2025 Call for Regional Leadership Nominations
Members of the American Academy of Religion are invited to nominate persons to become candidates in the 2026 Regional Boards of Directors Elections, which will take place in spring 2026 and decide the leadership of AAR’s nine regions. Each AAR Regional Board of Directors consists of a minimum of five elected positions: Chief Regional Officer, Student Director, and a three-year presidential line that includes a Vice President, President-Elect, and President. Note: The Vice President will automatically succeed to the President-Elect and President positions without additional elections. Read the full job descriptions and terms of service for the Regional Board of Directors. A new Vice President will be elected each year for each of the nine AAR Regions; the open Chief Regional Officer and Student Director positions will vary for each region.
For the 2026 Regional Board elections, the candidate nominations include the following positions for the Western Region:
-Vice President
Submit a Nomination
AAR members may submit a self-nomination or a nomination of someone else. To be considered for any elected position, the following information is required:
-A brief biographical sketch of no more than 200 words
-A statement on your candidacy for the position, between 350 and 400 words (e.g., what objectives and goals you would bring to the position)
-Current curriculum vitae (no more than 2 pages)
Please be aware that if selected to stand for election, the candidate’s biographical sketch and statement will be published on the ballot as it is submitted to us. AAR staff will not proofread or make alterations to the content so please review your materials carefully before submitting them. The CV will not be published on the election ballot.
Please note: If you nominate someone else and do not have the nominee’s supporting material at the time of the nomination, you need to contact your nominee to make sure that person submits the supporting material. Your nominee will need to submit their materials by the deadline via the online submission form.
The AAR staff is not able to notify the nominee and/or solicit the nominee for the supporting material. The deadline to submit a nomination is 6:00 PM Eastern Time on December 1, 2025.
Late, emailed, or incomplete submissions cannot be accepted.
Click here to submit a nomination
Nominating Committee
Photo Credit: Kimberly Esslinger
Chair
The Rev. Dr. Sakena Young-Scaggs
Past President
The Rev. Dr. Sakena Young-Scaggs
Past President
- Senior Associate Dean for Religious & Spiritual Life and Pastor of Memorial Church, Stanford University
Ph.D. in Women and Gender Studies at Arizona State University, 2019. Dissertation: Afrofuturism, Womanist Phenomenology, and the Black Imagination: A Liberative Revisioning of Black Humanity
Committee Member
Roberta Sabbath
President
Roberta Sabbath
President
- University of Nevada, Las Vegas English Department Faculty
- Ph.D. University of California, Riverside, Comparative Literature
- Sabbath focuses on the cultural implications of religious practice and is author of Sacred Body: Readings in Jewish Literary Illumination (Rowman & Littlefield, Lexington Books Jewish Studies Series, 2023); editor, Vegas Strong: Bearing Witness 1 October 2017 (University of Nevada Press, 2023); editor, Troubling Topics, Sacred Texts: Readings in Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and Qur’an. (De Gruyter Press, 2021); and editor, Sacred Tropes: Tanakh, New Testament, and Qur’an as Literature and Culture (Brill Publishers, 2009).
Committee Member
Student Director
Kali (Meera) Tanikella
Ph.D. Candidate, Historical and Cultural Studies of Religion, Center for Dharma Studies, Graduate Theological Union.
MA Counseling Psychology, Santa Clara University.
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, CA
Adjunct Faculty, University of San Francisco, School of Education
Therapist at Rula LLC and Trihealing LLC.
Kali (Meera) Tanikella is a Ph.D. Candidate in Historical and Cultural Studies of Religion at the Center for Dharma Studies, Graduate Theological Union. With a Master's in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University, she is also a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California. Kali uses a trauma-informed, embodied pedagogical approach as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of San Francisco, School of Education. Beyond academia, she applies her skills to various mental health traumas as a therapist at Rula LLC and Trihealing LLC, offering compassionate care and insightful therapy.
Student Director
Kali (Meera) Tanikella
Ph.D. Candidate, Historical and Cultural Studies of Religion, Center for Dharma Studies, Graduate Theological Union.
MA Counseling Psychology, Santa Clara University.
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, CA
Adjunct Faculty, University of San Francisco, School of Education
Therapist at Rula LLC and Trihealing LLC.
Kali (Meera) Tanikella is a Ph.D. Candidate in Historical and Cultural Studies of Religion at the Center for Dharma Studies, Graduate Theological Union. With a Master's in Counseling Psychology from Santa Clara University, she is also a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in California. Kali uses a trauma-informed, embodied pedagogical approach as an Adjunct Faculty member at the University of San Francisco, School of Education. Beyond academia, she applies her skills to various mental health traumas as a therapist at Rula LLC and Trihealing LLC, offering compassionate care and insightful therapy.
Nominating Committee and Presidential Line Qualifications
NOMINATING COMMITTEES AND PRESIDENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS
Section 1. Nominating committee.
(a) 2 members of the Board of Directors and the Immediate Past President shall serve on the Nominating Committee, not later than at the Annual Conference Board meeting of each year. The Chairperson shall be the Immediate Past President or otherwise elected by the committee. In addition to the three elected members, the President shall serve as an advisory member of the Nominating Committee.
(b) To encourage the membership to submit names of proposed nominees for the Presidential Line, the names of the members of the Nominating Committee shall be published promptly on the organization’s website.
(c) The Nominating Committee shall determine the number of vacancies of Board, both full term and unexpired term, in the election next to be held. The Nominating Committee shall prepare and present to the Annual Conference Board meeting the slate of nominee(s) to be sent to the American Academy of Religion (National) to facilitate the annual election.
(d) At the Board of Directors' meeting prior to the Annual Conference Board meeting, the Nominating Committee shall present a list of nominee(s) for election to the Board. As nearly as practicable, nominees shall be designated with the intention of equalizing the numbers of males and females on the Board, regional participation, and diversity qualifications.
(e) Individuals who are recommended to stand for election by the Nominating Committee and submitted to the American Academy of Religion (National) shall meet the following minimum requirements: attend at least two AAR/WR conference in the last 5 years, served as a Chair and/or Co-Chair of Unit; and been a member of the Board and/or Advisory Board in good standing. At the Board meeting prior to the Annual Conference Board Meeting, following the presentation of the Nominating Committee’s list of nominee(s), the floor shall be open for additional nominations. Nominations will be accepted if supported by at least 2 current members of the Board present at the meeting. Such floor nominees must have previously been apprised of the qualifications, responsibilities, and commitment expected of Board Members and expressed willingness to serve if elected. Once the President determines at that meeting that there are no further floor nominations, nominations shall be closed. The Nominating Committee shall prepare and present to the American Academy of Religion (National) the names of the nominee(s) that they shall put forth via online ballot to be voted on by the American Academy of Religion Western Region (AAR/WR) members.
(f) The Nominating Committee, elected in any year, shall continue in office until a new committee is elected by the Board of Directors.
(g) Should there be a vacancy in the Board at any time, the existing Board of Director shall appoint an individual to serve the remaining term of the vacant Board position.
Updated: 10/8/24
Approved by the AAR/WR Board: 9/30/24
Section 1. Nominating committee.
(a) 2 members of the Board of Directors and the Immediate Past President shall serve on the Nominating Committee, not later than at the Annual Conference Board meeting of each year. The Chairperson shall be the Immediate Past President or otherwise elected by the committee. In addition to the three elected members, the President shall serve as an advisory member of the Nominating Committee.
(b) To encourage the membership to submit names of proposed nominees for the Presidential Line, the names of the members of the Nominating Committee shall be published promptly on the organization’s website.
(c) The Nominating Committee shall determine the number of vacancies of Board, both full term and unexpired term, in the election next to be held. The Nominating Committee shall prepare and present to the Annual Conference Board meeting the slate of nominee(s) to be sent to the American Academy of Religion (National) to facilitate the annual election.
(d) At the Board of Directors' meeting prior to the Annual Conference Board meeting, the Nominating Committee shall present a list of nominee(s) for election to the Board. As nearly as practicable, nominees shall be designated with the intention of equalizing the numbers of males and females on the Board, regional participation, and diversity qualifications.
(e) Individuals who are recommended to stand for election by the Nominating Committee and submitted to the American Academy of Religion (National) shall meet the following minimum requirements: attend at least two AAR/WR conference in the last 5 years, served as a Chair and/or Co-Chair of Unit; and been a member of the Board and/or Advisory Board in good standing. At the Board meeting prior to the Annual Conference Board Meeting, following the presentation of the Nominating Committee’s list of nominee(s), the floor shall be open for additional nominations. Nominations will be accepted if supported by at least 2 current members of the Board present at the meeting. Such floor nominees must have previously been apprised of the qualifications, responsibilities, and commitment expected of Board Members and expressed willingness to serve if elected. Once the President determines at that meeting that there are no further floor nominations, nominations shall be closed. The Nominating Committee shall prepare and present to the American Academy of Religion (National) the names of the nominee(s) that they shall put forth via online ballot to be voted on by the American Academy of Religion Western Region (AAR/WR) members.
(f) The Nominating Committee, elected in any year, shall continue in office until a new committee is elected by the Board of Directors.
(g) Should there be a vacancy in the Board at any time, the existing Board of Director shall appoint an individual to serve the remaining term of the vacant Board position.
Updated: 10/8/24
Approved by the AAR/WR Board: 9/30/24