Shanny Luft

Shanny Luft is Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Director of General Education at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point (UWSP). Since joining UWSP in 2009, he has taught courses including Introduction to the Study of Religion, Judaism-Christianity-Islam, New Religious Movements, and Religious Autobiographies.

Education

• Ph.D. in Religion in America – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• M.A. in Religion and Culture – Boston University
• B.S. in English – Towson University

Research Interests

Luft’s scholarship centers on the dynamic interplay between religion and popular culture, with particular attention to American evangelicalism and fundamentalism, new religious movements, and religion’s representation in film and digital media. He is presently authoring a monograph examining evangelical responses to the early-twentieth-century film industry, illuminating how religious communities negotiated modern mass media.

Publications

His 2014 chapter “Hardcore Christian Gamers” (in Playing With Religion in Video Games, Indiana University Press) explores how evangelical gamers integrate faith practices within digital game environments, exemplifying his broader interest in contemporary intersections of religion and technology.

Awards & Fellowships

• University of Wisconsin System Fellow, Institute for Research in the Humanities at UW-Madison (2011–2012)

Teaching & Service

At UWSP, Luft not only teaches core courses in Religious Studies but also serves as Director of General Education, shaping the university’s undergraduate curricular framework. Previously, he held teaching appointments at UNC-Chapel Hill, Meredith College, and the College of Wooster.

Contact

Office: ALB 206D
Phone: 715-346-4023
Email: sluft@uwsp.edu