Category Archives: Epistle

Greetings to Friends, everywhere: 

From June 12th through 15^th, 2023, Friends Association for Higher Education held its annual conference at Haverford College, which is located on the traditional lands of the Lenni-Lenape people.  The theme of the conference was “Quakers, Colonization, and Decolonization.”  It was FAHE’s first in-person conference since 2019, and its very first hybrid conference, offering sessions on Zoom as well.  Friends rejoiced in their time together while also being gratified by all of the benefits of the Zoom option.

During the conference’s opening evening, Friends were welcomed by Nikki Young, Haverford’s inaugural Vice President for Institutional Equity and Access.  James Fenelon who is of both Lakota/Dakota and European heritage then provided a brief overview of the traditions of land acknowledgements as part of the introduction to our keynote speaker, Dennis Coker, Principal Chief of the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware.  Chief Coker focused on the traumatic colonization experience of his people, which eliminated 90% of the population due to smallpox outbreaks as well as physical violence, forcing many tribe members to migrate westward or northward to escape extermination.  Nevertheless, a vital community of approximately 1000 Lenape still exists in Kent County Delaware.  After describing the challenging process of obtaining federal recognition for Delaware Lenape, Chief Coker emphasized what the modern United States might learn from indigenous peoples.  Regarding reverence for the environment, he reminded us that nature doesn’t need human beings, but humans do need nature. 

On the first full day of our gathering, following a communal gathering at dawn and a period of silent worship, morning and evening plenary sessions asked us to consider issues and possibilities for decolonizing both Quakerism and the larger society.  The first plenary addressed decolonizing Quakerism around the world.  Panelists from the Philippines (Cristina Montiel), Bolivia (Emma Condori Mamani), Kenya (Oscar Lugusa Malande) and India (P. Govi) shared their perspectives with us and responded to questions from moderator Emma Lapsansky such as, “What would a decolonized peace testimony in the Global South look like?” and, “Can an unprogrammed meeting go South without colonizing?”  It was painfully clear that colonization has been a world-wide phenomenon affecting people of color throughout the globe.

In the second plenary, tom kunesh and James Fenelon addressed the thorny issues confronting decolonizing in the United States:  landback, cultureback, and indigenizing.  The vital importance of cultural indigenizing through attention to language and religion were emphasized, and we were called to carefully examine what Quakers can do to rectify the crime of earlier Quakers obtaining and settling land unjustly taken from indigenous peoples. 

Earlier in the day, Haverford president Wendy Raymond moderated the annual President’s Panel, bringing together President Gregory Miller from Malone University, President Corey Cockerill from Wilmington College, Provost Sarah Willie-LeBreton of Swarthmore College (soon to be president at Smith College), and Executive Director Francisco Burgos of Pendle Hill.  The panel responded to questions such as, “How is your campus working to create a more just world?”  “What have you learned from addressing the colonial past?” and, “How might you model a new social order?”  It was acknowledged that corporate sins often require structural responses, and that the colleges are not standing close enough to the danger zones on controversial issues.  All acknowledged that their schools are only in the beginning stages of this important work.

Various concurrent sessions also highlighted the day.  The collaborative effort creating the graphic novel Ghost River illustrated a remarkable achievement by individuals passionately dedicated to providing the indigenous voice to the description of the tragic massacre of the Conestoga people by the Paxton Boys in mid-18th century Pennsylvania.  Themes emerging from other concurrent sessions included facing up to ways white Quakers historically have participated in colonization, even when they may have regarded themselves as acting in good faith; learning about the complexities of hybrid ethnicities and multiracial communities; and observing that elite higher education institutions, which carry at least two legacies of colonialism – exclusivity and accumulated wealth – have a special burden to expose students to indigenous ways of knowing the world.  We also pondered whether new trends in our world, such as AI, present new forms of colonialism by appropriating people’s creativity and cultural productions without their permission, and codifying a particular writing voice that sounds authoritative but replaces truth and genuine human expression with a dangerously deceptive semblance of truth.

The conference’s second full day, Wednesday June 14th, again began with a communal gathering at dawn followed by breakfast and a semi-programmed meeting for worship guided by Jacci Stuckey, who read passages of the writings of FAHE member and George Fox University professor Paul Anderson.  Messages offered by friends were deep and moving, and included wonderful songs. 

In the third plenary session Paula Palmer, Gail Melix, and Andrew Grant addressed Quakers’ roles in the creation and maintenance of indigenous boarding schools, which are now acknowledged to be “forced assimilation camps.” Quakers’ deep involvement can be too easily dismissed as misguided efforts at important reforms.  We must acknowledge our complicity in the terrible tragedy, and strive to contribute to reparation efforts.  Fortunately, in spite of efforts to erase indigenous culture from the United States, approximately 600 unique native tribes, and 150 languages remain alive.  There are abundant opportunities, but we must actively seek them out.  The session closed with five queries for higher education offered as guiding questions for Friends’ future decolonizing work.  They are:

• 1) How should we acknowledge the harm that was done to Indigenous peoples – and can still be done – in the name of “education”?   
• 2) What is it like for young people from Native communities to attend our schools today?  
• 3) In our admissions policies, curricula, and standards, are we rooting out unconscious white supremacist biases?  
• 4)  Have our institutions benefited from the theft of Native land?  
• 5) How can our institutions contribute to research, accountability, and healing in Native communities?

Friends conducted the annual Meeting for Business: adopting a proposed budget, approving nominations, including Laura Rediehs as clerk and Walter Sullivan as assistant clerk, and accepting minutes of appreciation to Haverford College for hosting the conference, the Program Committee for organizing the conference, Tom Head for his service on Executive Committee which is now concluding, Co-Clerk Donn Weinholtz whose term as clerk is now concluding, and special thanks to Walter Sullivan for his heroic work leading the organizing and daily operations of this first in-person and hybrid conference we have held without the assistance of a staff coordinator employed for this purpose.  We also heard reports on the ongoing status of our Quaker Leadings in Higher Education video seminars and our Quakers in the Disciplines book series.  The invitation from President Gregory Miller for next year’s conference at Malone University was read and accepted.  Finally, time was reserved open-ended discussion of future FAHE initiatives.

New themes emerged from the final set of concurrent sessions.  For example, one session involved a discussion on how Quakers have allowed an emphasis on averting killing or physical violence to cloud their eyes to the pitfalls of the alternatives policies for which they did advocate.  In another session we examined famous historical Quaker stories and works of art that, in the context of their time, challenged people to question their fear of indigenous people, but these stories and works of art nevertheless contain problematic depictions and center the white Quaker perspective – our standards now are changing.  Other sessions explored the relationship between colonization and the golden rule, and personal stories of decolonizing one’s own mind and consciousness.

In the final plenary, we were treated to a summary of learnings, insights, and queries from the entire conference, gathered and synthesized by Zolani Ngwame, a Haverford anthropologist who works on the politics of Higher Education in South Africa, his homeland.  His presentation was followed by a rich discussion and sharing from those who were present.

Friends were filled with joy at spending time together and engaging in rich sharing.  Inspired and energized by the important, collaborative work that lies ahead of them, Friends were also sobered by the work’s inherent challenges, as they bid each other farewell departing for home on Thursday, June 15^th.

We had our annual membership meeting on August 1, 2020, and here is our epistle:

Dear Friends,

On this fortieth anniversary of the founding of the Friends Association for Higher Education, we send our greetings, our gratitude and our well-wishes to all of you who have continued to support our organization in the midst of profound upheaval and transition in our global society caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Despite having to postpone this year’s conference at Earlham College to 2021, FAHE remains a strong and vital organization dedicated to serving the needs of our individual members and institutions. FAHE is a precious and unique organization whose participants have experienced the mutually transformative potential of Friends education and seek to find ever-new ways, in the words of FAHE co-founder T. Canby Jones, to speak to and honor the Inward Teacher in every student who comes our way.

We wish to express our deepest gratitude to Kimberly Haas, our coordinator in Philadelphia, whose administrative skill, invaluable expertise, creativity and hard work have assured the continued flourishing and growth of FAHE over the past eight years. Sadly, FAHE’s Executive Committee, in their role as financial stewards of the organization, reached the very difficult decision this past spring to eliminate Kimberly’s position, and Kimberly’s last day was June 30 of this year. Though many of us have expressed, in word and gift, our gratitude to Kimberly and our sadness at her parting, we also have realized that one crucial way we can honor her contributions to FAHE is by making sure we continue to support the programs and publications that Kimberly initiated and maintained over the past eight years.

Toward this end, Laura Rediehs has kindly offered to take over the vital work of maintaining and updating FAHE’s website, including publication and dissemination of FAHE’s newsletter. Laura has also invited FAHE Executive Committee members to participate in a visioning process facilitated by Gray Cox, a process that promises to help us all define where we hope to go as an organization in the coming years. David Harvey, in his role as FAHE’s present Treasurer, has taken on greater oversight of FAHE’s finances, including the collection of dues and donations. Paul Anderson continues to serve as general editor of FAHE’s Quakers in the Disciplines series, working together with Lonnie Valentine as editor of the upcoming seventh volume on Quakers and peacemaking. Special thanks go to Donn Weinholtz’s son Phil, whose company publishes the Quakers in the Disciplines volumes free of charge. Paul Moke and Gary Farlow will continue as co-editors of Quaker Higher Education, for which they are always seeking contributions. The prodigious energy and organizational acumen David Ross has offered us as co-clerk of the Membership and Advancement Committee in these last several months of transition have been indispensable. Walter Sullivan, working together as part of a logistics team with David Ross, has not only arranged for archival storage at Haverford College of FAHE’s paper records and documents from Kimberly’s office at Friends Center, but also has created and facilitated, along with David Ross, FAHE’s new Quaker Leadings in Higher Education monthly video series.

Through the dedication and hard work of these individuals and others, FAHE will continue to be able to offer a wonderful variety of fine programming and publications, and we look forward to next summer, when we can once again come together in person at Earlham College for our annual meeting. Though we are grateful to be able to see one another virtually, there is no substitute for meeting face to face. In the absence of our gathering this year, we were not able to collect dues as we normally would, and FAHE would certainly appreciate it if any who are able could renew their memberships for the coming year, and consider an additional donation if so moved. We also, of course, enthusiastically welcome any contribution of time, energy, or creativity folks might have to offer, including especially spreading the word about FAHE and inviting new members into our Friendly fold.

In these times of uncertainty and dynamic change, we hope you all are safe, healthy, and well.

In Peace and Deepest Gratitude,

Stephen Potthoff and Donn Weinholtz
FAHE Co-Clerks

The Friends Association for Higher Education (FAHE) met at Wilmington College (Wilmington, Ohio) from June 14-17, 2018 on the theme “Keeping Faithful in a Time of Rapid Change.”

Nelson Bingham, recently retired provost of Earlham College, used the goals of community and diversity to caution us against using “class” in its various manifestations to isolate persons. He implored us to value the identity and dignity of each individual to generate respect.

Hannah Lutz (Bridges of Hope), Allen Willoughby (Sugar Tree Ministries), and Thomas Vaughn (Tender Mercies) described being faithful to the homeless in communities in southwestern Ohio. They encouraged participation by colleges and their students in this service.

A panel of Quaker-college presidents challenged us to seek vitality through distinctiveness, transformative experiences, and authentic language. They encouraged us to help in socializing new faculty to Quaker practice. They also reminded us how privileged we are to participate in higher education in spite of current challenges.

Laura Rediehs offered ways to keep the candle of education lit by showing how the nurturing of the beloved community can overcome the idolatry of economic concern, technology dependence, and procedural confinement. To accomplish this, we must be both custodians and critics of culture. We should address whether our teaching and professional practice is governed by the idol of “meeting standards;” whether mocking disciplines is a defense of these idols; and whether the pursuit of academic debate becomes simply a form of conflict. We should accentuate the power of the positive for liberation from idolatry in order to live an illuminated life in a supportive community. In this way the candle of education cannot really be extinguished.

Members’ contributions explored the theme “Faithfulness in a Time of Rapid Change,” calling us to honor Friends traditions, love and care for creation, clarify our mission while under fire, and promote life sustaining use of technologies.

We look forward to meeting in search of truth again at Swarthmore College and Pendle Hill in June, 2019.

Epistle: FAHE Annual Conference, Guilford College, June 15-18, 2017

To Friends Everywhere:

We, faculty, students, administrators and others, with a loving concern for post-secondary education and its intersection with Quakerism, convened at Guilford College in North Carolina. Our theme for this year, “Global Education, Global Quakerism,” emerged throughout a program designed to help us discuss the global diversity of Quakerism, the changing educational landscape in the world, and how members of the Religious Society of Friends might engage these topics.

We gathered the first evening to hear from Diya Abdo, Associate Professor of English at Guilford and founder of the program Every Campus a Refuge.  Hearing about the flood of refugees across Europe and the call from Pope Francis that every parish support one refugee family, Diya wondered what colleges could do. Drawing on campus resources of housing, teachers, and volunteers she shaped her idea and since the fall of 2015, Guilford College has served 27 refugees. Her program inspired seven other campuses across the country to join in this work. Diya challenged us to imagine what might be possible at our home institutions.

Listening the next morning to Guilford President Jane Fernandes’ welcoming address, we heard her say that though she did not know the specifics regarding the future of the college, she could sense that change is coming.  In spite of what she does not know, she feels a sense of calling to be here, with these people, doing this work. The Quaker commitment to listening into and out of the silence takes us to a deeper place and builds stronger relationships. We were warmed by her honesty and inspired by her steady faith.

This year marked the 50th anniversary of the first World Gathering of Quakers at Guilford College and we celebrated this historic event. The prospect of hosting this event in 1967 leveraged the integration of the college five years earlier, in 1962. As we acknowledged this important history with appreciation, we also noted the status of our organization as remaining predominantly white. Friends named our intention to attract and be relevant to a wider multiplicity of voices.

We were inspired by the message from David Niyonzima, former Superintendent and General Secretary of Burundi Yearly Meeting. After escaping genocidal violence himself in an attack that took the lives of 8 of his 11 students, he dedicated his life to the work of trauma healing, to leadership development through education, and transformation through the practice of Quaker faith.

We listened to each other in both unprogrammed and semi-programmed worship. One message by an undergraduate student from Rwanda was read aloud to us. Its powerful themes of forgiveness and reconciliation were resonant on personal and generational levels.

We were offered two dozen sessions, ranging from Physics to Leadership to Quaker Theology and History. We learned of Quaker study centers’ use of technology to reach people around the world. Other presentations lifted up the writing and publications of several scholars. A featured book was our book series’ volume four “Quakers, Business, and Industry,” edited by Stephen Angell and Ben Pink Dandelion. We noticed that change, adaptation, and transformation were words that arose in many sessions.

The annual meeting for business included approving a surplus-generating budget. In spite of financial challenges we feel confident that the membership has the resources and will to meet future needs. To ensure a strong future for FAHE, we are committed to strategic exploration toward our own growth and strengthening.

We expressed deep gratitude for several friends who have faithfully served FAHE and minutes of appreciation were read for them. Special thanks were noted for Kimberly Haas, dedicated staff person, and for Donn Weinholtz who served with great faith as clerk for two years and on the executive committee for eight.

We look forward to future fellowship and exchange of ideas. Wilmington College in Ohio has gracefully invited us to gather there next year and we look forward to another Spirit-filled opportunity to evolve together, inwardly and outwardly, toward Beloved Community. We do not know what change the future will bring, but we know that we have gifts to share and courageous work to do.  We invite you to join us.

Yours in Learning and Light,
Friends Association for Higher Education
June 17th, 2017

Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre, Birmingham, UK
June 19, 2016

To Friends Everywhere:

After an eight year absence, the Friends Association for Higher Education again gathered at the beautiful Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre in Birmingham, England.  Eager to explore the conference theme, Educating for Action, Friends from the United States, the U.K., Canada and Kenya were quickly called into action themselves, as torrential rains flooded Woodbrooke’s cellar, creating the opportunity for a bucket brigade team building event lasting well into the first evening. What a memorable start!

The program was rich in insights and variety. During  the initial plenary, Gerald Hewitson reflected on the deep origins of Quaker action, urging us to heed our traditions so we may “…walk a clear path through this busy, fractious , contemporary world.” The following day, Jan Sellars explored The Labyrinth as a path for learning and for peace. Her session included instruction on drawing labyrinths as well as hands-on opportunities to explore finger labyrinths. That evening Esther Mombo described the influence of Friends and education on the evolution of women’s status in Kenya.  As a member of the Board of Friends Theological College she expressed her hope that FAHE might soon hold its conference at FTC.  Paul Rogers analyzed the causes and impacts of the “Irregular War” involving “Isis, elites and revolts from the margins,” focusing particularly on our flawed world economic system that is producing ever greater inequality fuelling Islamic extremism.  Margaret Benefiel presented the final plenary reflecting on the role of spirituality in leadership, based on her experiences leading the “Soul of Leadership” programs offered sometimes in Boston, and sometimes at Woodbrooke.

Between plenaries, in concurrent sessions, we learned much from each other.  Multiple case studies illustrating “Educating for Action” were presented, including reflections on the Quaker Leadership Scholars program at Guilford College, faculty development in conflict resolution for Rwandan teachers,  and using Bible-based materials for  promoting social action.  Distinctive instructional methodologies, such as interdisciplinary teaching, the flipped classroom, creating learning environments, and making and breaking bread, were explored.  Various approaches to peace education were examined in detail, as were individual orientations to teaching and learning, as these are affected by gender orientation and spiritual autobiography.

One session focused on the process involved in developing the latest volume in our Quakers in the Disciplines  book series,  Quakers in Literature.  As a prelude to the next volume, a second theme of the conference, “Technologies of Change: Quakers, business and industry,” received particular attention.  Biographical snapshots of several leading nineteenth and twentieth century Quakers prominent in the development of commerce in the U.K. and the U.S. were presented.  Additionally, the Quaker orientation to accumulating personal debt was explored.

In the midst of all of this intellectual and spiritual bounty, within our Meeting for Business, Friends confronted FAHE’s real and serious financial challenges.  To remain vital, indeed to continue to exist at all, we must substantially increase our membership and funding.  It is our intention to reach out to younger Quaker scholars, and others who might join and strengthen us.  This will include efforts to attract the few remaining colleges and universities with Quaker traditions that are not currently FAHE members, as well as establishing affiliations with many Quaker academic and religious organizations to promote new synergies.

The stories provided by the members of our Presidents’ Panel reinforced the fact that all of our institutions are facing financial difficulties. However, they also revealed the power of Quaker institutions to overcome serious challenges when committed to Spirit-led discernment within loving communities.

We are profoundly grateful to the director of Woodbrooke, Sandra Berry, our main liaison at Woodbrooke, Ben Pink Dandelion, and to all the Woodbrooke staff who welcomed us warmly and who cared for our every need.  We have been deeply blessed to share time with such caring and attentive hosts in such a beautiful and inviting atmosphere.

We are already anticipating our June 2017 conference, at Guilford College.

In love and peace,

The Friends Association for Higher Education