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Building a Multifaith Campus: Creating Physical Space for Historically Marginalized Minority

Students at a Public University

Amanda Wesche

Department of Student Affairs Administration, University of Wisconsin – La Crosse

SAA 790: Capstone Seminar

May 1, 2022
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Executive Summary

The University of Wisconsin (UW) La Crosse lacks an inclusive, physical space for students of

all religious and spiritual traditions to gather for individual or group prayer, meditation, and/or reflection.

College and university campuses are becoming more religiously diverse, and many are seeking ways to

support historically marginalized religious students (Rockenbach & Mayhew, 2014). While UW La

Crosse provides some resources for religious students, such as an accommodation policy and student

organizations, there is more the administration could do to support these students.

The existing literature and research reveals that creating physical space and community on campuses

can decrease religious intolerance and increase religious minority students’ sense of belonging and

spiritual well-being (Holloway-Friesen, 2018; Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013).

• College campuses mirror the larger U.S. population. So, as the American population becomes

more religiously diverse, campuses are reflecting this shift (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Snipes &

Correia-Harker, 2020).

• Historically, colleges embedded Christian principles, assumptions, symbols, practices, and

holidays into their campus culture and values (ex. Academic calendars, chapels on campus, etc.)

(Ahmadi et al., 2019; Rockenbach et al, 2015; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013).

• Creating physical space for religious practice and engagement contributes to students’

development, sense of belonging, and overall satisfaction with college (Rockenbach & Mayhew,

2014; Ahmadi et al., 2019).

• Public universities are legally allowed to provide campus space, non-coercive prayer

environments, and opportunities to engage in religious and spiritual discussions. By denying

religious support or space for students, universities are contributing to the negative religious

campus climate (Ahmadi et al., 2019).

I am proposing a Multifaith Meditation Room in the Center for Transformative Justice.

Establishing a Meditation Room would provide a safe space on campus for individuals and groups to

gather for religious and/or spiritual practice. I selected CTJ for three reasons: 1) this project aligns with
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the office’s mission and values; 2) it is a centralized location on campus; and 3) the department has the

physical space and staff to establish and maintain a meditation room.

With collaboration between CTJ, the Division of Diversity and Inclusion, Multicultural Student

Services, International Education and Engagement, Facilities Management, and religious students, this

project will:

• Develop space on campus for religious/spiritual practice

• Increase awareness of religious diversity and discrimination/oppression

• Identify safe people on campus for marginalized religious students

• Integrate religious identities and issues into the work in CTJ and the Division of Diversity and

Inclusion

• Decrease religious hate/bias incidents on campus

UW-La Crosse values creating “a safe campus climate that embraces and respects the innumerable

different perspectives found within an increasingly integrated and culturally diverse global community ”

(Chancellor, 2015). My proposed initiative aligns with these values and would assist UW La Crosse in

reaching this goal of creating a safe campus climate for all students.

Multifaith spaces can be a visible symbol of a university’s commitment to welcoming religious

diversity and supporting historically marginalized religious students. Such spaces can communicate

inclusivity, support of a religiously diverse student population, and foster a campus’s commitment to

religious pluralism (Interfaith Youth Core, 2014). I believe establishing a Multifaith Meditation Room at

UW-La Crosse would help address the religious hate/bias on campus and improve religious minority

students’ experiences on campus and with the community and provide a safe space on campus for

individuals and groups to gather for religious and/or spiritual practices.

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Building a Multifaith Campus: Supporting Religious Minority Students at a Public University

As college campuses become more diverse, conversations about diversity need to include

religious identity. A 2019 survey by the Pew Research Center found that members of non-Christian

religions and the religiously unaffiliated population are gradually growing in the United States (Pew

Research Center, 2019). This academic year, the University of Wisconsin (UW) System campuses

scheduled the first day of classes on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year. After Jewish community

leaders and faith groups spoke out against this conflict, UW campuses with scheduling conflicts pledged

to review future calendars to avoid this (Meyerhofer, 2021). All except one, UW-La Crosse. In a letter to

the UW System’s president, Chancellor Joe Gow explained that because of the university’s commitment

to diversity, they have a long-standing religious accommodations policy:

Any student with a conflict between an academic requirement and any religious observance must

be given an alternative means of meeting the academic requirement. The student must notify the

instructor within the first three weeks of class (within the first week of summer session and short

courses) of specific days/dates for which the student will request an accommodation. Instructors

may schedule a make-up examination or other academic requirement before or after the regularly

scheduled examination or other academic requirement (UWL Syllabus Policy Information &

Statements).

Chancellor Gow further explained that “this approach is effective for our institution, due to the wide

variety, and often changing representation of faiths on a college campus” (Message from th e Chancellor’s

Office, 2021). However, UW-La Crosse needs to do more than provide a religious accommodation policy.

Higher education is becoming more religiously diverse and less than 50% of students identify as

Christian (Snipes & Correia-Harker, 2020). The existing literature suggests using the term ‘worldview,’

‘multifaith’, or ‘interfaith’ when discussing religious and spiritual identity as it includes religious,

spiritual, atheist, and philosophical perspectives (Nielsen & Small, 2019; Snipes & Correia-Harkeer,

2020). Using inclusive terminology could help shift focus from Christian students to all religious and

spiritual students, especially at predominantly Christian universities.

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Religious spaces, both physical locations, and the campus climate connect to religious students’

sense of belonging (Nielsen & Small, 2019; Snipes & Correia-Harker, 2020). Interventions, like an

academic religious accommodation statement, put the responsibility on students rather than on staff,

faculty, administration, and the institution (Halloway-Friesen, 2018; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013). Stubbs and

Sallee (2013) recommended implementing more one-on-one resources and programs to help students

manage the conflicts between their religious expectations and university life. Nielsen and Small (2019)

found that providing training and routine opportunities for professional development for faculty and staff

helps improve the campus climate for religious students. By participating in training and professional

development, faculty and staff are better equipped to address the challenges students of marginalized

religions may face (Snipes & Correia-Harker, 2020).

Research shows that religious communities can be a potential avenue for college students who are

struggling with loneliness and negative well-being (Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen,

2018). Support groups like student organizations, religious and spiritual life offices, and supportive

faculty and staff can help religious students’ sense of belonging, retention, and mental well-being during

college (Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen, 2018; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013).

College campuses across the United States are already discussing interfaith engagement and how

to support religious students, especially those from historically marginalized groups. Non-profit

organizations such as the Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) provide training, workshops, grants, and resources

for higher education institutions. UW-La Crosse needs to do more for their religious, non-Christian

students. I work within the Division of Diversity and Inclusion on campus, and when having

conversations about diversity, religious identity is rarely included.

For this capstone project, I am focusing on resources that support religious minority students’

experiences on campus. Implementing resources like a multifaith calendar and a prayer or meditation

room on campus would improve students’ sense of belonging and change the campus climate to be more

welcoming and supportive of religious students because interfaith resources and discussions would

happen more regularly across campus. The academic calendar and academic conflicts are just part of a

much deeper issue. The 2018 UWL Campus Climate survey found that non-Christian students were 1.5
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times more likely than Christian students to be uncomfortable with the classroom climate and 1.6 times

more likely to be uncomfortable with the campus climate. Non-Christian students were 1.7 times more

likely to be sexually harassed and 2.2 times more likely to be sexually assaulted. This survey also found

that non-Christian students were 2.4 times more likely to consider leaving UW-La Crosse than Christian

students. In the first three months of the 2021-2022 academic year, 11 of the 35 hate/bias incidents at

UW-La Crosse targeted religion (Center for Transformative Justice, 2022b). So, Chancellor Gow is right

that the United States and college campuses’ religious representation is changing, but the university needs

to do more to support religious students than they currently are.

The purpose of this capstone project is to propose a diversity initiative to support religious and

spiritual students for the Division of Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse.

The following research questions guide this project: (a) how do religious, non-Christian students find

spiritual support at a public, four-year university; (b) what initiatives have staff at UW-La Crosse

proposed or tried to support religious and spiritual students; and (c) how do public universities collect

data regarding religious identity? By exploring what both UW-La Crosse and other universities have done

to support religious students, I will learn from other universities’ successes to propose a diversity

initiative within UW-La Crosse’s scope that best supports our religious and spiritual students.

Literature Review

In this review of the empirical literature, I will review and critique studies on the historical

significance of religion in the founding of higher education, religious privilege, and campus climate. To

conceptualize how institutions of higher education can improve the experiences of religious minority

students, I will review the creation and purpose of multi-faith spaces on campuses.

The Relationships Between Religion and Higher Education

College campuses mirror the larger U.S. population. Therefore, as the American population

becomes more religiously diverse campuses are reflecting this shift (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Snipes &

Correia-Harker, 2020). In the book Student engagement in higher education, Ahmadi Et al. (2018)

highlight the inconsistency of religion becoming less essential to higher education institutions’ mission as

campuses are experiencing an influx of religious diversity. This inconsistency between an institution’s
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mission and the campus population might further marginalize religious minority individuals and

communities (Ahmadi et al., 2018; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013). Stubbs and Sallee (2013) interviewed 10

Muslim students at a southeastern, large, public, research university and found that regardless of how

religious a student is, university support of religious identity is crucial. As Muslim students, and other

religious minority students, seek to balance their religious identity with their campus life, staff and

administration must intentionally design resources and programs for these students (Stubbs & Sallee,

2013).

Using data from the Campus Religious and Spiritual Climate Survey (CRSCS), Rockenbach et al.

(2015) found that interacting with people of different religious traditions is often a catalyst for people of

different traditions to find commonalities. College campuses create the opportunity for this interfaith

engagement since people of diverse backgrounds live, learn, and socialize in the same places

(Rockenbach et al., 2015). Higher education administrations are challenged with how to create

opportunities and physical space for interfaith dialogue and religious expression (Ahmadi et al., 2019;

Bowman & Small, 2012; Johnson & Laurence, 2012; Rockenbach et al. 2015). Interfaith dialogue

(engagement between people of different religions) is a method staff and administration can use, and “has

the capacity to deepen students’ understanding and acceptance of other traditions” (Rockenbach et al.,

2015, p. 31). Interfaith dialogue can happen organically through everyday interactions and institutionally

through co-curricular activities, classroom discussions, and administrative initiatives (Rockenbach et al.,

2015).

Christian privilege

The nine colonial colleges were started or controlled by Protestant Christian leaders who

specifically recruited young men as clergy (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Johnson & Laurence, 2012). Because of

this history, Christian principles, assumptions, symbols, practices, and holidays are culturally embedded

into American college and higher education, and we see this in academic calendars based on Christian

holy days (Christmas, Sunday worship, etc.), primarily Christian student organizations, and chapels on

campus (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Rockenbach et al., 2015; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013). In a 2019 Religion and

Politics article, Reverend Elyse Nelson Winger explains how the academic calendar privileges Christian
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practices and is “often an invisible privilege we don’t even see” (Wertheimer, 2019). As a result,

“absorbing the rites and rituals of other [religious] traditions is too often regarded as a process of

accommodation” (Karlin-Neumann & Sanders, 2013, p. 125). This invisible privilege is upheld when

UW-La Crosse and other institutions create religious accommodation statements to support religious

minority students while ignoring the impact this has on religious minority students. UW-La Crosse’s

religious accommodation puts the responsibility on students to contact their professors about any class

conflict

Christian students, staff, and faculty have more power on campus than all minority religious

groups combined, so non-Christian students are vulnerable to oppression and discrimination (Ahmadi et

al., 2019). When universities ignore the diverse religious population they have, institutional practices,

policies, and the campus culture uphold Christian privilege. This “may dull sensitivities to the

marginalization experienced by those who do not enjoy the advantages extended to religious people”

(Rochenbach et al., 2015, p. 185). Like other forms of privilege, people with privileged identities can

choose when and where they engage in discussion or acknowledge the oppression, they might participate

in. Universities cannot support their religious minority students if they continue to ignore the Christian

privilege ingrained into their policies, practices, and campus communities.

Campus Climate and Religious Tolerance

In Nielsen and Small’s (2019) analysis of the four pillars for supporting religious students, they

found that “the disregard for the needs of religious minority students have caused trauma, so much so that

certain groups have disbanded so as not to be subjected to targeted proselytizing” (p. 182). This shows

that just because a campus might not have a diverse list of religious student organizations does not mean

their student body is not religiously diverse. Instead, this could reflect a negative religious campus

climate. Staff representation, either in a Spiritual and Religious Life office or just throughout campus,

helps students experience a more positive religious campus climate (Nielsen & Small, 2019).

Institutional type and religious affiliation can also impact the university's embedded cultural

values and traditions that may be forms of invisible Christian privilege (Ahmadi et al., 2019). How

universities and colleges are currently and historically designed impacts the religious campus climate and
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religious minority students. If these institutions continue to prioritize their historically Christian ideals

and needs, then religious minority students may continue to experience a negative campus climate.

Religious minority students tend to experience a more negative campus climate compared to their

religious majority peers (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Nielsen & Small, 2019; Rockenbach et al., 2018;

Rockenbach et al., 2015; Stubbs & Sallee, 2014). Rockenbach and Mayhew (2015) conducted an online

survey of approximately 10,000 third-year college students at two public universities and found that

structural religious diversity, space for religious expression, and provocative interfaith experiences

increased religious minority students’ experience on campus and with the community.

Rockenbach and Mayhew (2014) break down a positive religious campus climate into four

elements: (1) exposure to diverse worldviews, (2) ability to find religious support, (3) opportunity to

engage with and challenged by others, and (4) freedom from tension and conflict on campus at large.

When institutions meet the needs of religious minority students, they tend to be satisfied with the campus

climate. Mayhew et al. (2018) used the CRSCS data to understand the non-Jewish students’ attitudes

towards Jewish students. Non-Jewish students had positive attitudes towards Judaism and Jews if they

had informal interactions with peers from diverse worldviews or religions, the campus supported religious

expression, and students felt challenged to rethink their assumptions about another religion (Mayhew et

al., 2018). These three positive climate measurements align with Rockenbach and Mayhew’s (2014) four

elements for a positive religious campus climate. Interfaith dialogue and institutional religious support

can create a positive campus climate for religious minority students.

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The intersecting identities of religion, culture, and race

When discussing campus climate and social identity, it is important to discuss how religious,

cultural, and racial identities intersect since religion and culture are interrelated (Holloway-Friesen,

2018). Holloway-Friesen (2018) examined the impact religious and cultural commitment and struggle had

upon Asian American graduate students. Her student shows the importance of pairing culture and

religious elements when discussing students’ adjustment to college as students interact and create

community with faculty, staff, and other students who share similar beliefs (Holloway -Friesen, 2018).

These findings reinforce the idea that when campus programming honors students’ religious and cultural

identities these students experience a more positive campus climate.

Stubbs and Sallee’s (2013) study on Muslim students’ bicultural acculturation found that

“Muslim students are largely ignored by campus policies and may contend with a university experience

that challenges their religious values and practices” (p. 415). Participants expressed feeling conflicted

about participating in college party activities (e.g., drinking) because it did not align with their religious

and cultural values (Stubbs & Sallee, 2013). By embracing American and Muslim identities, Muslim

students related to their non-Muslim peers and felt more comfortable on a predominately White, Christian

campus (Stubbs & Sallee, 2014). However, participants in this study provided numerous examples of

prejudice and discrimination they experienced on campus, “including being called a terrorist, signaled our

in the middle of classroom discussions, and mocked for religious practices such as wearing the hijab or

observing Ramadan” (Stubbs & Sallee, 2013, p. 461). Similar to Nielsen and Small’s (2019) finding,

religious discrimination can cause religious minority students to not seek out campus community or stop

attending identity affirming groups. While some religious minority students might not need religious

community or support, that is not the case for all students.

Campus Multifaith Spaces and Resources

In response to the rising religious diversity on college campuses, many universities are creating

inclusive religious spaces (Karlin-Neumann & Sanders, 2013; Nielsen & Small, 2019). After World War

II, American campuses began designing buildings, floors, and rooms for many religious groups to use

(Johnson & Laurence, 2012). Johnson and Laurence (2012) point out that existing religious sp aces (e.g.,
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campus chapels) do not meet the needs of diverse student populations since these spaces are designed for

Christian worship practices. Higher education institutions can support all religious students by creating

multi-faith spaces and centers. If universities and colleges establish physical spaces and resources, they

are creating institutional change that reflects and supports the religious diversity on campus (Johnson &

Laurence, 2012).

When creating these multi-faith spaces, institutions need to consider the needs and activities of

each religious group (Ahmadi et al., 2019; Johnson & Laurence, 2012; Nielsen & Small, 2019). Johnson

and Laurence explain that a worship or sacred space “must quickly transition one's mind to a place ready

to worship, a place quite separate from the surrounding secular world” (p. 53). To achieve this in a

multifaith space, the room cannot contain specific imagery or icons of one tradition (Johnson & Laurence,

2012; Nielsen & Small, 2019). Space for communal prayer for Muslim students or Bible studies for

Christians can differ but with careful consideration a multi-faith space and house both (Ahmadi et al.,

2019). Therefore, staff need to supply a variety of religious resources and the space needs storage for

these items (Johnson & Laurence, 2012; Nielsen & Small, 2019). Designing the space to remain

religiously neutral when unused allows a variety of religious people to use it as they need.

A multifaith prayer and meditation room(s) need a campus location to exist, which may include

renovating an already existing religious space or a non-religious room or including a space in new

construction. Johnson and Laurence (2012) explain that renovating an existing religious space may

include removing stained glass windows with iconography or crosses inside and outside the building.

Although difficult and costly, existing chapels tend to be in the middle of campus and may serve as a

source of pride for the community (Johnson & Laurence, 2012). If there is not already a religious space,

an academic building, office, or multipurpose room can be renovated by the institution or department to

include a multifaith space (Johnson & Laurence, 2012). Renovating a non-religious space allows

universities to intentionally create an area that meets the needs of a variety of religious individuals and

groups.

Ahmadi et al. (2019) point out that administrators resort to citing the separation of church and

state as a reason not to promote religious diversity or support religious minority students. However,
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public universities are “legally allowed to provide campus space (e.g., meeting room, bulletin boards),

non-coercive prayer environments, opportunities to engage in religious and spiritual classroom

discussions, and the right to organize” (p. 225). By denying religious support or multifaith spaces for

students, staff, and faculty, universities are contributing to the negative religious campus climate.

Nielen and Small (2019) report that multi-faith campus centers were the most likely place

students sought to connect around issues of their religious identity. Rockenbach and Mayhew (2014)

argue that creating physical space for individuals and groups to disclose and discuss their religious

traditions and beliefs will ultimately serve all students. And Ahmadi et al. (2019) explain “by cultivating a

more conducive space for religious engagement, colleges can contribute to students’ development, sense

of belonging, and overall satisfaction with college” (p. 226). By creating physical space for religious

minority students to gather and practice their faith traditions, the administration shows the campus

community that supporting religious diversity is their priority.

Theoretical Frameworks

This review of the theoretical literature will feature studies on college students’ sense of

belonging, psychological wellness, and religious identity development. Belongingness and psychological

wellness impact academic success and the retention of students of marginalized social identities (Bowman

& Small, 2012; Vaccaro & Newman, 2016). I choose religious identity development because, in these

theories, adolescence and young adulthood are often crucial times in identity development (Patton et al,

2016).

Sense of Belonging

Sense of belonging as a concept captures a student’s view of whether they feel included in the

campus community and illustrates the relationships between the individual and the institution (Johnson et

al., 2007). From their study on the development of students’ sense of belonging, Vaccaro and Newman

(2016) define this concept in three ways: (1) feeling comfortable with others and the environment (2)

feeling part of the campus community, and (3) being respected by peers, staff, faculty, and administration.

Students with marginalized identities discussed how being judged or discriminated against were

associated with their lack of belonging (Vaccaro & Newman, 2016).

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Duran et al. (2020) investigate how campus environments are created in ways that might

marginalize students based on their race and status as first-generation college students. From this study,

Duran et al. (2020) found that students’ social identities influence their sense of belonging. Duran et al.

(2020) suggest using an intersectional lens when examining students’ belonging as one’s environment and

peer-to-peer interactions can shape how students experience belonging. Pfund and Miller-Perrin (2019)

focus on religious environments and communities to understand students’ sense of belonging. They found

that religious communities provide a support system for individuals and can create a sense of belonging

(Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019). When supported by universities, these communities, both on and off-

campus, can help create a sense of belonging for students (Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019).

Racial and cultural identity impacts students of color’s sense of belonging at a higher rate than

their white peers (Duran et al., 2020; Johnson et al., 2017; Vaccaro & Newman, 2016). White students

tend to associate a sense of belonging with making friends and being involved, but students of color often

associate a sense of belonging with safety, respect, and being their authentic selves (Vaccaro & Newman,

2016). Multicultural and other identity-based groups might not foster a sense of belonging if students do

not have real connections or could not be authentic in these spaces (Vaccaro and Newman, 2016). Social

identities are an important aspect of students’ lives, and universities should try not to favor dominant

norms and cultures over their diverse student population (Johnson et al., 2007). If higher education

institutions try to understand students’ perceptions of their campus environments and climate,

administrators can create inclusive campus climates that positively impact marginalized students' sense o f

belonging (Johnson et al., 2007).

Student Well-being

Navigating college can be challenging and stressful, and students’ psychological well-being can

shape how they manage this. Koo (2021) explains, “Well-being is represented in the category of

emotional wellness from the holistic wellness model, and perceived campus climate is considered as

social wellness” in this model (p. 199). From their study on student involvement and well-being, Kilgo et

al. (2016) found that participation in co-curricular activities significantly predicted several aspects of

psychological well-being including: students’ personal growth, positive relationships with others, and
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purpose in life” (p. 1043). While campus involvement improves students’ well-being, the perceived

campus climate may impact students of marginalized identities more than privileged students (Bowman &

Small, 2012; Koo, 2021; Parks & Millora, 2010).

Campus climate and students’ well-being are reciprocal (Koo, 2021). Higher education

institutions promote inclusive, diverse, and multicultural programs, offices, and learning environments,

but in Koo’s (2021) study, marginalized students still reported discrimination and hostility.

Microaggressions can result in psychological stress (Parks & Millora, 2010). Parks and Millora (2010)

explain it is essential for universities to make proactive changes and steps towards providing support to

students throughout their time on campus, not just in their first year.

Regarding religious identity, Christian students may have an option to decide how much of their

religious identity they disclose, but “religious minority students may be acutely aware of their

marginalized status on campus and in American society, which may lead to diminished well-being”

(Bowman & Small, 2012, p. 493). Because of the intersectionality of religious and cu ltural identities,

institutions need to support religious students’ psychological well-being needs (Bowman & Small, 2012;

Koo, 2021).

Religion can serve as emotional support for students and can influence how students manage

stress, anxiety, and traumatic events (Bowman & Small, 2012; Park & Millora, 2010). To support

religious students’ well-being, Parks and Millora (2010) suggest partnering campus religious life staff

with mental health resources. If a university lacks staff specialized in religious identity support, they need

to partner with the religious communities in the area that students might seek out (Parks & Millora, 2010).

Bowman and Small (2012) found that when students engage in religious activities, they are more likely to

find community and build friendships, which is positively related to student well-being.

Religious Identity Development

Patton et al. (2016) distinguish religious identity as a collective identity and spiritual identity as a

personal one. Religious identity can transition from an ascribed identity to a chosen one as a person finds

more freedom to explore their own tradition (Patton et al., 2016). Jamies Fowler, a Methodist minister,

developed the theory on faith stages to explain how a person developed their religious identity and beliefs
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through 6 stages (Patton et al., 2016). The first stage is primal faith, which typically develop s at an early

age by their family and shapes their first images of God or a divine being. Mythic-literal faith is when the

person accepts what they are taught as absolute truth, and this creates a foundation for their religious

beliefs. The third stage, synthetic-convention faith, occurs when the person’s religious identity becomes

meaningful to them as an individual, but they still rely on external validation for these beliefs.

Conjunctive faith occurs when they become accepting of other religious traditions while staying deeply

committed to their own. The final stage is universalizing faith, which according to Fowler is rare. This

stage is a “radical decentration from self” and accepting of other worldviews (Patton et al., 2016, p. 184).

In 2000, Fowler modified the faith stages to end at conjunctive faith (Patton et al., 2016). This theory

describes religious identity development through a person’s life course.

Sharon Daloz Parks, a counselor and researcher, developed the theory of faith development,

highlighting how higher education influences religious identity development in young adults (Patton et

al., 2016). Park’s model includes three stages--cognitive, dependence, and community--which are

multidimensional rather than linear like Fowler’s (Patton et al., 2016). This theory has prompted research

on college students’ religious identity development as they navigate new environments and possibly break

from beliefs taught to them as children (Patton et al., 2016).

Sample Practices

This review will look at the Interfaith Youth Core’s mission and resources designed to assist

higher education professionals and institutions in creating multi-faith engagement and support on

campuses. I will also review four universities that created multi-faith initiatives on their campuses.

Interfaith Youth Core

The Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) is a national nonprofit that partners with colleges and

universities “to make interfaith cooperation a vital part of the college experience, and ultimately a positive

force in our [American] society” (Interfaith Youth Core, n.d.-b). IFYC started as the Chicago Youth

Council by a Muslim American named Eboo Patel, then the September 11th attacks happened. In 2002,

the Chicago Youth Council was incorporated as IFYC and received a grant from the Ford Foundation

(Interfaith Youth Core, n.d.-a). Their goal is to “build an interfaith youth movement using service to bring
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together people who might disagree on ultimate truths but share a commitment to improve their world”

(Interfaith Youth Core, n.d.-a). Now, IFYC has built a network of over 100,000 interfaith leaders on more

than 600 college campuses (Interfaith Youth Core, n.d.-a).

IFYC provides training, articles, and resource guides, including one on creating an interfaith

room or space on campus. In this guide, they explain, “Interfaith spaces are a visible symbol of an

institution’s commitment to welcoming religious diversity…interfaith spaces communicate inclusivity,

support of a religiously diverse student population, and foster a campus’s commitment to pluralism”

(Interfaith Youth Core, 2014, p. 1). This guide provides examples of campus interfaith spaces, and

questions for staff and students to consider when creating these spaces. While there is no one-size-fits-all

model, IFYC identified a baseline process for staff and students to start from.

At UW La Crosse, I can use IFYC’s guide in planning a multifaith meditation room. IFYC

recommends finding a space in a central location on campus, preferably close to academic buildings.

Locating this space in an office where staff can oversee the budget and maintain the room will sustain this

program (Interfaith Youth Core, 2014). Finally, in this guide, IFYC provides a list of ways the room or

space might be used by students and different religious practices to consider.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (U of I) is a public land-grant institution in

central Illinois with over 51,000 students. According to their website, U of I housed “the first Wesley

Methodist Center (1913), first Hillel Center for Jewish Life (1923), first Muslim Students’ Association

(1963) and the largest Newman Catholic Center in the United States” (University of Illinois, 2021). Along

with providing community and support for religious students, the U of I developed the Illinois Interfaith

Planning Initiative in 2011, which works “to create programs designed to invite interfaith engagement,

understanding, and cooperation” for the campus community (University of Illinois, 2021).

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion maintains a calendar of

religious observances to aid with academic and campus planning (University of Illinois, 2021). This

calendar provides dates and descriptions for days of religious observances for various faith traditions.

Faculty and staff can use this calendar to plan exams, due dates, and campus-wide programs so that all
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students can participate, and nobody must choose between their religious identity and their identity as a

member of the campus.

St. Cloud State University

St. Cloud State University, a public university in Minnesota with about 16,000 students, created

an interfaith calendar. This calendar includes dates, descriptions, and recommended accommodations for

faculty and staff to use when planning activities and events (St. Cloud State University). Like U of I’s

religious observances calendar, this Interfaith Calendar shows institutional commitment and support for

religious minority students. I like this calendar more than U of I’s because of the recommended

accommodations the university has added. These accommodations range from encouraging faculty not to

schedule important deadlines to simply sharing that someone of this religion might request the day off.

Again, this encourages faculty and staff to be proactive when planning for the semester.

Stanford University

In 2007, Stanford University dedicated The Center for Inter-Religious Community, Learning, and

Experiences (CIRCLE) on the third floor of the Old Union (Karlin-Newmann & Sanders, 2013). During

the renovation of the Old Union, students advocated for this floor to become a dedicated space for

religious engagement and practice. The CIRCLE increased religious understanding and awareness at

Stanford University (Karlin-Newmann & Sanders, 2013). Since most Stanford students live on-campus,

the Office of Religious Life works with dining services to provide religious exceptions and

accommodations to students (Karlin-Newmann & Sanders, 2013).

Originally, these meal plans meant students could not use the main dining facilities, so Religious

Life worked with students and dining services to incorporate the dietary needs of religious students within

the main kitchens, so students did not have to sacrifice their religious traditions to eat with their friends

(Karlin-Newmann & Sanders, 2013). Re-imagining and challenging accommodations, like separate

dining halls, prioritizes religious minority students’ needs. Too often these accommodations are an

afterthought or the obligation to change something is put on the student rather than administration

(Karlin-Newmann & Sanders, 2013). To propose a kosher or halal meal plan, I would need data on UW

La Crosse’ religious student population.

 18

University of Wisconsin Platteville’s Meditation Space

University of Wisconsin (UW) Platteville is a 4-year public university in southwest Wisconsin

with about 8,000 students. UW Platteville created a multi-faith space on campus for all students, faculty,

and staff to use for meditation and prayer (University of Wisconsin-Platteville, 2021). This space includes

the main area, a private prayer space, and a hand and foot washing station (University of Wisconsin-

Platteville, 2021). Since UW Platteville and UW La Crosse are part of the UW System and similar sizes,

Platteville can be used as a model for what UW La Crosse can do.

Students’ religious identity is part of who they are. To support students’ sense of belonging, well-

being, and religious development, higher education institutions need to address and discuss the invisible

ways Christians are privileged on college campuses. UW La Crosse is the only UW campus that did not

commit to reevaluate their academic calendar after the first day of classes coincided with Rosh Hash anah.

The Hate/Bias Incident Report from this semester aligns with the empirical literature and studies

on religious campus climate. Just because UW La Crosse does not collect data on religious identity does

not mean our campus is not religiously diverse. My intended intervention is to create a multifaith

meditation room at UW-La Crosse. U of I and St. Cloud State provide multifaith calendars, which UW-La

Crosse would benefit from in adjunction with the religious accommodation statement.
 19

Proposed Intervention

The purpose of this proposal is to describe the development and implementation of a Multifaith

Meditation Room in the Center for Transformative Justice at the University of Wisconsin (UW) – La

Crosse. When I was an undergraduate student, I worked as a Multifaith Ambassador and oversaw my

campus’ Multifaith Meditation Room. This space created opportunities for religious minority students to

pray, meditate, or just take a moment to breathe. College students often live, study, work, and socialize on

campus. For many students, religious practices and traditions are a part of their life regardless of whether

there is the physical space to do so. I propose creating a Multifaith Meditation Room in the Center for

Transformative Justice so students have a space to pray, meditate, or just breathe.

The existing literature and research reveal that creating physical space and community on

campuses can decrease religious intolerance and increase religious minority students’ sense of belonging

and spiritual well-being (Holloway-Friesen 2018; Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013).

Currently, UW-La Crosse’s only resources for religious students are the religious statement for academics

and the seven Christian student organizations. According to the Interfaith Youth Core (2014), multifaith

spaces “bring together religiously diverse students and value the spiritual practices of the student

population” (p. 1). Establishing a Multifaith Meditation Room at UW-La Crosse would provide a safe

space on campus for individuals and groups to gather for religious and/or spiritual practices without

needing to be a registered student organization.

I propose creating a Multifaith Meditation Room in the Center for Transformative Justice (CTJ).

The mission of CTJ is “to center historically marginalized communities, liberate the learner, and disrupt

inequitable systems of advance intersectional social justice and equity in our collective spheres of

influence” (Center for Transformative Justice, 2022a). Because of CTJ’s mission and the staff’s role on

campus, this would be an ideal location for the Multifaith Meditation Room. Additionally, CTJ is in

Centennial Hall, which is in the middle of campus and located next door to the Multicultural Student

Services and International Education and Engagement offices. Because religious identity often intersects

with racial and cultural identities, CTJ’s office is the best placement for a Multifaith Meditation Room.
 20

I will work with the CTJ Director, Dr. Tara Nelson, and Program Coordinator, Veronica

Pettigrew, to establish the Multifaith Meditation Room. To create this space, an office room in CTJ would

be remodeled into a secular meditation space. This would include removing any furniture currently in the

room, purchasing a variety of supplies that different students and groups might use, and creating

guidelines for the Multifaith Meditation Room. While the room is designed to be used by students,

faculty, and staff, this would also provide the opportunity to create opportunities for education and

dialogue about religious traditions and diversity on campus.

My target population is religiously diverse students at UW-La Crosse. Currently, the University

does not collect religious identity information, however in the 2018 Campus Climate survey the labels

“Christian students” and “non-Christian students” were used, providing us with some data on religious

students’ experiences at UW-La Crosse (Campus Climate, 2018). This survey found that non-Christian

students were 1.5 times more likely than Christian students to be uncomfortable with the classroom

climate and 1.6 times more likely to be uncomfortable with the campus climate. Non-Christian students

were 1.7 times more likely to be sexually harassed and 2.2 times more likely to be sexually assaulted.

This survey also found that non-Christian students were 2.4 times more likely to consider leaving UW-La

Crosse than Christian students. During the 2021-2022 academic year, 12 of the 48 hate/bias incidents

targeted religion (Center for Transformative Justice, 2022b).

I am focusing on historically marginalized religious students, which includes but is not limited to

Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Pagan, and spiritual students. A survey by the Pew Research Center (2019) found

that members of non-Christian religions and the religiously unaffiliated population are gradually growing

in the United States. Changes in the religious diversity of America’s population are often mirrored on

college campuses.

College campuses across the United States are already discussing how to support religiously

diverse students. Right now, the only official campus resource for religious students at UW-La Crosse is

the religious accommodation policy,

Any student with a conflict between an academic requirement and any religious observance must

be given an alternative means of meeting the academic requirement. The student must notify the
 21

instructor within the first three weeks of class of specific days/dates for which the student will

request an accommodation (University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, n.d.).

Because of this policy, the University empowers students to advocate for themselves. However, this puts

the responsibility on the students to share their religious identity with a faculty member who may not be a

safe advocate or ally.

Research shows that religious communities can be a potential avenue for students who are

struggling with loneliness and negative well-being (Fund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen,

2018). Support groups like student organizations, religious and spiritual life offices, and support staff can

help religious students’ sense of belonging, retention, and mental well-being during college (Pfund &

Miller-Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen 2018; Stubbs & Sallee, 2013). I believe establishing a Multifaith

Meditation Room at UW-La Crosse will address the religious hate/bias on campus and improve religious

minority students’ experiences on campus and with the community. This project will achieve the short-

term goals of developing a space for religious/spiritual practice and increasing awareness of religious

diversity and discrimination. With time and partnership with CTJ, hosting this space would integrate

religious/spiritual identities and issues into the work in CTJ, the Division of Diversity and Inclusion, and

the campus. In the following section, I provide a detailed description of my implementation plan.
 22

Intervention Details

In this section, I will outline the necessary action steps to implement a Multifaith Mediation

Room at UW-La Crosse. I will discuss the stakeholders and collaborative partners involved, the resources

required and projected budget, a tentative timeline for implementation, potential issues with ethics and

equity, and finally assessment strategies to determine the intervention’s overall effectiveness. Each of

those components is discussed in greater detail below.

Stakeholders

As the Multifaith Meditation Room will be housed in the Center for Transformative Justice

(CTJ), the office staff are key stakeholders. The Director, Dr. Tara Nelson, and the Program Coordinator,

Veronica Pettigrew, will facilitate training, monitoring, and upkeep of the Meditation Room. In her role,

Dr. Nelson provides administrative oversight of the office’s programs and initiatives. Pettigrew

coordinates CTJ’s training, events, and other programs and therefore will oversee the Meditation Room.

Another stakeholder is the Division of Diversity and Inclusion. The mission of the Division is to

provide leadership, advocacy, and inclusion for historically marginalized and systematically under-served

populations (Diversity & Inclusion, 2022). Due to their administrative role, the Vice Chancellor and

Assistant Vice Chancellor's support of the Meditation Room is critical for the success of this project. As a

division leader, Vice Chancellor Stewart supervises the CTJ Director and supports CTJ’s projects and

initiatives.

The purpose of this initiative is to create a physical, safer space for religious and spiritual students

to pray, meditate, and practice on campus. Therefore, historically underrepresented religious students at

UW-La Crosse will decide the future of the Meditation Room. Without their support, feedback, and usage

of the space, this initiative would not survive. Currently, UW-La Crosse does not ask for students’

religious identity, so we will need to use a creative approach when recruiting religious students. Inviting

leaders and members from student organizations like the Native American Student Association (NASA)

and the Hmong Organization Promoting Education (HOPE) could be a way to introduce students to the

space. Multicultural student organizations, like NASA and HOPE, would be a good place to start in

student recruitment because of the intersecting identities of culture/ethnicity and religious/spiritual

 23

identities. Working with multicultural student organizations could be one way CTJ promotes the

Meditation Room to students and involves them in the continuous use and improvements to this project.

Collaboration

Collaboration for this project will require coordination between CTJ, the International Education

and Engagement (IEE) office, Multicultural Student Services (OMSS), the CTJ student staff, and

multicultural student organizations like the Native American Student Association (NASA). Since the

Meditation Room will be in CTJ, that office staff will be the primary collaborator. IEE and OMSS are

selected as collaborators because of their physical proximity to the space and the student populations they

work with. IEE may have international students who need a room to pray in, so this collaboration focuses

on promoting this resource to these students. OMSS supports the different multicultural student

organizations, which may include religious students who would utilize the Meditation Room. In Summer

2022, the Program Coordinator will facilitate a meeting between IEE, OMSS, and CTJ to discuss the

project. This initial meeting gives these office representatives the opportunity to learn about the

Meditation Room, provide feedback, and discuss IEE and OMSS’s role in the establishment and

continuation of this project.

Facilities management will be a collaborator at the beginning of this project. The office in CTJ

will need to be cleaned out of the current furniture and any additional furniture will be approved by

facilities. The CTJ professional staff should discuss the space with any custodian staff who might access

the Meditation Room.

Finally, student collaboration needs to be ongoing for the success of this intervention. Any

current or future student staff in CTJ would need to undergo training and education regarding religious

diversity. This will help them understand the need for the Meditation Room and provide them with the

resources and knowledge to create religious diversity education at UW-La Crosse. This may include

working with the Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC) and possibly attending their annual conference in Chicago

if funding is available through either CTJ, the Division of Diversity and Inclusion, or UW-La Crosse.

Resources
 24

To keep the Multifaith Meditation Room’s startup costs as low as possible, the space will be

housed in CTJ, where an extra office will be used as the Meditation Room. The goal is to keep the space

neutral between users, so decorations and supplies should be minimal or placed in storage within the

room. The current furniture in the room will be removed, except the bookshelf, and window film added to

the window for privacy. CTJ will purchase two floor lamps for alternative lighting, six cloth baskets

added to the bookshelf to store supplies, and adding labels if necessary. I recommend purchasing three

square floor pillows for alternative seating. and a prayer rug, yoga mat, or other materials use in the room.

Paper and printed marketing products for Meditation Room promotion are needed for this

intervention. These items include but are not limited to posters and flyers. The room hours of operation

will be printed and placed outside the space for student information.

Funding for this project will come from the CTJ budget. There will be an excessive cost at the

initial stage but then reduced to an upkeep fund. Staff should encourage students to bring their own

materials for their practices and prayer but should not leave personal items in the space. If a group

continuously uses the space, the Program Coordinator should try and work with them if they would like to

keep materials in the space.

Projected Budget

Item Cost Total

Floor pillows $35 x 3 $70

Prayer rug $25 x 1 $25

Floor lamps $30 x 2 $60

Cloth baskets for bookshelf $35 (set of 6) $35

Window film $15 x 1 $15

Timeline

The goal is to have this space ready in September 2022. To achieve this goal, I created a monthly

timeline of the necessary steps. This timeline is for the initial 9 months of this program; because this

space is for constant use, ongoing maintenance and assessment will be necessary for success.
 25

• May 2022

o I will present this proposal to CTJ’s Director and Program Coordinator

o CTJ work with Facilities Management to empty the extra office

o Director purchases materials

• June 2022

o Program Coordinator conduct initial collaborators meeting with IEE and OMSS

• July 2022

o CTJ creates assessment tool for Meditation Room

o Program Coordinator sets up room

o CTJ staff invites Diversity and Inclusion Division leaders to visit the space

• August 2022

o Program Coordinator and student staff creates promotional materials and updates website

to include information about the Meditation Room

• September 2022

o Program Coordinator trains CTJ student staff on religious diversity and the purpose of the

Meditation Room

o Open space for UW-La Crosse community

• January 2023 (continuous)

o CTJ staff reviews room usage and makes any adjustments as needed

Ethics

In the development and implementation of the Multifaith Meditation Room two ethical principles

need to be considered: justice and respect for people's rights and dignity (Gay et al., 2009). Justice

recognizes “the fairness and justice entities all persons to access and to benefit equally from the

contributions of procedures and services” (Gay et al., 2009, p. 20). While this project is intended to serve

historically marginalized religious people at a predominately Christian campus, the Meditation Room

would be available to all students, faculty, and staff at UW-La Crosse to use. Religious expression at
 26

public universities is protected under the first amendment, and public institutions, like UW-La Crosse,

should fund activities associated with religious practice (Miller & Sorochty, 2014).

The second ethical consideration is respect for people’s rights and dignity. While there are many

advantages of having a space for religious and spiritual practice, it could also further negatively target

historically marginalized religious students. When promoting the Meditation Room on campus and

purchasing supplies, CTJ staff should avoid targeting one specific religious group. Using more inclusive

language like “meditation” or “reflection” instead of prayer and ensuring the room remains neutral can

help lessen any potential bias. When training or educating the campus community, CTJ staff must try

eliminating the effect of biases and condone activities based on prejudices (Gay et al., 2009). Continuous

self-reflection of personal and institutional biases must occur for anyone overseeing and assisting with

this space.

Equity

The goal of a Multifaith Meditation Room is to provide a physical space for religious students to

pray, meditate, and practice their traditions. While the target population for this intervention is historically

underrepresented religious students, it will also be a space for Christian students to use individually or as

a group. The Meditation Room upholds anti-discrimination policies and procedures in work done on

campus and must align with the mission of both CTJ and the Division of Diversity and Inclusion. UW-La

Crosse’s Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation Policy states that no student or employee may be

discriminated against on the basis of religion (University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, 2020).

In the marketing and creation of the Meditation Room, I encourage CTJ staff to think about how

they are connected with religious students. CTJ staff should reach out to all students to share this resource

regardless of their religious identities. Assumptions about religious identity can be harmful, even with the

best intentions.

Assessment

The overall goal of this intervention is to create a safe space at UW-La Crosse for religious

students. I created five outcomes of the implementation of a Multifaith Mediation room divided into

short-term, medium-term, and long-term.

 27

Short (9 months) Medium (1-2 years) Long (1+ years)

UW-La Crosse develops space Identify staff on campus who Decrease religious hate/bias

on campus for religious/spiritual are safe people for marginalized incidents on campus.

practice. religious students.

Increase awareness of religious Integrate religious/spiritual

diversity and identities and issues into the

discrimination/oppression. work in CTJ and the Division of

Diversity and Inclusion.

To evaluate if these outcomes are reached, I recommend two forms of assessment. The first

recommendation focuses on the usage of the Meditation Room. I recommend CTJ track access to the

Meditation Room digitally to maintain confidentiality. This could be done either through an (optional)

survey, requiring an I.D. card swipe, or room reservation. A Qualtrics survey could be sent out to users

every semester to receive student feedback regarding accessibility, materials, and overall satisfaction with

the Meditation Room. This assessment would provide numerical data on how many people are using the

room and at what frequency.

For my second recommendation, I am focusing on campus climate and diversity education.

Establishing a Meditation Room in CTJ provides the opportunity for the CTJ staff to develop and

implement programming that focuses on interfaith cooperation and religious diversity on campus and in

the world. This component of my intervention would be implemented in current and new programming

efforts by CTJ and with other collaborators in the Division. CTJ already provides social justice

programming and hate/bias response. CTJ can continue to promote their departmental values by

integrating education and discussions about religious identity into these existing programs and developing

new programs specifically focused on religion. Updates on the Meditation Room should be included in

CTJ’s Annual End-of-Year report for the Division. If in the future, the Division creates any assessment

requirements, those should be integrated into the existing evaluation of the program.

Conclusion
 28

The literature and research on religious identity shows that religious communities can be a

potential avenue for students who are struggling with loneliness and negative well-being (Fund & Miller-

Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen, 2018). In college, support groups like student organizations, religious

and spiritual life offices, and support staff can help religious students’ sense of belonging, retention, and

mental well-being during college (Pfund & Miller-Perrin, 2019; Holloway-Friesen 2018; Stubbs & Sallee,

2013). Multifaith spaces are a visible symbol of an institution’s commitment to welcoming religious

diversity. Such spaces can communicate inclusivity, support of a religiously diverse student population,

and foster a campus’s commitment to religious pluralism (Interfaith Youth Core, 2014). I believe

establishing a Multifaith Meditation Room at UW La Crosse would help address the religious hate/bias on

campus and improve religious minority students’ experiences on campus and with the community and

provide a safe space on campus for individuals and groups to gather for religious and/or spiritual

practices.
 29

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