Cody Nielsen
Cody Nielsen
Pronouns:
(He/Him/His)
Assistant Professor of Higher Education Leadership
HESA Program Coordinator
Office:
(269) 387-3897
Location:
3571 Sangren Hall, Mail Stop 5283
Mailing address:
Department of Educational Leadership, Research and Technology
Western Michigan University
1903 W Michigan Ave
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5283 USA
Western Michigan University
1903 W Michigan Ave
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5283 USA
Education:
- Ph.D., Higher Education Administration, Iowa State University
- M.A., Mental Health Counseling, University of Northern Iowa
- B.A., Social Work and Psychology, University of Northern Iowa
Teaching Interests:
- Higher Education
- Higher Education Environments
- Religious, Secular and Spiritual Culture and Identities (RSSCIs)
Bio:
Dr. J. Cody Nielsen is Assistant Professor of Higher Education Leadership and HESA Coordinator at Western Michigan University. A nationally known voice on the efforts to support religious, secular, and spiritual culture and identity, Dr. Nielsen studies the impacts of religion at the intersections of race, gender, class, disability, and sexuality. His work includes (at current) 9 publications and a forthcoming edited volume. He is passionate around working alongside students to improve the higher education conditions around the world and started in 2022 the Conference on Higher Education Identity, Belonging, Purpose, and Values, a followup to the legendary Dalton Institute on College Student Values which ran at Florida State for more than 30 years. His research includes work on "humanizing the field" of higher education as well as evaluating organizational systems and structures for inequities.
Courses Taught
Foundations and History of Higher Education, Higher Education Law, Capstone, Field Experience, Higher Education Environments, Diversity in Higher Education, and a variety of special topics courses.
Recent Publications
Nielsen, J.C. The Next Broad Stroke: Higher Education’s responsibility to address religious, secular, and spiritual identities on campus. (2025) About Campus, 0(0) https://doi.org/10.1177/10864822251349512
Rodriguez, S. L., Fisher, M., Espino, M. L., & Nielsen, J. C. (2025). Engineering Identity and Religion Intertwined: How One Woman’s Experiences with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Shaped Her Professional Journey. Journal of College and Character, 26(2), 179–196. https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2025.2449978
Nielsen, J.C., & Sanford, M. Reexamining the Relationships of Religious Communities and the Public University: A Call-Back to Two Previous Scholars’ Responses with New Lenses. Journal of College and Character, 25(3), 283-290. https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2024.2349001.
Rodriguez, S. L., Fisher, M., Espino, M. L., & Nielsen, J. C. (2025). Engineering Identity and Religion Intertwined: How One Woman’s Experiences with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Shaped Her Professional Journey. Journal of College and Character, 26(2), 179–196. https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2025.2449978
Nielsen, J.C., & Sanford, M. Reexamining the Relationships of Religious Communities and the Public University: A Call-Back to Two Previous Scholars’ Responses with New Lenses. Journal of College and Character, 25(3), 283-290. https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2024.2349001.