Samira K. Mehta

Samira K. Mehta is Associate Professor of Women and Gender Studies and Director of Jewish Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. She concurrently serves as a Visiting Associate Professor of Women’s Studies and North American Religions and a 2023–24 WSRP Research Associate at Harvard Divinity School. She holds degrees from Swarthmore College, Harvard University, and Emory University.

Her research examines intersections of religion, gender, and culture in American society, with emphases on:

• Politics of family life and reproduction
• Interfaith dynamics and Jewish-Christian relations
• Racial identity among Jews of Color
• Historical and contemporary debates on contraception

Mehta authored Beyond Chrismukkah: The Christian-Jewish Interfaith Family in the United States (2018, National Jewish Book Award finalist) and The Racism of People Who Love You (2023). Her forthcoming works include God Bless the Pill: Sexuality and Contraception in Tri-Faith America and A Mixed Multitude: Jews of Color in the United States.

Awards & Honors:

• National Jewish Book Award Finalist (2018)

Grants & Projects:

• Principal Investigator, Henry Luce Foundation-funded 'Jews of Color: Histories and Futures'

Professional Leadership:

• Board Member and Blog Co-Editor, Feminist Studies in Religion
• Co-Chair, Steering Committee of the North American Religions Program Unit (American Academy of Religion)
• Creative Editor, American Religion journal