Faith Integration in the Academy Conference

The Faith Integration in the Academy Conference welcomes Dr. Erin Smith as our keynote speaker.

Dr. Erin I. Smith is California Baptist University’s Fletcher Jones Endowed Professor of Research and a professor of psychology. Trained as a developmental psychologist, Smith’s expertise lies at the intersection of developmental and cognitive psychology with an interest in science and Christianity. Her published work explores church as a cultural context for child development, practices of effective church children’s ministry, understanding Christian (dis)engagement with science, and psychological contributions to theological anthropology. She was a Scholarship on Christianity in Oxford Visiting Scholar in Science and Religion at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford University (2015-2016) as part of the Bridging the Two Cultures of Science and the Humanities Program. Between 2019 and 2022, she served as a science advisor in the Science for Seminaries program, a project of AAAS’ Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion. In the 2022-2023 academic year, she was the scholar in residence at the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. In 2024, she was nominated as a Fellow of the American Scientific Affiliation. She is passionate about leveraging science for the benefit of the church and is currently writing a book to equip church leaders with insights from psychology for ministry. Locally, she is an active member of Northpoint Church in Corona, where she volunteers in the children’s ministry. Together with her husband and three children, she enjoys playing games, engaging in theatre, or repeating the futile instruction for the cat to get off the counter. More information is available at erinsmithpsychology.com.

FIA 2025 offers 18 concurrent sessions in addition to the keynote address.  

Check out the current offerings and prepare to spend a day engaged in thoughtful dialogue.

FIA 2025 Program

The Journal of Faith in the Academic Profession is the official journal connected to the conference.  JFAP publishes theoretical, practice, and research papers focused on faith-based practices in higher education teaching and learning.  With more than 10,000 article downloads in just two years, JFAP is a widely read source for academic faith integration in higher education. For more information on the journal click below:

JFAP web page

Register with the journal for timely updates

The Faith Integration in the Academy Conference has brought together scholar-practitioners four times.  Click the dates below for a copy of the schedule proceedings from each conference.

4th Annual FIA Conference: The Great Commission (August 2, 2024)

3rd Annual FIA Conference (December 2, 2022)

2nd Annual FIA Conference (December 3, 2021)

Inaugural FIA Conference (December 8, 2020)