Student Spotlight: LaToya Leary
LaToya Leary is a graduate student pursuing a doctorate in religions of Western antiquity in the , part of 糖心vlog鈥檚 College of Arts and Sciences. After earning dual bachelor鈥檚 degrees in mathematics and chemistry, Leary decided to pursue her dream of being a biblical scholar. Now, she researches social disability in early Jewish and Christian texts. In 2019, Leary presented her research at three different conferences including the Society of Biblical Literatures annual meeting, the Southeastern Commission for the Study of Religion, and 糖心vlog鈥檚 Religion Symposium. Her review of Julia Watts Belser鈥檚 book, 鈥淩abbinic Tales of Destruction: Gender, Sex, and Disability in the Ruins of Jerusalem,鈥 was published in Reviews in Religion and Theology, No. 4.
Where are you from and what is your anticipated graduation date?
I鈥檓 from Miami, Fla., and I鈥檓 set to graduate in Summer 2022.
What brought you to FSU?
I was originally looking for a program on the Hebrew bible鈥檚 Old Testament. I came into contact with FSU through its website, which showed a much broader religion program than the other schools I was interested in. In November 2015, I met two of FSU鈥檚 religion professors at a scholarly engagement, and I loved them. Everyone was down to earth and a joy to be around, so FSU moved to the top of my list.
What were the reasons you chose your area of study?
I enjoyed all the benefits the religion program has to offer. When you graduate from the program, you leave with a ton of teaching experience and such a broad understanding of the field that it increases your prospects tenfold. The fact that I wouldn鈥檛 only be focusing on the Hebrew bible and would have a chance at reading early Christian and early Jewish texts was enticing. When you accept your invitation to the program, you also accept the responsibility of becoming a teaching assistant. I started off as a grader, but moved up to being an instructor of record after my first two semesters here.
Which faculty members have helped you during your time at FSU?
Associate professor of religion David Levenson, my dissertation adviser, comes to mind. He can pick up multiple sources in various languages and read them as if they were all in his native language. He鈥檚 helped me think critically about what I want to focus on, which has helped me complete my dissertation faster. There are also Matthew Goff, professor of religion, and Nicole Kelley, associate professor of religion 鈥 all three are faculty in the religion of Western antiquity track. It鈥檚 been great to be surrounded by faculty members who not only help you narrow your research focus and increase your understanding of complex topics, but are also just fun to be around.
Why did you choose to pursue further education?
Since I was young, I鈥檝e always known I wanted to be a bible scholar, but I didn鈥檛 have any bible scholars in my family to look to for mentorship. Whenever I told people I wanted to study the bible more critically, they all assumed I wanted to be a pastor. Once I discovered a way to achieve this through higher education, it instantly became my goal.
What drew you to the religion master鈥檚 program?
I received my Bachelor of Science in chemistry and mathematics from St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens, Fla. Then I went to Columbia Theological Seminary in Decatur, Ga., and earned a master鈥檚 in theological studies, specifically on the Old Testament. Now, I鈥檓 about to complete a Ph.D. in religion. It鈥檚 a jump, but it鈥檚 one I鈥檝e always wanted to make. It鈥檚 been partly possible because of the language acquisition skills one needs to be good at math and coding. Many of the ancient texts we read are in Hebrew or Greek, so you need to be able to pick up on a multitude of different languages to understand them.
What first interested you about the research you鈥檝e been conducting?
I first became interested in studying disability in the Hebrew bible while I was in seminary. Currently, I study social disability and, more specifically, I'm focusing on states that rest on the body that can be socially disabling. I believe this research can be a window into our own world, one where we see physical appearance and make judgments. As a Black woman living in a world that is very centered on and driven by the white male perspective, I want to be able to shift the narrative and allow different perspectives to ring through.
What are some of your goals, professional or otherwise?
My most immediate goal is finishing my dissertation, 鈥淩hetoric That Disables: Socially Disabling Conditions in the Ancient World.鈥 After that, I鈥檇 love to continue teaching as a professor. In my opinion, there aren鈥檛 enough people in this field who look like me, so it鈥檚 important to expose students to different experiences and perspectives. I also want to build mediums that will make my research and the research of others more public facing. This way, non-academic citizens can see the way scholars study religious texts and become educated on how to analyze these works. There are few things more powerful than which interpretations of religious texts are allowed to exist. These interpretations have been used to justify both amazing and awful things. As for personal goals, I鈥檇 really like to travel to the modern places that have ancient counterparts in the sacred texts I鈥檝e been able to study.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I love teaching, and have created areas where I can share my understandings and readings of the bible with Christians. Dancing is another activity I love. I also hope to travel more once I鈥檓 done with my dissertation. I want to stop being a student through academics and instead learn through living.
What are your after-graduation plans?
I hope to become a professor, and I also want to continue my research. Ideally, I鈥檇 look at how language concerning behavioral, economic, and other social identities inhibits people from becoming full members of society.