Acting academic vice president Brad Neiger has announced the appointment of Kristian Heal as interim executive director of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, effective May 1. Dr. Heal begins his interim service following the tenure of Spencer Fluhman, who served as executive director of the Maxwell Institute from 2016 to 2023. Dr. Heal will serve until the appointment of a permanent executive director.
“Kristian Heal has been a dedicated scholar and citizen at Brigham Young University and the Maxwell Institute for many years,” said acting AVP Neiger. “With Dr. Heal at the helm, the Maxwell Institute will be in very good and able hands until a permanent executive director is named.”
Dr. Heal received a bachelor’s degree in Jewish History from University College London, a master’s degree in Syriac Studies from the University of Oxford, and a doctoral degree in Theology from the University of Birmingham. He joined the Maxwell Institute in 2000 and has served there as the director of the Center for the Preservation of Ancient Religious Texts, the associate director of the Maxwell Institute, and as a Research Fellow. He is the author or editor of eight books, most recently, Genesis 37 and 39 in the Early Syriac Tradition (Leiden: Brill, 2023). Dr. Heal and his wife Vicki-Bronwen are the parents of five children.