Religious & Spiritual Life Staff

Dr. Erika Nelson-Mukherjee
nelsone@union.edu

Erika M. Nelson-Mukherjee is an Associate Professor of German Studies here at Union College, having completed my undergraduate education in English and Comparative Literature at Oberlin College and my graduate education in German Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. Her research has focused primarily on poetry and the role of myths and rituals in contemporary literature, culture, and film. Increasingly, she has become interested in innovative humanistic and experiential educational approaches, and most recently, She has pursued graduate studies in the field of Clinical Psychology and Psychology of Education with a specialized focus on spirituality at Teachers College Columbia University’s Spirituality Mind Body Institute.

From Dr. Nelson-Mukherjee - "I love Union, and I am excited to support students, staff, and faculty here at Union College as a Buddhist spiritual advisor. I consider myself a lifelong spiritual seeker and have actively engaged in spiritual, meditation, body-oriented somatic, and contemplative practices for the last 25 years. I have also been a practicing Buddhist for over 13 years and a leader in my Buddhism organization for the last several years. I find that my sustained spiritual practice enhances and contributes to my life both personally and professionally in a myriad of meaningful and mystic ways. I look forward to working with the Union students and community and contributing to the greater dialogues regarding religion, spirituality, and Buddhism here at Union College."

Joan Horgan
(518) 388-6087
horganj@union.edu

Joan Horgan is excited to be making the transition to Union College and supporting the students of Catholic faith as well as connecting with students of all religious and non-religious backgrounds as they make their way through these important years of life. She has spent over 30 years working with college students in the areas of faith, spirituality, purpose and seeking to make a more just world. Most of those years she spent coordinating the activities of an interfaith sanctuary and directing the spiritual life office at the campus of the College of Saint Rose.

Joan is an alum of the College of Saint Rose where she received her undergraduate degree in sociology/social work concentration. She went on to get a Masters degree in Social Work from the State University of New York at Albany. She also has a post-grad certificate in the Expressive Arts and Counseling. Her work in ministry has allowed her to pursue two passions in her life - justice and faith/spirituality. She has coordinated numerous service, advocacy and justice trips to Washington DC and Philadelphia, PA. She is particularly inspired by young adults as they shape lives of purpose and meaning that evolve through their experiences inside and outside of the classroom. She is grateful for this opportunity to work with the Union College community members and be part of how they work to positively impact this world while cultivating inner lives that support, challenge and sustain them along the path to flourishing.

Rabbi Shmuly & Laiky
(518) 479-9592
unionchabad@gmail.com

Laiky's Background

The fourth of ten children, Laiky was born in Jerusalem and was raised in Montreal, Canada. She spent her elementary and high school years at Beth

Rivkah Academy where all the General Studies were taught in French. In fact, she is fluent in four languages: English, French, Hebrew and Yiddish. Upon completing high school, Laiky went on to pursue a degree in special education in Israel. She dedicated one semester of her learning to extended fieldwork and traveled to Riga, Latvia where she coordinated Jewish programs for all ages ranging from preschoolers to college students. Laiky then moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., taught on the Upper West Side and met Rabbi Shmuly. She went on to teach students with special needs at Yeshivah of Flatbush.

Shmuly's Background

Rabbi Shmuly was born and raised in Albany, New York. His studies took him from Toronto to Manchester, U.K., Brooklyn to California, and finally to Melbourne, Australia where he received his rabbinic ordination. Once married, Rabbi Shmuly taught at a Yeshivah in Brooklyn. He managed the operation of www.hebrewbooks.org, digitizing and preserving over 13,000 old Hebrew books, in addition to serving as the junior editor of Jewish-Holiday.com, an informative Jewish magazine. Rabbi Shmuly is a teacher of Chassidic philosophy and mystical Judaism and loves the intricacies of the Talmud.

Our Mission

Inspired by the Lubavitcher Rebbe's call to reach out to every single Jew, regardless of their background and affiliation, and instill Jewish pride and awareness, Rabbi Shmuly & Laiky chose to join the network of 165 worldwide Chabad on Campus centers and work with the Jewish community at Union College. Their strong educational backgrounds enable them to serve the address for Jewish learning at Union. As a family, Shmuly, Laiky and the boys, Mendel and Yitzchak, are happy to open the doors of the Chabad House to Jewish students and serve as a "home away from home" for them.

Together with the dedicated student board of the Union Chabad Jewish Student Group, they are doing everything to create a vibrant Jewish life at Union.

Bonnie Cramer
(518) 388-6539
cramerb@union.edu

For the last 24 years, Bonnie Cramer has enjoyed serving the Jewish students at Union College Hillel.

Cramer graduated magna cum laude from Brown University in History. She is certified as a spiritual director (Mashipia’ah Ruchanit) by Aleph: The Alliance for Jewish Renewal and brings her spiritual counseling expertise to campus. As a part-time student at the Academy for Jewish Religion she focused on the study and multiple understandings of Torah. She loves learning about and facilitating other people’s spiritual journeys and is particularly interested in Kabbalah and other mystical traditions. In 2016, she was recognized for outstanding volunteer services to Union College and the Schenectady community.

She has many years experience teaching both in her 14 years at Camp Ramah New England and the Schenectady Midrasha. Currently she is enjoying working with the Hillel students to create a culture of learning, by facilitating the Jewish Learning Fellowship 10 session curriculums, the 6 session Kol Yisrael learnings and now the 4Tm (Four the Moment) sessions. The students work in chevruta style partners to wrestle with big Jewish questions using relevant texts from Torah to modern authors. The emphasis is on independent, critical thinking and dynamic dialogue.

Hillel has an active student Board who strives to create welcoming, vibrant Jewish student life on campus. Cramer enjoys mentoring them to define their goals and work to create them, as our mission is to create Jewish adults.

She also enjoys putting on her chef’s jacket on Friday nights to create a warm, Shabbat dinner experience.

Hillel's Vision: That each and every Jewish student will make an enduring commitment to Jewish life, learning and Israel.

.Hillel's Mission: To enrich the lives of Jewish undergraduate and graduate students so that they may enrich the Jewish people and the world.

Our web site can be found at:

Union College Hillel

Genghis Khan
khang@union.edu

Genghis Khan has B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering with B.S. minors in Applied Mathematics and Economics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has been with GE Global Research since 1991 where he’s currently a Senior Principal Engineer. Consistent with the “Renaissance-style” scholarship, he is also educated in The Qur’an and its interpretation, Textual Analysis in Qur’anic Arabic, Hadith Methodology, and the Principles & Branches of Islamic Jurisprudence.

Since 1995, he has been the Imam at the Schenectady County Jail and a consultant on Islamic issues to several jails in surrounding counties. He has been speaking on Islam and Muslims over the past thirty years at various religious, interfaith, educational, and corporate venues. Since 1999, he's taught an advanced Arabic and Islamic Studies class to teenagers at the Islamic Center of the Capital District. From 2002-2011 he had served on the Schenectady County Human Rights Commission, being its Chair for the latter half of that period. From 2003-2006 he served on the Interfaith Community of Schenectady’s Council and received the James Stamper Community Service Award in 2009. From 2010-2016 he served on the Board of Directors of Bethesda House – a key homelessness prevention organization in Schenectady in capacities as Treasurer and culminating as Board President. Since 2015, he’s been the Adviser to the Muslim Students Association at Union.

His main Islamic perspectives can be summarized as the foundational prevalence of the definitive Qur’anic Principles of Monotheism, Universal Justice, Kindness/Compassion, Generosity, and the avoidance of their opposites. This invariably leads to more emphasis on values-based spirituality rather than just dogma and rituals; is kept alive by continuous interpretation of the Qur’an as opposed to an imitation of previous historical/cultural interpretations. These perspectives then lead to joining hands with all those in the world that seek Justice/Fairness/Equality/Inclusion, Kindness/Compassion, and Generosity; and will work together to peacefully achieve them for all.

Allison Dilyard
(518) 388-6618
dilyarda@union.edu

Allison Dilyard joined Union’s spiritual life team as campus Protestant chaplain in October 2024. She has a B.A. in religious studies from Barnard College (Columbia University) and a M.Div from Union Theological Seminary in New York City. Before coming to the capital region, she lived in the Inwood neighborhood of Manhattan, where she was a youth pastor, barista, and trivia host. She also has years of experience in higher education as an academic adviser and teaching assistant at St. Francis College in Brooklyn. Allison moved to the area in early 2023 when her partner, Rev. Marranda Major received her first call as pastor of First United Presbyterian Church in Troy and is excited to once again work alongside young people as they navigate their faith and futures.

In addition to being the Protestant chaplain at Union, Allison is the administrator at the Lutheran Church of the Holy Spirit in the Delaware Avenue neighborhood of Albany, where she gets to play with liturgy and serve a vibrant community of believers. She spends her free time playing ice hockey, baking gluten-free bread, messing around with paint, and exploring the local culinary scene.