James Preston | Profiles

Fall 2025

Section 0987 of HUM8
Comparative Mythology -- : Aug 18 - Dec 12 2025
This section has no scheduled meetings.

Section 3025 of HUM8
Comparative Mythology -- : Aug 21 - Dec 12 2025
This section will meet every other Thursday in-person in Room 1509 beginning 8/21/25. There will be additional course content delivered asynchronously online. Please contact the instructor at jpreston@santarosa.edu for further information and/or questions.

Summer 2025

Section 8964 of ANTH2
Cultural Anthropology -- : Jun 16 - Jul 27 2025
This section has no scheduled meetings.

Section 9082 of RELS2
World Religions -- : Jun 16 - Jul 27 2025
This section has no scheduled meetings.

Spring 2025

Section 4567 of HUMAN25
Monsters -- : Jan 16 - May 16 2025
This section will meet every other Thursday in-person in Room 1509 beginning 1/16/25. There will be additional course content delivered asynchronously online. Please contact the instructor for further information and/or questions.

Section 5896 of HUMAN6
Humanities in the United States -- : Jan 13 - May 16 2025
This section has no regularly scheduled meetings.

Dr. James Preston has been Professor of Anthropology and Chair of the Religious Studies Program at the State University of New York, Oneonta. He has conducted research on Hinduism in India and among Native American Catholics. Dr. Preston has published numerous books and articles on a wide variety of topics in symbolic anthropology and religious studies. He is presently an adjunct faculty member in several departments at both Santa Rosa Junior College and Sonoma State University. Recently he taught a course on the Quest for Meaning in World Religions at the University of California at Berkeley.

Presentations and Publications

Dr. Preston has published a wide range of articles on various aspects of religion in both academic journals and edited books. He has published 4 entries in the Encyclopedia of Religion. His major research has been on Hinduism and Native American Catholic populations. Over the years he has published several books and monographs in the fields of anthropology and religious studies. At present Dr. Preston continues conducting research on the Kahnawake Mohawk reservation near Montreal.

Dr. Preston is a member of the American Academy of Religion, the American Anthropological Association and the Institute of Structural Neuropsychology and Medicine. He has delivered numerous guest lectures in professional organizations and at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, the University of Toronto,the State University of New York at Binghamton, the University of South Florida, and Columbia University, among others.

Honors and Awards

Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching, State University of New York