The Rev. Dr. Nathan Albert, the University of Lynchburg’s chaplain and assistant vice president for belonging, has been elected president of the board of directors for the Association for Chaplaincy and Spiritual Life in Higher Education.

The announcement was made at ACSLHE’s annual conference, held Feb. 2-4 in Washington, D.C.

Albert previously served two years as the board’s vice president and before that was its new member representative. In 2021, he was the conference co-chair. He will serve as president for two years, followed by one year as past president/ex officio president.

“I joined this organization years ago, and as soon as I attended my first conference, I felt like these were my people,” Albert said. “I found support, collegiality, and understanding. I would have never thought, a few years later, I’d be the president of this organization.

“I am truly humbled and honored by this opportunity, and it is my hope to not only encourage members of this organization of the sacred work they are doing on college campuses around the nation, but also enable students to explore the spiritual and ethical dimensions of life.”

As described on its website, ACSLHE — pronounced like “axle” — “seeks to be the leading authority on religious and spiritual life in higher education [and] supports higher education chaplaincies and nurtures religious and spiritual life professionals through scholarship, education, and collaboration.”

ACSLHE’s nearly 500 members include chaplains and religious and/or spiritual life professionals from colleges and universities, big and small, public and private. “We are a fascinating religious, diverse group of people,” Albert said. “There is great religious and racial diversity.”

Among other things, being involved in ACSLHE’s leadership team has enabled Albert to network with professionals from other institutions and tell them about what the Office of Belonging is doing at Lynchburg.

“[It] has reminded even those large schools, such as Yale, Harvard, USC, etc., that we are doing important work of ensuring that every student, no matter their spiritual or religious identity, can find a home on campus,” Albert said.

“Additionally, it is allowing us to network with numerous other institutions of higher education as we all navigate the ways higher education is changing and evolving.

“I personally hope this will shed light and share with countless other schools that although we might be a small school, we are committed to ensuring that every student finds belonging, spaces of comfort, and an expansive understanding of spirituality.”  

As president, Albert said he hopes to grow membership, provide “some internal organization and structure … [to] set us up for long-term future success as an organization,” and “increase our funding and partnerships with outside organizations.”

Jer Bryant ’03, ’10 MA, Lynchburg’s associate university chaplain, works closely with Albert in the Office of Belonging. He describes Albert as a “natural leader” who “deeply values interbelief and interbeing.”

He added, “I believe that his leadership will continue to foster and … enrich ACSLHE’s dedication to empowering chaplains and religious/spiritual/secular leaders in higher education through training opportunities and community building.

“His role … will also highlight the sacred work that Spiritual Life does on our campus. God willing, his leadership in ACSLHE will put our Spiritual Life Center and our University on the radar for prospective students and employees who long to be part of an inclusive community.”