Professor Clark works on the Christian tradition in the Middle Ages. Her Ph.D. is from Columbia University and she has been teaching at the University of Vermont since 1988. Her research focuses on medieval styles of piety, questions of gender, the role of the body, and women's religious life. She has published two books on Elisabeth of Schönau, a twelfth-century visionary nun, and has also published articles on Hildegard of Bingen, Gertrude of Helfta, women's monastic communities, the cult of the Virgin Mary, and cognitive theory in the study of religion. Her current research is on medieval illustrated prayer books and the sermons of Johannes Nider. Her teaching at UVM includes participation in the Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies program, TAP, and the Honors College.
"My teaching and research reflect a feminist perspective that pushes me to take very seriously questions about gender, authority, and women's experience. My study of religion also hinges on questions about identity: what kind of identities do particular religious practices and beliefs enable for a community or an individual? I use an historical approach to get at these issues. In my teaching, I challenge students to take up these tasks through a process of critical reading and discussion of particular case studies. My courses include ‘Women in Christianity to 1500,’ ‘Religion and Ways of Knowing,’ and 'Seeing the Sacred: Vision in Early and Medieval Christianity,' as well as courses in the history of Christianity and an introduction to the study of religion focused on biblical materials."
