Glazier’s book, “,” was published by Temple University Press in July. This book shows the benefits of religious people taking action in their communities and represents the culmination of a dozen years of research on the intersection of religion, politics, and community engagement in Little Rock.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 6 p.m. at Barnes & Noble, 11500 Financial Center Pkwy., Little Rock. You can reserve a copy of the book by calling Barnes & Noble at 501-954-7648.

Nathan Treece, host of NPR’s Morning Edition for Little Rock Public Radio, will host a question-and-answer session with Glazier.

Community members can also drop off non-perishable food items for the Arkansas Foodbank and learn more about how to get involved in serving the community. Local organizations like JustServe, the Interfaith Center of Arkansas, CityChurch Network, and the City of Little Rock will be in attendance.

“Since the heart of this book is community engagement, we are hoping to make this event much more than a book signing,” Glazier said. “We will have free discussion guides for congregations, and we hope people will walk away with new ideas and a sense of excitement about community engagement.”

Through more than a decade of multi-method data collection through the Little Rock Congregations Study, Glazier, who serves as director of the research project, has surveyed more than 4,000 congregants and nearly 500 clergy in Little Rock to gather opinions from members and leaders on community issues and engagement. Together with interviews and case studies, her findings indicate that active congregants are happier and more civically involved.

“T��� book uses qualitative and quantitative data from clergy and congregants over 12 years of research to make the case that community engagement benefits everyone,” Glazier said. “Members are happier and healthier, places of worship have warmer and more giving cultures, and society is less divided and more democratic. I’m grateful to the congregations, clergy, and community members who contributed to this research and opened up their sacred spaces to make all this possible.”

Glazier started the Little Rock Congregations Study in 2012 with a single class of students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock working with just five congregations in Little Rock. In 2016, they partnered with the University of Arkansas-Clinton School of Public Service, received a grant from the American Political Science Association, and expanded to work with 17 congregations.

During 2020, the Little Rock Congregations Study moved data collection online due to the COVID-19 pandemic and were able to work with 35 congregations, producing personalized reports for each congregation. Altogether, more than 200 students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock and the Clinton School have conducted research through the Little Rock Congregations Study, all of whom are listed in the book.

Glazier will also speak about her book during a Central Arkansas Library System Legacies and Lunch meeting Oct. 2 at noon at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock.

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Glazier’s book, “,” was published by Temple University Press in July. This book shows the benefits of religious people taking action in their communities.

Through more than a decade of multi-method data collection through the Little Rock Congregations Study, Glazier, who serves as director of the research project, has surveyed more than 4,000 congregants and nearly 500 clergy in Little Rock to gather opinions from members and leaders on community issues and engagement. Together with interviews and case studies, her findings indicate that active congregants are happier and more civically involved.

“T��� book uses qualitative and quantitative data from clergy and congregants over 12 years of research to make the case that community engagement benefits everyone,” Glazier said. “Members are happier and healthier, places of worship have warmer and more giving cultures, and society is less divided and more democratic. I’m grateful to the congregations, clergy, and community members who contributed to this research and opened up their sacred spaces to make all this possible.”

Glazier started the Little Rock Congregations Study in 2012 with a single class of students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock working with just five congregations in Little Rock. In 2016, they partnered with the University of Arkansas-Clinton School of Public Service, received a grant from the American Political Science Association, and expanded to work with 17 congregations.

During 2020, the Little Rock Congregations Study moved data collection online due to the COVID-19 pandemic and were able to work with 35 congregations, producing personalized reports for each congregation. Altogether, more than 200 students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock and the Clinton School have conducted research through the Little Rock Congregations Study, all of whom are listed in the book.

The book also provides detailed case studies of real congregations in Little Rock—big and small, Black and white, Christian and Muslim—so that diverse places of worship can see different models for community engagement that might fit their interests and membership.

“‘Faith and Community’ is an excellent study of the realized mutual benefits that communities and houses of worship experience when congregations emphasize community engagement,” said Corwin Smidt, a senior research fellow at the Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin University. “Rebecca Glazier also makes a case for how the joint endeavor of professors and students engaging in studies of their local communities can be both academically advantageous and beneficial for the community in which such educational institutions are located.”

Glazier will speak about her book during a Central Arkansas Library System Legacies and Lunch meeting Oct. 2 at noon at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock.

People who are interested in using the Little Rock Congregations Study research surveys to learn more about their own congregations can receive the surveys for free. Visit this article or contact Glazier at raglazier@ualr.edu for more information.

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With the 2024 presidential election just months away, the Little Rock Congregations Study is doing something it’s never done before – giving away their research surveys for free to anyone who would like to use them.

“For the first time ever, we are making our surveys free and publicly available, so that any congregation, whether in Little Rock or around the world, can use them to survey their own members,” said Dr. Rebecca Glazier, director of the Little Rock Congregations Study. “T���re are survey firms who charge people thousands of dollars for surveys, and ours is totally free. The questions are vetted by congregations, clergy, social scientists, and researchers. Our research shows that community engagement helps everyone, and we want everyone to be able to use this survey to learn about their members and how they want to get involved to help their community.”

The survey has about 75 questions and takes approximately 12 minutes to fill out. However, congregations can edit the survey to fit their individual congregation’s needs. For example, if a congregation is considering adding a preschool or starting a new volunteer program, they can add questions to find out how congregants feel about these issues.

“As a social scientist, I believe that data is powerful,” Glazier said. “Congregations can learn more about their members and especially how they feel about the importance of various community issues and what issues they want to get involved in. We think community engagement can help make people, congregations, and democracy better, and we want to spread that message as far and wide as possible.”

The survey can also help congregations understand the spiritual health of their members. Previous Little Rock Congregations Study research shows that congregations with members who are actively engaged in the community experience better spiritual health.

“When congregation members are involved in the community, they feel better, have better spiritual health, and feel closer to God,” Glazier said. “Finding out what issues your members care about can help you pick the best community programs to dedicate your time and efforts to. Our data show that the end result will be well worth it.”

In 2012, the Little Rock Congregations Study began with Glazier and a single class of students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock working with just five congregations in Little Rock. In 2016, they partnered with the Clinton School of Public Service, received a grant from the American Political Science Association’s Alma Ostrom and Leah Hopkins Awan Civic Education Fund, and expanded to work with 17 congregations.

During 2020, the Little Rock Congregations Study moved data collection online due to the COVID-19 pandemic and were able to work with 35 congregations, producing personalized reports for each congregation. Altogether, more than 200 students at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock and the Clinton School have conducted research through the Little Rock Congregations Study.

Those interested in looking at the survey can visit this website. Glazier is available to help people interpret their data or generate sample reports. For more information, contact Glazier at raglazier@ualr.edu.

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The American Political Science Association (APSA) has honored Glazier with the . The award honors a political scientist for their significant civic and community engagement work, which merges knowledge and practice and has an impact outside of the profession or academy.

“I strive to have an impact with my research that reaches beyond academia,” Glazier said. “T��� community-based work I have been doing with the Little Rock Congregations Study since 2012 is a great example of that. I am so honored to know that this work is being recognized on a national level.”

Glazier is being acknowledged for her work with the Little Rock Congregations Study, a community-based research project she founded to engage students in hands-on research with places of worship in Little Rock. The project seeks to understand how congregational community engagement impacts the community, places of worship, and their members.

From 2020 to 2023, the Little Rock Congregations Study has been researching faith-based racial justice and reconciliation. In a 2020 study of nearly 2,300 people from 35 diverse congregations across Little Rock, researchers found that the No. 1 issue participants wanted their congregation to do something about was race relations. Further research with clergy members found that 88 percent of them said that Little Rock has a problem with racial division, while 64 percent believe race relations will get better and that clergy are able to help make that happen.

In subsequent years, the Little Rock Congregations Study researchers have held multiple conferences and focus groups with Little Rock congregations and created a free resource guide to help Arkansas congregations engage the community through faith-based racial justice and reconciliation work.

Glazier is also writing a book on the impact of faith-based community engagement for Temple University Press. The book, which will be published in 2024, capitalizes on more than a decade of research from the Little Rock Congregations Study to make the case for congregations to get involved in their communities.

“In the meantime, we continue to work on faith-based racial justice resources, to share those with congregations, and to measure their impact,” Glazier said. “I am grateful to work with such an amazing research team, including over 200 student researchers, who have been part of the Little Rock Congregations Study since 2012. They have really amplified the impact of this work, and I don’t think I would be receiving this award without them.”

The APSA recognizes the work of scholars who have made outstanding contributions to political science research, teaching, and service. Glazier has been a member of APSA for the past 18 years, during which time she has served as the co-chair of the Teaching and Learning Conference, program chair for the Religion and Politics organized section, program chair for the Political Science Education organized section, as well as multiple award and nominating committees.

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Glazier will give two lectures, which are free and open to the public, at 7 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 9 and 10, at Westover Hills Presbyterian Church, 6400 Richard B. Hardie Dr, Little Rock. The lectures will be followed by a moderated question-and-answer session with Glazier.

The Dec. 9 lecture is entitled, “Faith and Community: How Engagement Helps Everyone.” Glazier will share key findings from her forthcoming book on how getting involved in the community contributes to greater individual well-being, healthier congregations, and stronger democracies.

As the director of the Little Rock Congregations Study, she has been researching faith-based community engagement in Little Rock for more than a decade and has a wealth of insights from statistics, interviews, and in-depth case studies to share.

The Dec. 10 lecture, entitled “Why and How Religion Can Lead on Race,” will bring together social science and faith-based perspectives to describe the imperative people and places of faith have to engage the topic of race relations.

“T��� were endowed in 1967 by Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Cotham IV in memory of their late son,” said Reverend Robert Lowry, pastor and head of staff at Westover Hills Presbyterian Church. “T��� lectures are given each year featuring a scholar of religion, theology, or biblical studies. 2023 marks the 75th anniversary of Westover Hills Presbyterian Church and the 56th Cotham Lectures.”

Previous lecturers have included bestselling authors Rachel Held Evans and Amy Jill Levine, noted biblical scholars James Mays (Union Presbyterian Seminary), Robert Williamson (Hendrix College), and Eric Barreto (Princeton Seminary), and theologians Dietrich Ritschl (Pittsburgh Seminary) and Murdo Ewen McDonald (University of Glasgow, Scotland).

Glazier is the author of “Faith and Community: How Engagement Strengthens Members, Places of Worship, and Society,” which will be released by Temple University Press in 2024. She has twice won ����Vlog��ý Little Rock’s highest award for research. This year, she was honored by the American Political Science Association with its Distinguished Award for Civic and Community Engagement.

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Professor Rebecca Glazier will be teaching a Calderwood Seminar, an upper level course where students will produce public writing on the topic of religious freedom.

The was started at Wellesley College and focuses on preparing students to write for real-life situations. These seminars utilize active learning strategies and are centered around short writing assignments. Students will work in a collaborative environment to take turns writing and peer editing public-facing pieces. At the end of the semester, students will have a portfolio of public writing.

The tentative class plans include working with religious freedom non-governmental organizations, sharing student work through the Little Rock Congregations Study website, attending Ramadan Iftar at a local mosque, and possibly getting students on K����Vlog��ýR. Because of the small seminar nature of the course, space is limited, but there are a few spots remaining.

Contact Glazier for more information at raglazier@ualr.edu.

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“We are very excited to share this guide that is full of resources for clergy members and congregations that want to get started with or move forward with racial justice and reconciliation work,” said Dr. Rebecca Glazier, a professor in the School of Public Affairs and director of the , “T��� heart of the guide is the three different models for engaging in faith-based racial justice.”

The three models to help congregations begin racial justice work include:

• The Interracial Friendship Model focuses on congregations building relationships with other congregations across racial and religious divides.
• The Scripture Model highlights the importance of looking at religious texts to highlight racial justice as essential to scripture and calls individuals to the work of racial justice.
• The Racial Audit Model emphasizes the fact that racism can be perpetuated by systems, including religious institutions, and is designed to look at or create a commitment to racial justice through congregations.

The resource guide also includes research related to faith-based racial justice and reconciliation work, suggestions for congregations engaging in racial justice work, feedback from clergy members on using the three models in their congregations, questions congregations should consider before beginning, and responses congregations can use if they receive pushback on their racial justice and reconciliation work.

“We also provide a resource guide that lists organizations, films, articles, books, and reports that congregations can use if they want to start getting more information,” Glazier said. “We created a commitment page where congregations can think about what potential racial justice commitments they can make moving forward. There is also a form they can fill out if they want to be involved in future research.”

The Little Rock Congregations Study research team, including a practicum team from the Clinton School of Public Service, compiled the resource guide utilizing feedback from focus groups and clergy groups throughout Little Rock.

In a 2020 study of nearly 2,300 people from 35 diverse congregations across Little Rock, researchers found that the No. 1 issue participants wanted their congregation to do something about was race relations. Further research with clergy members found that 88 percent of them said that Little Rock has a problem with racial division, while 64 percent believe race relations will get better and that clergy are in a position to help make that happen.

The resource guide is available for . For more information, contact Glazier at raglazier@ualr.edu.

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