Each year, the Religious Studies department chooses 2 Undergraduate Department Fellows, who act as peer advisors to fellow undergrads (both enrolled in and considering the major/minor) and work in conjunction with the Director of Undergraduate Programs on organizing events and communicating with the Religious Studies undergraduate cohort.

Please reach out to any of them with any questions and to learn about the lived experience of the Religious Studies major/minor from an expert perspective! 

The 2025-26 Religious Studies Undergraduate Department Fellows are:

Caroline Quiroga (btk4ya@virginia.edu) is a third-year double major in Religious Studies and History. Her concentration in Religious Studies is Christianity. She is interested in the historical significance of religion in the Southern United States as it pertains to race and racism and the freedom struggles of marginalized groups throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Caroline hopes to pursue a career in education. Her favorite courses thus far have been “Black Religion and the Criminal Justice System” (RELG 3713), “The Black Church” (RELC 2770), both with Kai Parker, and “Religion, Reform, and Democracy” (RELC 3465) with Heather Warren. Caroline is eager to meet prospective and existing Religious Studies majors/minors. Please reach out to her with any peer-related questions regarding the undergraduate program or the department.

Isabel Kent McDaniel (vsa3se@virginia.edu) is a third-year double major in Religious Studies and English. She is in the Religion, Literature, and the Arts concentration and loves exploring how literature can illuminate religious ideas and experiences. Isabel is especially interested in how novels, poetry, and other creative works wrestle with questions of belief, meaning, and identity, and how stories can shape the way people understand faith. Two of her favorite courses so far have been Faith and Doubt in the Modern Age (RELG 2350) and Kingdom of God in America (RELC 2580), both of which deepened her interest in the intersections between storytelling and religion. Outside of class, she serves as an Educator on the UJC and volunteers with Literacy Volunteers. She’s excited to meet and connect with Religious Studies students!

Aahna Patel (kcy2tf@virginia.edu) is a third-year double major in Religious Studies and an Echols Interdisciplinary Studies major, combining South Asian Studies, Anthropology, and Health/Well-being. Her research explores how religious traditions provide internal frameworks that shape resilience, emotional well-being, and meaning-making in both crisis and everyday life. Currently, she is investigating how Ugandan Asians expelled in 1972 utilized these frameworks to navigate displacement. Among her favorite courses are Travel Writing in India with John Nemec, where she delved into her grandfather’s imprisonment under Idi Amin and forced exile, reflecting on how belief is sustained through internal narrative and lived memory. Spirituality in America with Matthew Hedstrom also captivated her, as she examined how traditions adapt to modern contexts. Aahna is eager to meet prospective and existing majors/minors.