Cheryl A. Giles

Francis Greenwood Peabody Senior Lecturer on Pastoral Care and Counseling

Education

BA, Boston College
MDiv, Harvard Divinity School
PsyD, Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology

Profile

Cheryl A. Giles is the Francis Greenwood Peabody Senior Lecturer on Pastoral Care and Counseling and a licensed clinical psychologist. She teaches courses on spiritual care, trauma, and contemplative care of the dying.

A core faculty member of the Buddhist Ministry Initiative, Giles received training in end-of-life care from the Being with Dying program and GRACE: Training in Compassion-Based Interactions in the Clinical/Patient Encounter at Upaya Institute and Zen Center. She enjoys mentoring students who are preparing for chaplaincy, racial justice and healing ministry, and those interested in research on trauma psychology and meditation practices.

Giles is co-editor with Willa Miller of The Arts of Contemplative Care: Pioneering Voices in Buddhist Chaplaincy and Pastoral Work (Wisdom Press, 2012). Her most recent book is Black and Buddhist: What Buddhism Can Teach Us About Race, Resilience, Transformation, and Freedom (Shambhala Publication, 2020) co-edited with Pamela Ayo Yetunde.

Giles was on sabbatical 2020-21 and was a Visiting Research Scholar in the Department of Sociology at Brandeis University, where she focused on innovations in chaplaincy training and education.