Varun Soni

Dr. Varun Soni is an interfaith leader, scholar, and public speaker who holds the distinction of being the first Hindu to serve as the chief spiritual leader of a college or university in the United States. As dean of religious life at the University of Southern California, Soni also served as the inaugural vice provost of campus wellness and crisis intervention, and teaches courses in the Marshall School of Business, the Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, and the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

Soni earned a Bachelor of Arts in religion from Tufts University, a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, a Master of Arts in religious studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a Juris Doctor from the UCLA School of Law—where he completed the Critical Race Studies Program and served as an editor for the Journal of Islamic and Near Eastern Law—and a Doctor of Philosophy in religious studies from the University of Cape Town, where his doctoral research focused on religion, technology, and popular culture.

Soni’s approach to interfaith leadership is informed by personal immersion in diverse spiritual traditions. As an undergraduate, he spent a semester living in a Buddhist monastery in Bodh Gaya, India, and as a graduate student, he conducted field research in India through the University of California, Santa Barbara’s Center for Sikh and Punjab Studies. Soni is a national interfaith leader and advocate for religious reconciliation. At USC, he works at the intersection of spiritual and scholarly education, provides moral and ethical leadership on campus, and oversees 90 student religious groups and more than 40 staff members who act as religious directors. His vision includes students with no religious affiliation; to support this, he hired a humanist chaplain to collaborate with other religious leaders on campus.

Soni’s leadership has been tested by real-world crises that required moral courage. When Mumbai experienced a series of terrorist attacks by a Pakistan-based religious militant group, Soni organized an interfaith memorial service for the victims, co-sponsored by the Association of Indian Students and the Pakistani Student Association, despite criticism for including a Pakistani student organization. He has facilitated interfaith retreats, promoted LGBTQ Bible studies, and taught courses on misunderstood religions, including Islam and Sikhism.

Beyond the university, Soni has developed a profile at the intersection of spirituality and popular culture. He is senior advisor for the multimedia production company Religion of Sports and advises the video game company Naughty Dog, contributing to the "Uncharted" and "The Last of Us" franchises. Soni has served as a consultant for HBO, ESPN, Showtime, A&E, History Channel, Live Nation, and Oprah Winfrey Network, and produced the graphic novel "Tina's Mouth: An Existential Comic Diary." He is also the author of "Natural Mystics: The Prophetic Lives of Bob Marley and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan."

Soni has received recognition beyond USC, including the Gomes Memorial Award from Harvard Divinity School and selection as keynote speaker at Stanford University’s Baccalaureate celebration, where he was the first Hindu to deliver that address. He has been interviewed by media outlets such as Los Angeles Times, Associated Press, National Public Radio, ABC News, Forbes, and Voice of America. Soni addresses topics including interfaith leadership, religious diversity, and the intersection of spirituality and popular culture in higher education and media.