Wednesday, September 17, 2025
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Introducing Our New Interfaith Chaplain
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By Kazi Joshua, Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students
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“There is in every person, that which waits, waits, waits, and listens for the sound of the genuine in himself. There is that in every person that waits, and waits, and listens for the sound of the genuine in other people.” —Howard Thurman
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In May, we said goodbye to Adam Kirtley, our longtime Interfaith Chaplain of 18 years and beloved colleague. After an extensive search this summer that connected us to a highly competitive pool of candidates across the country, we returned again and again to the candidate who struck us as the embodiment—in the Rev. Thurman’s words—of “the sound of the genuine.”
We are pleased to announce the rev. seigen johnson as the next Interfaith Chaplain and Director of Religious and Spiritual Life at Whitman College. We will welcome the rev. johnson—in the process of relocating from Madison, Wisconsin—to campus at the end of the month.
the rev. johnson’s academic background is rooted in English Language and Literature graduate studies in African American Studies and Literary Criticism. She received her Master of Divinity degree from Boston University School of Theology where she focused on Interfaith Leadership and Religious Conflict Transformation. Her research interests are interreligious spiritual formation; identification, repair and prevention of injury in spiritual congregations; and Buddhist womanist hermeneutics.
Recognized by Interfaith America as an Emerging Leader and BRAID Mentor (Building Relationships Across Interfaith Differences), the rev. johnson comes to Whitman with a broad experience in interfaith work and dialogue across difference, having served as the Program Coordinator for the Center for Interfaith Dialogue at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and as the Associate Director of Building Interfaith Leadership Initiative (BILI) Fellowship at Hebrew College.
the rev. johnson is an ordained Soto Zen priest who has been practicing Soto Zen Buddhism for over two decades, including more than six years in residence at San Francisco Zen Center, which has grounded their commitment to compassionate presence and contemplative practice. She remains deeply connected to the spiritual lineage of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in which she was raised.
Read more for a personal note from the rev. johnson to the Whitman community.
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Emerita Professor Directs Local Production of Play
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Nancy Simon, the Garrett Professor of Dramatic Arts and Professor of Theater, Emerita, directs Sarah Ruhl’s “Letters from Max: A Ritual,” at Gesa Power House Theatre on Saturday, Sept. 20, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, Sept. 21, at 2 p.m. Based on the correspondence between Ruhl, the Pulitzer Prize and MacArthur award-winning playwright, and her student, Max Ritvo, a poet, this play about “a teacher who becomes a student and a student who becomes a teacher” traces their deep friendship in the years preceding Max’s untimely death at age 25. Actors Shauna Lilly Bogley ’83 and Nathan Bloom-Loomer give voice to Sarah and Max. Tickets are available online and at the door.
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Test Your Knowledge of the U.S. Constitution
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Today is Constitution Day, commemorating the 238th anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution. Want to test your knowledge of the Constitution? Take Whitman’s Constitution Day Quiz! There may or may not be a prize for the person who gets the best score on this quiz, but at the very least you’ll have bragging rights for the next 365 days. (Please play fair. No looking up the answers on the internet!)
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Community Engagement Program Volunteer Training Tomorrow
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Any students interested in volunteering with a Community Engagement Program through the Career and Community Engagement Center are encouraged to attend “Walla Walla 101” on Thursday, Sept. 18, from 7–8:30 p.m. in the Reid Campus Center Young Ballroom. This event includes training that is required before participation. (Flyer attached.)
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Thanksgiving Shuttle Tickets Go On Sale Monday
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Tickets for the Thanksgiving shuttle service between campus and the Seattle, Portland and Pasco airports will go on sale on Monday, Sept. 22, at 9 a.m. Tickets to Portland and Seattle are $140 round trip. Tickets to Pasco are $25 each way. Tickets must be purchased in person in Reid 202. Payment is accepted by student Whitman ID only—no cash, cards or checks. Space is limited. Tickets are nonrefundable. Shuttles leave Friday, Nov. 21, and return Sunday, Nov. 30. Schedule and route details are available online. Questions? Email angusw@whitman.edu.
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On a recent Regional Biology field trip, students explored the ecology of an elevational gradient along the Tucannon River—from the Blue Mountains down to where the Tucannon joins the Snake River—sampling aquatic invertebrates and testing the water chemistry.
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Penrose Library, Room 313 (“The Fishbowl”)
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Sherwood 114 or Reid Side Lawn (weather dependent)
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Would you like to share an event with campus? Submit the information to the Events Calendar.
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Whitman Today is emailed to Whitman College staff, faculty and students each weekday during the academic year and twice a week during breaks. An archive of previous issues is available online.
All submissions are welcome! If you have accomplishments to celebrate, an event to publicize or other Whitman content to share, email whitmantoday@whitman.edu. Submissions of 125 words or less are due by noon on the business day prior to publication. Submissions may be edited and/or held for a later date according to space and editorial needs. Your submission also authorizes use on Whitman's social media unless otherwise specified.
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Find us on social media: @whitmancollege
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