Mary Keator, Ph.D., assistant professor of English, will serve as a keynote speaker for Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya (DSVV) University’s 3rd Annual National Holistic Literacy Conference, located in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, India. In addition, she will serve as a principal leader for the university’s teacher training from mid-December 2019 to mid-January 2020.
During this conference, Dr. Keator will share her knowledge of literacy, close reading, scholarship in lectio divina, and contemplative reading and writing practices, as well as her continuous work in interfaith and inter-subjective dialogue.
Lectio divina, or “divine reading,” was the pedagogical method used within the monastic schools to teach deep reading, reflection and prayer. “The culminating experience of lectio divina was contemplatio, union with God’s love.”
In 2018, Dr. Keator published her adaptation of this monastic pedagogical method for use in the secular classroom in her book Lectio Divina as Contemplative Pedagogies: Re-Appropriating Monastic Practice for the Humanities. She also contributed a chapter titled “Lectio Divina and the Awakening of the Soul” for Dr. Maureen Hall’s book, The Whole Person.
“I am humbled and honored to be invited as a keynote speaker at the National Holistic Literary Conference and to co-lead the teacher training at DSVV,” said Dr. Keator. “Professionally, as a scholar-teacher of World Religion, World Literatures, Yoga, and a life-long practitioner of Eastern and Western contemplative practices, I have always felt a deep respect and affinity for the peoples and cultures within India. I whole-heartedly welcome this opportunity to listen, dialogue, collaborate, and grow with the teachers and students at DSVV.”
While attending the conference, Dr. Keator along with Dr. Hall, a UMass Dartmouth professor, will co-lead multiple workshops on pedagogies, including her adapted lectio divina method. DSVV welcomes their interdisciplinary research along with the opportunity to learn other pedagogical approaches and methods to incorporate into their university.
Dr. Keator earned her Ph.D. in humanities from Salve Regina University, her M.A.A.T. and M.A.T. from Our Lady of the Elms College, and a B.A. from Emerson College. She has several articles published, including “Interfaith Dialogue: The Art of Listening” in The Journal of Contemplative Inquiry.