Spiritual Leadership
Co-Chair of the Women's Caucus at the American Academy of Religion and Society of Biblical Literature
Marcelle Williams
The Women's Spirituality Program, MA Alum
Marcelle William is co-chair of the women's caucus at the American Academy of Religion and Society of Biblical Literature. Prior to attending the women's spirituality program at CIIS, Marcelle worked as a chaplain for Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. She has an MA in pastoral and spiritual counseling and a BA in theology and religious studies. Marcelle is currently finishing her dissertation on women's ordination in the Roman Catholic Womenpriest movement, the Episcopal Church, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America.
Of her time in the Women's Spirituality program Marcelle says,
"Prior to coming to CIIS, I felt that something was missing from my religious and spiritual studies. I finally figured out that women were the missing link and their voices were left out of mainstream religious studies. Having attended an all-girls high school, I was used to the female voice being dominant, and in undergraduate and graduate studies, that voice was noticeably lacking. I had always had a passion for seeking out the unheard voice and the women's spirituality program gave me the tools and structure to continue the last segment of my graduate career on a path that was not only familiar, but had been lacking in my higher ed career. The PhD has supported my exploration of women's voices and has given me the ability to network and find a group of women who support women's words and voices within the academy."