Religion Department Hires New Instructor

After longtime religion instructor Jamie Hamilton retired this fall, the Academy’s religion department appointed Kurt Prescott, a graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Divinity School, to replace her. Prescott joined the department at the beginning of this winter term.

“He has a great balance of asking for advice and finding his own way, and we all enjoy having him around the department table.”

Last August, Hamilton, who was also the Dean of Health and Wellness, vacated her position at the Academy to pursue parish work as a rector of Peterborough, New Hampshire’s Episcopal church. After decades of teaching, the decision to leave was sudden but not entirely unexpected.

Religion Department Chair Peter Vorkink said that Hamilton’s departure was sudden, yet he said that the idea of continuing parish work had always been “in the back of her mind.” Nevertheless, Hamilton’s spot needed to be filled in time for classes this term; consequently, although departments usually have months to search for the right candidate, the religion department was left with little time to fill the position.

“Normally the hiring cycle is to know you have vacancies for the following full year,” Vorkink said, “so we had to scramble to find someone interested, willing and capable to teach for at least the next two terms.”

Despite the unusual time constraints, Vorkink and other religion instructors were happy to decide on Prescott as the final candidate.

Prescott grew up in Maine and, after graduating from Harvard Divinity School, moved to work at a nonprofit organization in Boston while waiting for an independent or boarding school teaching position to open up.

“It was kind of a dream move,” he said. “There’s not a huge market for religion teachers, and Exeter not only teaches the subject, but has a whole department with seven teachers devoted to it.”

For Prescott, teaching religion at Exeter in particular is especially ideal. Instead of being told how to think or answer existentialist questions, he said that allowing peers to work through the questions and ideas together is “not only a good way, but the only way to teach religion.”

Despite its benefits, however, Prescott said that it can be challenging to plan for a class. He joked that he underestimated how quickly the students could get through the material he prepared. For his first class, he came with a lesson plan that took the students fifteen minutes to cover.

While he has found himself on a steep learning curve, Prescott sees the meandering and open-ended nature of the Exeter classroom as ultimately beneficial to the learning process.

And with further experience, he saw the Harkness teaching method as “primed for religion.” Though it doesn’t resemble closely his high school experience, Prescott finds Harkness to be very similar to his studies in college.

“Philosophically, for me, I think it’s a phenomenal way to teach,” he said.

Besides students, Prescott has also found the Religion Department to be welcoming and a good resource for discussion or advice. Religion instructor Kathleen Brownback explained that Prescott was an excellent pick.

“He has a great balance of asking for advice and finding his own way,” she said, “and we all enjoy having him around the department table.”

Vorkink agreed, saying that Prescott was a “helpful find” because of his multiple interests, ranging from teaching, coaching, advising and dorm affiliation.

Brownback said that because of his knowledge of what is already taught and his creative ideas for possible curriculum adaptations, he is a great colleague.

She also admired the connections Prescott has already made across campus—he has not been afraid to delve into Academy life.

“He’s very much his own person and at the same time very interested in others,” she said.

In addition to teaching two sections of “Religion in Popular Culture,” Prescott is also affiliated with Abbott Hall, coaches the track team and acts as an adviser to the GSA. He is currently hired for the winter and spring terms.

Already adapting to the rhythm of the Academy, Prescott is enthusiastic on what the community and the school have to offer, starting with the faculty of the religion department. 

“They’re great, really welcoming [and] great resources," he said.

"I’m constantly learning new things from them. They’re all really fantastic people.”

Contributions from Eliza Khokhar