By ABDESALAM SOUDI

Over a shared catered meal thoughtfully curated to honor the many holidays and traditions observed by those present, faculty, students and community members came together at the William Pitt Union on April 17  for the beginning circle of the HeaLRS Scholar Community, a new initiative dedicated to exploring the intersections of Health, Language, Religion and Spirituality. The setting offered a moment to pause, reflect, connect and recognize the shared humanity at the heart of the evening’s conversation. 

The atmosphere was one of warmth, curiosity and genuine openness. This was more than a meeting; it marked the beginning of a space long hoped for, shaped by a shared desire for reflection, connection and care. A space where disciplinary and ideological walls gently faded into the background, and the human dimensions of care, connection and meaning came to the forefront.

Four faculty members — Uma Satyavolu, Hilla Nehushtan, Dan Heifetz and Abdesalam Soudi — opened the evening with reflections on compassion, cultural engagement, and the need to honor the full, complex stories of who we are, especially in moments of learning, healing and community building.

HeaLRS is an invitation to witness the deeply personal and often invisible forces that shape who we are, how we live, how we heal, and how we make sense of one another.

Other attendees came from all corners of campus and community — students from medicine, neuroscience, public health, English and religious studies, alongside local leaders and practitioners, including two HeaLRS Scholar Community Navigators — Emily Borchick and Prianca Bose — who were appointed in January to help steward and shape this evolving initiative.

Emily described the initiative as a vital and innovative space — one that invites students to slow down, reflect and engage deeply with questions of wellness, meaning and shared humanity. She emphasized how HeaLRS fosters interdisciplinary dialogue rooted in both scholarly inquiry and lived experience, creating connections that transcend traditional academic boundaries.

“The value of this community,” she shared, “lies not only in the exchange of ideas, but in the relationships we build.”

Prianca emphasized the importance of creating an environment like this where students feel seen, supported and empowered. “HeaLRS gives us the language and space to talk about things that matter,” she said, “and to listen deeply to one another beyond the classroom.” As a student leader, Prianca sees her role as helping others feel welcomed and heard and fostering a culture of reflection, connection, and shared growth.

The evening was guided by one central question:

“What brings you here tonight, and what do you hope to gain or share through a community like this?”

The responses were striking. One student, Miao H., reflected that hearing voices like Abdullah’s — outside of “academia” — felt deeply needed. “It’s like we are always having conversations behind academic walls,” she said. “Tonight felt different. It felt human to be with one another and to be in community.”

Abdullah L., an immigrant from Morocco, brought the room to a gentle stillness. For over two decades, he had driven past Pitt on his way to the mosque, but this evening marked the first time he entered a U.S. university to share his voice — offering his perspective in a scholarly conversation on an American college campus. With humility and grace, he spoke about what religion means to him — not just as belief, but as practice.

“Religion,” he said, “is about being a good neighbor. It’s about how we show up for one another.” Reflecting on the moment, he added, “Tonight, I felt seen. And I truly felt welcomed.”

He paused often in search of the right words to express how he felt. Though he apologized for his English, his message — thoughtful, clear and deeply heartfelt — resonated with everyone in the room.

His words lingered in the room, as did his presence — a reminder of how opening our spaces, truly opening them, makes space for new forms of belonging, understanding and care. One student, Stephanie Y., later added: “Religion isn’t always about ritual or belief, it’s about how we treat one another.”

From the group’s discussion, several powerful themes emerged:

• A deep longing for a neutral, reflective space

• A call for engagement that moves beyond surface-level inclusion toward genuine cultural humility and connection

• The role of language in shaping our definitions and experiences of health and wellbeing

• Interest in shared resources — readings, podcasts and case-based discussions — to enrich future meetings

• Interest in service-learning opportunities and community-based projects

• A vision of education where character, ethics, and care are honored as valid and essential forms of knowledge

Participants reflected on the importance of shaping academic spaces where compassion is not just an ideal, but an active practice embedded in how we teach, learn and engage with one another. Another community member captured this saying “We often compartmentalize, but the emotional, the intellectual, the spiritual are deeply intertwined. This space is here to honor that truth.”

A follow-up message will include a thematic summary of the conversation, as well as a tentative plan for fall gatherings. These next steps will be co-created with participants and rooted in the wisdom shared during this meaningful beginning.

As it evolves, the HeaLRS Scholar Community seeks to support students, faculty and neighbors in exploring what it means to live and learn with compassion, understanding and unity through conversation, story, and shared reflection and community.

We are especially grateful to the David C. Frederick Honors College and the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences for their generous support and partnership in bringing this vision to life.

Anyone wishing to get involved in the HeaLRS Scholar Community can contact faculty lead Abdesalam Soudi at soudia@pitt.edu. More information on future events will be post on the Frederick Honors College website.

Abdesalam Soudi is a teaching associate professor of linguistics and electus faculty, Frederick Honors College.