Center for Faith and Learning Leadership

  • Matthew Wilson

    Dr. Matthew Wilson

    Kairo Endowed Director of the Center for Faith and Learning
    Associate Professor of Political Science

    Email: jmwilson@smu.edu

    Matthew Wilson is a senior fellow of the John Tower Center for Public Policy and International Affairs and of the Italian Institute for International Political Studies.  He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Louisiana State University in political science and history, and holds a Ph.D. in political science from Duke University.  His research focuses on public opinion, elections, representation, and the role of race and religion in politics, both in the United States and abroad.  He is the author, co-author, or editor of three books, including Understanding American Politics and Politics and Religion in the United States, and dozens of articles and essays.  His teaching has been honored with awards from the SMU Department of Residence Life and the Cary M. Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility, and in 2017 he received SMU’s President’s Associates Outstanding Faculty Award.  He routinely serves as a commentator on political affairs for local, national, and international media outlets.

    Dr. Wilson’s wife, Carole, works as a researcher and statistician for the Latin American Public Opinion Project at Vanderbilt University and his son, Michael, is a student at SMU.  Dr. Wilson is an active parishioner at Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Richardson, where he is a Knight of Columbus.

  • Jenna Stegemoller

    Jenna Stegemoller

    Office Coordinator

    Email: jstegemoller@smu.edu

    Jenna Stegemoller serves as Office Coordinator in the Office of the Chaplain and Religious Life, with primary responsibility for the Center for Faith and Learning and communications. She assists the Chaplains and Center for Faith and Learning Director with event coordination, communications, and social media. She is passionate about the integration of spiritual life and intellectual life, and she hopes to encourage students to be curious about the people, ideas, and worldviews they encounter at SMU.

    She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Texas State University of San Marcos. Outside of work, she finds joy in quality moments with family and friends, embarking on adventures with her little boy and husband, indulging in reading, journaling, and partaking in anything that can boost her creativity. Each day is an opportunity for discovery, she approaches life with a blend of wonder, compassion, and a zest for making a positive impact.

  • Reverend Lisa Garvin

    Rev. Lisa Garvin

    Chaplain and Minister to the University

    Email: garvinl@smu.edu

    As Chaplain and Minister to the University, Rev. Garvin leads and nurtures religious life on campus. The Center for Faith and Learning is an integral part of the Office of the Chaplain and Religious Life offering opportunities for Christian students to deepen their faith and integrate the life of the mind and the life of the spirit. Learn More About Lisa Garvin

Board Members

Linnus Emmett

Dr. Maria Dixon-Hall is SMU’s Chief Diversity Officer, as well as associate professor of Corporate Communication and Public Affairs in the Meadows School of the Arts.  Her teaching and research focus on the intersection of power, identity, and culture in corporate, non-profit, and religious organizations. She is also a Deacon in the United Methodist Church.

Barbara Kincaid has recently retired after thirty years as a SMU-COX Senior Lecturer in Business Law. Although she continues to teach Cox students at SMU-in-Taos during interterms, her new focus is on church, family, travel, yoga, and countless first-time experiences.

Dr. James K. Lee is associate professor of the history of early Christianity in the Perkins School of Theology at SMU.  His research and teachings interests include the early church fathers, Biblical interpretation, and Christian mysticism. Professor Lee's wife, Anna, is a registered nurse, and they have two daughters.

Dr. Jack Levison, who for two years led Faith and Learning cohorts, holds the W. J. A. Power Chair of Old Testament Interpretation and Biblical Hebrew at Perkins School of Theology, SMU. He lives in SMU’s Boaz Commons, where he is faculty-in-residence with his wife, Priscilla Pope-Levison, a United Methodist minister and Research Professor of Practical Theology at Perkins.

Elizabeth Loyd

Shanterra McBride

Jackson Overton is an SMU undergraduate alumnus (’21) and a J.D. candidate at Dedman School of Law ('24.) He was a Faith & Learning Scholar for two years and a member of Beta Upsilon Chi Christian fraternity. Jackson also serves as Student Trustee for SMU’s Board of Trustees

Johanna Pang is an SMU undergraduate alumna (’22) and a J.D. candidate at Dedman School of Law ('25.) As an undergraduate, Johanna won the Sheri Mooney Award, honoring “students whose Christian faith is evident as a recognizable priority in their day-to-day campus life.”

Dr. Susan Riffe

Jack Vaughn III is an alumnus of Baylor University and received an MBA from SMU in 2021. He works in finance for Deloitte Consulting. Jack and his wife have two children, and they have served in various lay leader roles at Watermark Community Church.