The Program on Studies in Religion (University of Michigan) records comprise 5 linear feet of materials spanning the years 1971-2000. The records document the administrative activities of the program, as well as the academic activities of its various faculty members and students.
The Program on Studies in Religion at the University of Michigan was founded in 1966 by Biblical Studies Professor David Noel Freedman. While the program was never established as a formal department of religion, it was part of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, until it was suspended indefinitely in 1999 due to an insufficient number of faculty and a lack of upper-level course offerings. Faculty members for the Program on Studies in Religion could no longer afford to split their time between the program and their home departments.
During its more than 30 years of existence, the Program on Studies in Religion had three directors: Professor David Noel Freedman, Professor Roy A. Rappaport, and Professor Ralph G. Williams. During this time, the program embodied the Religious Studies concentration within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Students who chose to concentrate in Religious Studies were required to take two introductory courses: Religion 201 - Introduction to World Religions: Near Eastern; and Religion 202 - Introduction to World Religions: South and East Asian. Then, in addition to eighteen credits of elective classes, they were required to take two of the following courses: Religion 452 - The Anthropology of Religion; Religion 365 - Problems of Religion; Religion 455 - Religion and Society; and Religion 369 - Psychology and Religion.
Since the program's suspension in 1999, students in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts still have the opportunity to take classes on religious studies, although no formal program currently exists.
