The Institute for Black Catholic Studies (IBCS) at Xavier University of Louisiana has appointed LaShaunda Reese, Ph.D., HEC-C, ’13, as Associate Director for Continuing Education and Enrichment.

Reese, a Xavier alumna, is a senior clinical ethicist at Emory Healthcare in Atlanta and has served as an adjunct professor of religion and ethics at Morehouse College since 2024. She earned a Master of Arts in Ethics from Loyola University Chicago, a Master of Theological Studies from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology, and a Ph.D. in Theological Ethics from Loyola University Chicago. Her research explores the intersection of narratives and decision-making, particularly within Black and African diasporic communities and in the context of health and healthcare.

Committed to Womanist bioethics from Catholic and Protestant perspectives, Reese is a member of the Healthcare Ethics Consortium and an inaugural board member of the Council of Program Accreditation for Clinical Ethics Training (COPACET). She has presented her scholarship before the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, the Catholic Theological Society of America, and the Black Catholic Theological Symposium.

Reese brings an established relationship with IBCS to her new leadership role. She has spent several summers with the Institute as an instructor in its Continuing Education and Enrichment program and currently serves on the IBCS Strategic Planning Committee.

The Institute for Black Catholic Studies is a school of pastoral theology and ministry that convenes each summer on Xavier’s campus. IBCS offers a five-semester Master of Theology degree program as well as Continuing Education and Enrichment programs. Continuing Education courses in pastoral theology, ministry, and the arts are offered through three one-week modules designed for members of the faithful and pastoral ministers. The third week also includes the Elders Retreat, an enrichment experience for adults ages 65 and older.

As IBCS marks its 47th year, Reese joins C. Vanessa White, D.Min., associate director of the Degree Program; Rev. Roy A. Lee, Ph.D., associate director of Community Life; and Kathleen Dorsey Bellow, D.Min., director, as members of the Institute’s administrative leadership team.

For more information about the Institute for Black Catholic Studies, visit https://www.xula.edu/ibcs/.