As a member of Hamilton’s Student Life leadership team, Preuninger will lead efforts to support students across all faith traditions and spiritual identities, and help ensure that religious and spiritual life is a visible and vibrant part of the Hamilton experience.
“Spiritual exploration, moral reflection, and interfaith dialogue are essential parts of a liberal arts education and a thriving campus community,” said President Steven Tepper. “The appointment of our first Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life reflects our commitment to these values. We’re especially proud to welcome Colleen back to Hamilton, as she brings a deep understanding of our community and a passion for guiding students as they explore life’s deepest questions.”
In an email to the Hamilton community announcing Preuninger’s appointment, Vice President for Student Life and Dean of Students Christopher Card wrote:
I'm excited to welcome the Rev. Dr. Colleen Preuninger '06 back to her alma mater as Hamilton College’s inaugural Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life. She will begin her new role on August 4, 2025, and will report to me.
Professor Sharon Werning Rivera, a member of the search committee, shared, "Very early on, Colleen Preuninger stood out to the search committee. Her passion for Hamilton, broad range of skills honed most recently at Stanford, and commitment to serving the spiritual and religious needs of Hamilton in all their diversity make her an excellent choice."
In addition to the role she will play in the spiritual and religious community, I am eager to welcome her to my leadership team in the Student Life division. I know our campus will benefit greatly from her insight, guidance, and deep pastoral care.
After graduating from Hamilton in 2006 with a degree in art and German studies, Colleen received her Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, and her Doctor of Ministry from Wesley Theological Seminary. She is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church.
A gifted chaplain and administrator, Colleen brings to Hamilton 15 years of experience working with students at Syracuse, Shenandoah, and Stanford Universities. Colleen is an enthusiastic spiritual leader who is passionate about cultivating thoughtful environments for the spiritual, ethical, and moral formation of students.
Colleen joins the Hamilton community along with her spouse Nick and child Henry. She loves to feed people, belly laugh, and watch Miyazaki movies. Her pockets are always full of stones and shells. She is most herself when she is in the ceramics studio.
“When I arrived on campus for the first time 20 years ago, it felt like home,” Colleen said. “I am deeply honored and excited to return home to Hamilton in the new role of Dean of Spiritual and Religious Life. During my undergraduate career my spiritual and ethical formation was forged in both conventional and unconventional ways, due in large part to the freedom I experienced to explore the fullness of my academic interests and co-curricular curiosities. Although I have always been rooted in the faith I was taught as a child, by the time I arrived at college I already had a deep desire to expand beyond the confines of the prescribed cultural and religious boundaries of my youth.
“While at Hamilton, it was often in unconventional places my spiritual, ethical, and moral curiosities grew; it was on the rugby pitch and in ceramics studio, leading radio shows at WHCL and convening community at indie rock concerts where I was most profoundly shaped by questions of meaning and purpose, community and service, spirituality and religion. Although much has changed since my time on the Hill, I believe these experiences will attune me to the particular cultural and spiritual needs and curiosities of Hamilton students today, especially those who are seeking to make meaning and find purpose outside of conventional religious categories. I am excited to begin work with and among the Hamilton community this fall.”
As the search committee chair, I want to thank our search firm, Isaacson, Miller, for facilitating an exemplary search process, as well as the committee members for their work in making this important selection:
- Ariel Adams, Director of Student Activities
- Kritika Ghimire '25
- Naomi Guttman, Jane Watson Irwin Professor of Literature and Creative Writing
- Kirk Petrie '25, Newman Club Co-President and Spiritual Leadership Council
- Sharon Rivera, Sidney Wertimer Professor for Excellence in Advising and Mentoring (Government Department)
- Nhora Serrano, Director of Academic Technology, Teaching and Research Services (LITS)
- Brielle Whalen '26, Meditation Club President and Spiritual Leadership Council
Please join me in welcoming Colleen to the “Hamily.”
Dean Card
Posted July 22, 2025
