“Take Care of the Teachers”

“The Bible says, love your neighbor as yourself – not more than yourself,” Assistant Professor of Religious Studies Itohan Idumwonyi explains.

“Many times, we – me included – emphasize taking care of others. But there should be a moment in your journey where you pause and look inward. Have a reflection. How am I doing?”

For professors, finding the time to do this can be a challenge. They juggle a lot: designing curricula, grading papers, conducting research, writing books and papers and navigating administrative duties.

Most importantly, they guide dozens of students – not only academically but also as they adjust to college life in general. While this is one of the most rewarding aspects of the profession, Idumwonyi believes universities also need to look out for professors.

“I’m wondering at what point as a community we’re supposed to say, ‘take care of the teachers.’”

Idumwonyi, who hails from Nigeria, explains that for international professors, carving out space for self-care can be even more of a challenge as they hustle to find their way in a new country, often navigating campuses where few, if any, colleagues share their background.

To help address this need, Idumwonyi is planning an innovative retreat. The project – titled “Enacting and Embracing Wholeness: Strengthening Faculty Practices and Wellbeing for Religion and Theology Teachers of African Descent and Africanist Scholars” – is possible thanks to a grant from the Wabash Center.

 

Enacting and embracing wholeness

The retreat will offer a rare opportunity for those working at the intersection of religion, theology and African studies to gather. Many attendees will also share the unique experience of moving from Africa to North America to pursue teaching opportunities.

“There’s an African proverb,” Idumwonyi explains, “that says those who live close to the river know where the deep spots are, and they know where the shallow path is. If you come as a stranger, you need that one person who can guide you through.”

Idumwonyi, in collaboration with colleagues, Devaka Premawardhana (Emory University) and David T. Ngong (Stillman College), plan on hosting about twenty teachers and scholars. In sharing their experiences, they can help one another through the proverbial river.

They envision bringing a speaker to discuss the importance of mindfulness and mental well-being, and the retreat will feature activities to cultivate connection, reflection and community building.

A venue hasn’t been selected yet, but Idumwonyi is excited to host the retreat in the Spokane area, where outdoor opportunities abound. She plans to encourage folks to go on walks, explore nature and “remember that there’s ‘life’ beyond their academic studies.”

I am because we are

Idumwonyi’s interest in community building goes far beyond the retreat. It’s the foundation of her teaching approach and underpins much of her academic study. “I have continued to educate others about the African idea of Ubuntu,” she says. The term is translated to “I am because we are” and centers around fostering our human interconnectedness.

“The first week of the semester, I pair two students,” says Idumwonyi, “and my charge for them is to check in on each other. It can be as simple as a short text. If one student sees the other not in class, they can send a message saying, ‘I saw you weren’t in today. I hope you’re good, just checking on you.’”

By the middle of the semester, Idumwonyi expands the pairs to small groups that are called “villages.” She discusses Ubuntu with them, explaining that the pairs, and later the “villages” (small groups), are there to support one another through the ups and downs of the school year.

“They check in on each other, and by the end of the semester, I’m so thrilled to hear them talk about the ‘buddy system,’ the village system,’” says Idumwonyi.

“They recognize that in the ‘village system,’ we all know each other, your concern is my concern. If you have a question, we answer it together because we’re all in the same community.”

 

One of many projects

For Idumwonyi, the retreat is one of many endeavors in a rich academic life.

Her scholarly pursuits began in Nigeria, where she earned her bachelor's and master's and began her teaching career. She then moved to the United States to study at Harvard University, graduating with a Master of Theological Studies in 2012. She later earned her doctorate at Rice University.

While finishing her dissertation at Rice, the position she now holds at Gonzaga opened up. Although she’d never heard of Spokane, she took a chance on the opportunity. She’s now in her sixth year at the University, teaching in the religious studies department and serving in an affiliate role in the women, gender and sexuality studies department.

She’s published several papers in various journals and books, and her research and scholarship have won generous funding. Her first book, Crashed Realities? Gender Dynamics in Nigerian Pentecostalism, was recently published by Brill in 2023.

Next academic year (2025-26), she’ll head to Princeton on a one-year fellowship to work on her second book, an exploration of widowhood succession within African Pentecostalism. The emerging trend occurs when the male founder of a church passes away and his wife steps in as the new spiritual leader. Idumwonyi will look at the cultural, religious and gender dynamics of this phenomenon as well as what policies can be put in place to support women within this space. Following her research leave, she’ll return to Gonzaga to teach.

As Idumwonyi’s journey takes her around the world and back and forth across the country, she’ll continue to cultivate community and encourage others to do the same.

“Life happens to all of us,” she says. “I say this to my students at the beginning of the semester: When it rains, it does not choose you and leave me. It rains on all of us. At times, life can be a rollercoaster, and you need a support system that wears a human face. Knowing you aren’t alone greatly supports well-being and human flourishing.”