Lori Kanitz, Ph.D.

Lori A. Kanitz earned a B. A. in English with Highest Honors from the University of Oklahoma; an M. A. in literature and theology from Durham University, in Durham, England; and a Ph.D. in literature and theology from the University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Scotland.  She currently serves as the Director, Innovation Hub with the Baylor Collaborative. Prior to her current role, she served for four years as the Assistant Director of Baylor’s Institute for Faith and Learning.

Dr. Kanitz came to Baylor in 2016 from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she served as Associate Professor of English and chair of the English and Modern Languages Department. There she also held administrative roles overseeing the development and evaluation of university-wide projects, including Writing Across the Curriculum and General Education. She earned multiple teaching and service awards, including Outstanding Faculty Member of the College of Arts and Cultural Studies (2014) and Outstanding Service Award for the College of Arts and Cultural Studies (2016).

Her research interests center on the intersections between theology, literature, and culture, including biblical perspectives on ecology and social innovation, particularly with regard to hunger and poverty. Her work has been published in Christian Higher Education, the Encyclopedia of Christian Literature, and Last Things: Essays on Ends and Endings (Peter Lang, 2015). Dr. Kanitz is also the author of A Literary Shema: Annie Dillard’s Judeo-Christian Vision and Voice (Pickwick/Wipf and Stock, 2020).