Jessalynn Bird

Jessalynn Bird is Associate Professor of Humanistic Studies at Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, Indiana, and a regional fellow of the Medieval Institute at Notre Dame. She earned her D.Phil. in Medieval History from Oxford University and holds dual BA degrees in History and English from the University of Pennsylvania.

• Expertise in Christian-Muslim Relations
• Specialist in Crusade History and Pilgrimage
• Focus on Medieval Sermons and Pastoral Care
• Contributor to Medieval Moral Theology and Heresy Studies

Her research explores Parisian-trained reformers' influence on crusade ideology, interfaith polemics, and the impact of the Fourth Lateran Council (1215). Recent publications address liturgical responses to disasters, OER-based classical education reform, and global networks in crusade preaching.

Key article trends (2021-2025) examine:

• Crusade-sermon mediation between papal and local agendas
• Environmental symbolism in crusade narratives
• Gendered and economic dimensions of medieval reform
• Manuscript evidence for inquisitorial practices
• Comparative studies of Albigensian and Fifth Crusade rhetoric

Professional affiliations include:

• Medieval Academy of America
• International Medieval Sermon Studies Society
• Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East
• Illinois Medieval Association

Her educational innovations focus on open-access resources, including OER editions of classical texts with critical introductions addressing modern issues like gender, race, and economic inequality.