February 20, 2025
Richard Mason, Associate Vice President for Campus Life and Associate Dean of the College, received the Association for Chaplaincy and Spiritual Life in Higher Education (ACLSHE, pronounced “axle”) Multifaith Advocate Award. The award recognizes a chaplaincy and spiritual life partner for their advocacy for religion and spirituality as a critical piece of their work.
Jigna Shah, Director of Spiritual Life and Senior Associate Dean of Rockefeller Chapel, recently elected Vice President of ACLSHE’s board, nominated Richard for the award. She praised her colleague, saying, “Richard Mason has, for the 20 years that he's been here, always taken an interest in ensuring that our students can live their lives of faith more fully as part of their daily life on campus and not have to jump hurdles to do so.”
Talking to Richard about what the award means to him, he said, “Being recognized for the work that we've done in responding to students and making students feel welcome, regardless of their faith, in their dining halls and residence halls is really humbling.”
One major initiative Richard worked on was establishing halal and kosher stations in all the dining halls on campus. “It really just started with a conversation with students asking about how they eat and finding out that they were basically vegetarian because there wasn't a place to eat halal meats,” Richard explained. “We worked closely with those students to design the dining halls in such a way that students, regardless of their faith, would be able to eat with their friends from their house.”
Not only did this allow students who practice those religious traditions to participate more fully in campus life, but it also broadened the horizons of students outside of those faiths.
“I think it helps reduce the mystery and helps educate in a very low-key way about these different faiths. Richard added. "For example, in the dining halls, there are signs stating that the halal stations are certified by the Islamic Food and Nutritional Council of America and the kosher stations are certified by the Chicago Rabbinical Council. These signs help continue to educate people, making the concept less mysterious and less worrisome as people familiarize themselves.”
Richard received the award at ACSLHE’s annual conference, which took place from February 2-4, 2025, in Washington, DC, and gathered roughly 230 attendees from around the country.
Reflecting on the conference, Richard said, “I felt tremendously honored to be there with the other award nominees who were recognized for their work in chaplaincy and spiritual life. I was one of a few people not working specifically in that area to be recognized as a campus partner. Hearing the accomplishments of the other award winners and seeing the great breadth of programs being implemented in spiritual life on many different campuses and understanding what it means to students and how they're being supported, was truly inspiring.”
As Richard's retirement approaches, Jigna expressed how his leadership will be missed: “Richard has been our key partner. Here in Spiritual Life, we are all thinking, 'Oh my gosh, what are we going to do without Richard as he's set to retire?' It’s really hard to download 20 years of intelligence and wisdom that he brings to his work. He's phenomenal, and we're losing someone truly amazing. However, I am confident that his team will continue to carry that work ethic and partnership forward.”
ACSLHE supports higher education chaplaincies and nurtures religious and spiritual life professionals through scholarship, education, and collaboration. Learn more here.