Meet Our 2023-2024 St. Lawrence Scholars

Yvonne C. Garrett – St. Lawrence Scholar

Yvonne C. Garrett (she/her), raised in a Unitarian-Universalist home, is currently pursuing an M.Div. at Starr King School for the Ministry (Aspirant) and is a member of Community Church of NYC. She holds an MLIS (Palmer-LIU), an MFA-Fiction (The New School), two MAs (NYU), and a Ph.D. (Drew University). She works full-time as an administrator at The New School where she also serves as a Shop Steward for the 1205 Teamsters. Senior Fiction Editor at Black Lawrence Press, she is also an active freelance critic – her writing has been published in a wide array of literary and academic journals.

Kendall Nordin – St. Lawrence Scholar

Kendall Nordin grew up outside of Washington D.C. After being active in Unitarian Universalism through the UU Church of Arlington, VA and YRUU as a teen, she stepped away from any church affiliation to study religion academically at Reed College and then at Georgetown University. Her life has been full of making art, music, writing, and jobs from librarian to preschool teacher to bartender in farflung places from Australia to Alaska. In 2021 she made her way back to the path of ministry as a seminarian at Starr King School for the Ministry. She is currently an aspirant for UU ministry. While still in discernment, her calling lies somewhere in the overlaps of international peace work, chaplaincy, child advocacy, and creative expression.

RJ Head – Jeffrey Campbell Scholar

RJ Head is originally from Provo, UT, but has spent most of their life in the Flint Hills of Kansas. Coming from a family tradition of “preachers and teachers”, RJ was raised LDS, but left the faith after delving into the Universal aspects of Christ’s teachings and longed for a more welcoming community. Throughout their teens and into college, they studied many Earth-based traditions and eventually found the tradition of their Yoruba ancestors, Ifa. Although never initiated into the tradition, RJ gleans much of their interactions with The Divine and Creation from the lessons of their ancestral spirituality. 

In 2018, after relocating to the capital city of Topeka, KS, RJ began attending the local Unitarian Universalist Fellowship and began engaging as a member of the Worship Committee. From there, Rj’s love of ministry expanded and grew.  In 2023, RJ caught a strong gust on the winds of change, and enrolled at Starr King School for the Ministry, seeking an MDiv. When they are not delving into their school work, Rj enjoys singing, walking with their animal companion, and listening to podcasts and audiobooks.