New USD Theology Professor Navigates Tension Around Religion and Border Justice

New USD Theology Professor Navigates Tension Around Religion and Border Justice

headshot of Nicholas Witkowski

When Nicholas Witkowski, assistant professor of theology and religious studies first came to San Diego three years ago for a conference, he noticed how tensions related to the border seemed to be handled differently than in other regions in the American Southwest. That impression took on new meaning when Witkowski was hired as part of the Borders and Social Justice cluster at the University of San Diego as part of the university’s collaborative new strategy that focuses on bringing faculty from various thematic areas to join the College of Arts and Sciences.

Witkowski comes to USD from Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, where he taught in the Department of History. Witkowski is a scholar of Asian religions, focusing in particular on Buddhism and Hinduism. He is particularly interested in the way lineage informs conceptions of religious community. "Teaching and conducting research within the Borders and Social Justice cluster seems like the right fit," he says.

“I found there was a capacity for navigating that tension, and that more generally in this region, it was more proficient, more thoughtful and less hostile than other contexts,” he says. “I thought, ‘I can I contribute to this learning environment that USD is building in a broader culture.’”

Witkowski’s research and teaching emerge from a background in Catholicism and Buddhism through strong family connections. The Catholic social justice tradition overlaid with Buddhist traditions, stories and mythology produced a deep curiosity about monotheism, especially when his family transcended disagreements by maintaining close relationships.

“There were underlying conflicts and animating elements, but a sense that these things could work together,” he says. “It was like taking my first comparative religion class at age three-and-a-half.”

When Witkowski interviewed for his position, he sensed an effort from the university to change the approach to teaching through the cluster hire process, encouraging faculty to embrace broad change at a micro level. He also appreciates his colleagues’ ethical imperative to examine and confront prejudices and applauds the seminar structure as a superior form of student engagement.

“The faculty will not let students get away with unexamined thoughts,” he says. “There really is an intentional overhaul of the university mission, and it creates an intensity and energy pushing faculty to engage pedagogically with students in ways they may not have done before, and to not fall back on disciplinary training.”