Geoffrey Claussen joined the Elon faculty in August 2011 as an Assistant Professor of Religious Studies. In April 2012, he was named the Lori and Eric Sklut Emerging Scholar in Jewish Studies. He also coordinates Elon's Jewish Studies program.

Prof. Claussen's courses cover the whole history of the Jewish tradition, from the Hebrew Bible to contemporary Judaism. His primary research interests are in Jewish ethics, with a focus on the legacy of the nineteenth-century Musar movement. Before arriving at Elon, he served as a Visiting Instructor at Oberlin College and as a fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia.

• Ph.D. in Jewish Thought, 2011, Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, NY.  Dissertation: “Rabbi Simhah Zissel Ziv: The Moral Vision of a 19th Century Musar Master."
• M.Phil. in Jewish Thought, Jewish Theological Seminary, 2009.  Exams in Jewish Thought, Western Moral Philosophy, Theory and Method in the Study of Religion.  Additional coursework at Princeton University and Fordham University.
• Rabbinic Ordination, Jewish Theological Seminary, 2007.  Additional coursework at Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies and The Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem, Israel.
• M.A. in Jewish Philosophy, Jewish Theological Seminary, 2006.
• B.A., summa cum laude, in Classical Languages, Carleton College, Northfield, MN, 2001.

• 100-level: Religion in a Global Context
• 200-level: Jewish Traditions; Hebrew Bible; Judaism and the Environment
• 300-level: Jewish Ethics; The Secrets of Jewish Philosophy and Mysticism; Modern Jewish Thought

Grants and fellowships received from:

• Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture, University of Virginia
• Targum Shlishi Foundation
• Tikvah Fund
• Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture
• Jewish Theological Seminary Graduate School
• National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership (CLAL)
• Crown Family Foundation

• “The American Jewish Revival of Musar.” The Hedgehog Review 12, no. 2 (2010): 63-72.
• “Sharing the Burden: Rabbi Simhah Zissel Ziv on Love and Empathy.” Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics 30, no. 2 (2010): 151-169.
• “God and Suffering in Heschel’s Torah Min Ha-Shamayim.” Conservative Judaism 61, no. 4 (2010): 17-42.
• “Jewish Virtue Ethics and Compassion for Animals: A Model from the Musar Movement.” CrossCurrents 61, no. 2 (2011): 208-216.
• “The Practice of Musar.” Conservative Judaism 63, no. 2 (2012): 3-26.

Member of the Society of Jewish Ethics, the Association for Jewish Studies, the American Academy of Religion, and the Rabbinical Assembly

• Vice President, 2013-
• Annual Meeting Co-Chair, 2012, 2013
• Board of Directors, 2011-
• Annual Meeting Program Committee, 2009-2011