For David King, Ph.D., Karen Lake Buttrey Director of Lake Institute on Faith & Giving and assistant professor of philanthropic studies, the aspiration to both teach and work in service to religious institutions propelled him to seek a position where he could do both.
But how?
After completing his undergraduate degree in history and a master’s degree in divinity, King went to work with a congregation in Texas through a Lilly Endowment grant. Upon completion of the two-year grant program, King decided to pursue his Ph.D. in historical studies in the religion department at Emory University. That persistent belief to teach and serve religious institutions stayed with him, though.
During the last year of the program, King attended a conference that Lake Institute hosted and met Richard Klopp, Ph.D. ‘15, then-associate director of the institute. He told King about Lake Institute’s doctoral dissertation fellowship, which King then applied for and earned during his last year of research.
“I presented to the board about my research on World Vision. Through that experience, I learned about this really interesting organization, the work it’s doing, and the impact it has in the field of religion and philanthropy,” he explained. (more…)