborn Award carries a $3,500 cash award and a $1,000 grant to support research or creative activity by a student. Provost Professors receive an annual award of $2,500 for three years and a $5,000 grant for a project that demonstrates how teaching and research are mutually reinforcing.
Past winners of the Sonneborn Award and faculty who have been designated Provost Professors can be seen at the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs website.
The College of Arts