Given her sunny disposition, you might be surprised that Dr. Lucy Bregman, Professor Emeritus of Religion, is best known at Temple for a course about death.
Bregman’s signature course, Death and Dying, examines the end of life from various cultural and spiritual angles. Over time, she found that a large and diverse assortment of students were connecting deeply with the class as a setting to process their own experiences. Reflecting on a 45-year career at Temple, Bregman lights up when she talks about how much she gained from her students and providing that space for their distinct perspectives.
“One of the most remarkable things about teaching at Temple that I look back on and just treasure is the immense variety of students,” says Bregman. “At one point, in a class of 35 students, I had people from every continent except Australia. It was just great. I learned an enormous amount that way.”
Now, Bregman looks to give back as a donor to the students she cherished and the university that they call home. In particular, she has stood up as a champion for the Liberal Arts Undergraduate Research Awards (LAURAs), having endowed four of these vital awards.
Each semester, the LAURAs offer undergraduate students a $2,000 stipend to conduct a research project alongside a faculty mentor. The program offers students a unique opportunity to develop academic research skills without having to worry about their financial wellbeing. For Bregman, there is value not only in opening doors for students but also highlighting the role of liberal arts in Temple’s portfolio as an R1 research institution.
“When I was an undergraduate, I did an honors project in religious studies and philosophy, and it really did prepare me for doing graduate level research and working on my own as a self starter,” says Bregman. “I want to make sure that research includes every level of student and every aspect of all the departments of the university. I think that is an important part of enhancing Temple's reputation as a research university.”
As rising costs and other obstacles mount for college attendees, Bregman wants to ensure that students pursuing degrees in the arts and humanities are not discouraged or dissuaded. She hopes to contribute to liberal arts students receiving the same support she sees for students in math, science and tech fields.
“Not everybody has the interest or particular aptitudes for those fields,” Bregman notes. “It seems to me that it’s an occasion for private donors and private funding to fill in the gaps for those students who are less STEM and healthcare oriented but still ready, worthy and motivated to go to college.”
Since retiring in 2019, Bregman has remained active in her church community and enjoys spending her free time in and around nature. She kayaks whenever she can, a hobby she hopes to maintain as long as she is physically able. She also regularly volunteers at the Heinz National Wildlife Refuge. “I mean, I don’t go out and tackle invasive species or do high-tech, biological, environmental research. I sit in the visitor center and answer the phone,” Bregman humbly mentions, with a chuckle.
Still, Dr. Bregman’s legacy at Temple University continues to grow, even beyond the Religion Department, where her Death and Dying course continues its incredible longevity. It exists in the opportunity that her contributions will create for future generations of students. She attributes some of her giving spirit to the gratitude she feels for her time at Temple.
“I look back and I realize I had a really good experience at Temple,” says Bregman. “Maybe part of the motivation for giving money now is to give back some of that good experience or at least to help other people have some of the same benefits that I experienced.”