Meet Hilary Martin Himan

In August, Hilary Martin Himan began her new position as Lewis & Clark’s chaplain and director of spiritual life. She follows Mark Duntley, who retired from the college after a 32-year career.

What was your path to Lewis & Clark?

While serving as a church pastor, I discovered I enjoyed working with college students. I went back to school to earn a second master’s degree. As a graduate student, I interviewed Mark Duntley for a class project. From that initial encounter grew an internship, a temp position, and then a regular part-time role. When Mark retired this summer, I gratefully accepted the promotion to become the chaplain and director of spiritual life. I feel blessed to be following in the footsteps of such a beloved dean of spiritual life and be the first female and LGBTQ clergy member to occupy this role.

What are you looking forward to in your new role?

I look forward to helping the entire campus understand the broader ways that the Office of Spiritual Life can support our Lewis & Clark community—especially those of our community who consider themselves secular or unaffiliated with any particular religious tradition. I’m curious how we create spaces that actually foster deeper connection, whether those be in student organizations, one-hour meetings, or the physical spaces we inhabit.

There are at least a dozen spiritual life groups active on campus. How do these groups enrich campus life?

Our spiritual life groups, most of which are student led, remind us all that we are not homogenous in how we make meaning. Understanding religious diver- sity and having some basic religious literacy is so important for all of us as citizens of the world. These groups also help students understand their own spiritual identity.

What sorts of programs fall under the umbrella of spiritual care and wellness?

Spiritual care and wellness is actually a wide umbrella. We often think of it as meditation or yoga, but it can be other things too, such as our On Being Discussions on Race and Healing or a book study. Even if you don’t believe in a higher power, you can spiritually be taking care of yourself.

What’s on tap for spiritual life in academic year 2021–22?

We’re hoping to continue a lot of our programming that we have done in the past with shifts and tweaks. We acknowledge that we are living in a pandemic that is keeping us on our toes. Look for On Being Discussions, meditation and labyrinth walks, Bible studies with InterVarsity, Friday Shabbats with Hillel and a Matzah Ball Soup Hotline, carpools to Catholic mass, evangelical worship with Pio Christian Fellowship, and more.