Center for Social Research

Major study documents religious mobility

The Grand Rapids Press newspaper invited CSR staff to comment for a story about a major new study of American religion by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

A massive survey of over 35,000 people, the U.S. Religious Landscape study reveals significant levels of religious mobility among Americans, with 28 percent reporting leaving the faith tradition of their childhood and another 16 percent reporting movement between groups within the Protestant tradition. Over sixteen percent reported no religious affiliation at all, but this figure includes 5.8 percent who still think of themselves as “religious” (see the bottom of the table at right on the Pew page.)

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Dr. James Penning to direct CSR

Dr. James Penning, currently chair of Calvin’s Department of Political Science, has been appointed to become Director of the Center for Social Research effective June 1, 2008.

Dr. Penning’s extensive experience includes a panoply of research- and community-related projects and positions. A scholar of public administration, urban, state and local politics, and religion and politics, he is a past president of the Michigan Conference of Political Scientists and program chair for the Religion and Politics section of the American Political Science Association. In the community, he has been a member of the Grand Rapids Planning Commission, the Kentwood City Commission, and the Baxter Community Center Board. He has conducted numerous large-scale studies and surveys. His most recent publication is Divided by a Common Heritage:  The Christian Reformed Church and the Reformed Church in America at the Beginning of the New Millennium, co-authored with colleagues Corwin Smidt of Calvin and Donald Luidens and Roger Nemeth of Hope College.

The Center’s staff and student team are excited about Dr. Penning’s unique combination of community ties and research expertise.

New Home for the CSR

The Center for Social Research will soon be relocating to 2041 Raybrook, south of Burton Street and Calvin Seminary. The new facility will be more suited to the needs of staff members, excepting the short commute across Burton. The new office space is currently being remodeled according to CSR specifications. After construction is finished, new additions to the CSR will include an assistant’s desk, a conference room, a storage room, a kitchenette, a bathroom, separate offices for research associates and research assistants, and several interior and exterior windows. A floor plan is available!

Click “READ MORE” to see pictures of the new location under construction

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Opportunities at the CSR

The previous director of the CSR, Kurt Schaefer, has recently retired from his position in order to work full time as a professor in the Economics Department.  Jan Curry, Dean of Research and Scholarship at Calvin, is temporarily taking over the position of director while the search for a new director is conducted.  See Jan Curry or the CSR staff (both located in Spoelhof) for a job description.

The CSR is also intently searching for a new student programmer.  The graduation of Mark Van Holstyn has opened up a programming position at the CSR.  See Neil Carlson (SC 207) or Nate Medeiros-Ward (SC206) for a job description.

Leading Scholar of Religion and Sociology Visits Calvin!

February 26, 2007. 3:30 p.m. Meeter Center Lecture Hall Scholar Nancy Ammerman, Professor of Sociology of Religion at Boston University will be giving a lecture entitled “Doing Good in the World: How Congregations Make a Difference.” Dr. Ammerman’s studies over the last decade have been devoted to American religious congregations. She is the author of nearly a dozen books and is active in educating the public on matters of American religious life. Her books have focused on patterns in faith communities, conservative religious movements and the role of religion in American life. In 2005 she discussed the religion and American family in an interview with Kim Lawton. (read it here) In addition to her many scholarly endeavors, Dr. Ammerman was involved as an advisor in the U.S. government’s investigation of the confrontation with the Branch Davidians at Waco. She served on a panel of experts convened by the U.S Departments of Justice and Treasury and testified before the Judiciary Committee. She also spent time in Israel, lecturing under U.S. State Department sponsorship. To find out more about Dr. Ammerman and see a list of her publications, visit her website. Also, view a transcript of an interview she gave on American congregations.