Katherine Dugan

Associate Professor of Religious Studies

Chair, Humanities, Social Sciences & Criminal Justice
Springfield College

CV
About

Katherine Dugan, PhD

Katherine Dugan is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Chair of the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Criminal Justice Department at Springfield College in Western Massachusetts.

She studies American religions with a specialization in contemporary Catholicism in the U.S and teaches courses on American religion, world religions, and Catholicism.

Academic Leadership

Department Chair

Katherine Dugan serves as Chair of the Humanities, Social Sciences, and Criminal Justice Department at Springfield College — overseeing curriculum development, faculty mentorship, and the intellectual direction of one of the college's largest academic units.

Curriculum Leadership

Interdisciplinary program development across humanities and social sciences and criminal justice, with faculty in more than fifteen disciplines across the liberal arts and majors in History, History/Secondary Education, Criminal Justice, and Cyber Criminology.

Faculty & Student Support

Supporting scholarly growth and pedagogical innovation among department faculty. Cultivating ways for students to access the academic supports they need to succeeed in our programs.

Assessment

Developing, implementing, and readjusting programs in History and Criminal Justice based on clear assessment data.

Academic Leadership

Director of the Core Curriculum

Katherine led Springfield College's first major curriculum revision in a decade during 2020-2023— stepping into the role amid contentious campus conversations about the value of liberal arts, and guiding the college through a transformative redesign grounded in both intellectual integrity and practical innovation.

Curriculum Revision

Led implementation of Springfield College's first major core curriculum overhaul in ten years, building course approval structures and assembling interdisciplinary faculty teams

First-Year Seminar Program

Created curriculum for and trained 50+ faculty in a new first-year seminar program, establishing a foundation for student success across disciplines

Assessment Innovation

Developed a new assessment model that became a model for other programs, enhancing the institution's ability to measure and demonstrate learning outcomes

Research

Research Agenda

Katherine's research explores religious experience, women in religion, and the intersection of religious practice and American culture. Her work has been funded by the Cushwa Center for American Catholicism at the University of Notre Dame and The Graduate School Graduate Research Grant, and presented at meetings of the American Academy of Religion, the Society for the Anthropology of Religion, and the American Historical Association.

Religious Experience

Prayer, devotion, and lived faith in American Catholic communities

Women in Religion

Gender, identity, and authority in contemporary religious life

Religion & American Culture

How religious practice shapes and is shaped by U.S. cultural life

Publications

Millennial Missionaries

How a Group of Young Catholics is Making Catholicism Cool

Oxford University Press, 2019

Katherine's first book is an ethnographic study of young adults who commit to two years evangelizing on college campuses across the U.S. She argues that missionaries' prayer forms and devotional practices shape their subjectivities — transforming not only how they believe, but who they become.

Listen to her episode on New Books Network for more:

Publications

Recent & Forthcoming Work

American Patroness: Marian Shrines and the Making of American Catholicism

Co-edited with Karen Park. Fordham University Press, 2024. A collection of essays examining Marian shrines across the United States and their role in shaping American Catholic identity.

Charting Fertility: Natural Family Planning and Intimate Discipline in American Catholicism

Current book project. An ethnography of women and couples who practice Natural Family Planning (NFP), examining religiously informed family life and reproduction in the twenty-first century.

Publications

Featured Publications

Explore a selection of Katherine Dugan's published works, covering topics from Catholic identity to interfaith activism.

Catholic Masculinity  ·  Carlo Acutis and Gen Z Catholics  ·  Material Religion on eBay  · 

U.S. Catholic Norms  ·  Interfaith Activism  ·  Young Adult Catholic Identity

Teaching

Sample Syllabi

Katherine teaches across the Religious Studies curriculum, with a focus on American religion, Catholicism, and the intersection of faith with health, culture, and public life.

Click below for the syllabus

Religion in America

Religions of the World

Contemporary Catholicism

Religion, Health & Healing

Religion & Sports

Religion & Food

Teaching

Interdisciplinary Teaching

Interdisciplinary Courses

Committed to cross-disciplinary cooperation, Katherine has co-developed courses with colleagues in Philosophy and History:

  • What is Religion? — with Philosophy
  • Immigration and Religion in Greater Springfield — with History

Previous Appointments

Katherine has taught a wide range of courses in Religious Studies as a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Northwestern University and as an Adjunct instructor.

Other work Experience

Professional Background

  • Research Assistant at The Pluralism Project at Harvard Divinity School
  • Community educator in rural Alaska
  • Nutrition educator on a Native American reservation in rural Washington
  • Economic development work in rural Oregon
  • Member of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in North Carolina, providing technical assistance to women starting affordable housing nonprofits
Curriculum Vitae

Full CV

For a complete record of Katherine Dugan's academic appointments, publications, conference presentations, teaching history, and professional service, please download her full curriculum vitae.