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Program in Religious Studies and Education |
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Mentor Teacher ProfileBrian ScottRaised a Roman Catholic, Brian Scott remembers the challenges that an academic study of religion presented to his understanding of Christianity as a freshman at Holy Cross. Apprehensively intrigued by the degree to which his assumptions were questioned, he continued to study religion over the next four years. Brian came through his questioning, graduated in 1998 with a major in English, and worked in business for three years, where he realized the practical implications of theological ideals. He returned to HDS to study scripture, but instead of positioning himself on the PhD track as he expected to do, he found himself looking backwards: "The more I got into the study of religion, the more I understood the tremendous influence that religion has over aspects of our life that really matter.… I realized that high school students really should have this knowledge." Brian took PRSE classes, and after graduating with an MTS in 2003, took a job at Catholic Memorial High School, where he now heads the theology department and teaches a course on social justice. He is also the director of the Brother Edmund Rice Summer Institute, an experiential learning immersion program, and he coaches lacrosse. His course on social justice examines the world from the perspective of the theological call to justice that exists in both Western and Eastern traditions. It covers topics of U.S. politics; consumerism; classism and racism; and students' own religious journeys. "The trick is to get students to see the theology embedded in the everyday world around them. A lot of them are so used to the adage of separation of church and state that they don’t see the influences they each have on the other," Brian says. Brian enjoys encouraging his seniors to "see things with new eyes" and to question their assumptions. Having made his own journey, he is committed to creating a classroom in which his students can question themselves. Posted July 2005
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