Staff

Stephanie Varnon-Hughes is a Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™ and a graduate of Union Theological Seminary, where she earned her Master's in Church History in 2008 and her STM in 2009.  A schoolteacher, Stephanie received the Most Promising New Teacher of the Year Award of 2005 in St. Louis, Missouri and has taught English and Performing Arts in public schools in St. Louis and the Bronx.  She studies at Claremont Lincoln University, focusing on building and piloting a multi-religious curriculum for public secondary school students. She is an accomplished playwright with two plays produced at the St. Louis Repertory Theatre. Follow her on Twitter.

Joshua Stanton is a Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™ and a Schusterman Rabbinical Fellow at Hebrew Union College. He is also a founding co-Director of Lessons of a Lifetime™, a nursing home-based project designed to improve intergenerational relations. A graduate of Amherst College, he is the recipient of numerous leadership awards, including the Bridge-Builders Leadership Award from the Interfaith Youth Core. You can follow him on the Tikkun Daily, Huffington Post, and twitter.

Aimee Upjohn Light is the Executive Editor of the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™ and Assistant Professor of Theology at Duquesne University. She holds a PhD from Yale University in the philosophy of religion and an MA from Notre Dame in systematic theology. With quite a list of publications and two forthcoming books, one might imagine that she would solely engaged in editing! But because of her experience as a leader, she will be chairing the Journal's Department of Outreach and Development.

Matthew Dougherty is Director of Publishing for the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™. He grew up in Connecticut and went on to attend Amherst College. During his time there, Matthew worked as a teacher and a sexual assault crisis counselor. He also helped lead the Amherst College Multifaith Council. After writing a senior thesis on American Islam and pluralism, he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Religion and English. He will be starting his graduate work at Harvard Divinity School this fall.

Sophia Khan is Publishing Editor of the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™. After graduating from Dartmouth College with honors in Classics and Theater, she went on to receive her master’s degrees from Yale and Harvard Divinity Schools, where she focused on comparative ethics and human rights. Sophia also serves as Editorial Assistant for History at Harvard University Press. In her spare time, she loves to cook with her aunt—their first cookbook, Students Go Gourmet, will be released in fall 2010.

Marinus Iwuchukwu is International Outreach Consultant for the Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue™ and Assistant Professor of Theology at Duquesne University. Former Chairman of the Communications Commission of the Diocese of Kano, he brings with him remarkable experience in media relations and outreach. Marinus served as Founding Editor of The Northern Star Newspaper and has taught at the Federal College of Education and St. Thomas Seminary in Kano, as well as Marquette University in Wisconsin.

The Journal of Inter-Religious Dialogue is also proud to employ the staff of State of Formation, a forum for emerging religious and ethical leaders. Founded by the Journal, it is run in partnership with Hebrew College and Andover Newton and in collaboration with the Parliament of the World’s Religions.