Manideep Kanagala considers himself a spiritual man.
Growing up in India and through his travels, Kangala has been exposed to many different cultural and religious experiences.
“I like to understand different cultures, and the only way to understand is by being part of it, rather than hearing from somebody else,” he said.
Now, Kanalaga, an MBA candidate in the Marshall School of Business, is an active and involved member of the Jewish Association of Marshall Students, otherwise known as JAMS.
“I feel a sense of belonging,” Kangala said. “I mean, not like an outsider, but as an ally of JAMS.”
Religious clubs like JAMS welcome non-religious students as an integral part of their club’s community and membership.
Alec Hoffman, President of JAMS, says that upwards of 40 percent of the first-year full-time MBA class identifies as Indian this year.
“We have a very strong connection and attendance by Indian class members because they want to learn more about the Jewish faith,” Hoffman said. “It’s really interesting and fun to see.”
As barriers to joining some clubs, like interviews, applications and the cost of membership dues increase, more students are turning to religious student organizations like Acts2Fellowship (A2F), a Christian club, to find community and connection at USC.
“You don’t have to be Christian. You can be any religion. I think that’s what I appreciated about it at first and even now,” said Shalom Abi, the treasurer of A2F.
“It’s focused on building relationships and just finding community within this campus. I think we live in a very broken world, and coming into college or even navigating life after college can be really hard.”
Although officially classified as a Christian organization, many non-religious students participate in free A2F events, including worship services, talks on culture, social events, athletic tournaments and mission trips, which are paid for through fundraising.
Religious clubs on campus, such as A2F, do not adhere to the typical application process that some other professional and social clubs at USC have.
“For all of my other clubs, I’ve had to do an interview, a formal application, submit a resume, all the other things, but for Acts2Fellowship, it’s actually quite contradictory,” said Abi. “We don’t have any application process. It’s simply just a way to meet people and connect on a deeper level than even just other clubs that I might be a part of.”
Student organizations emphasize that membership can be a way to explore spirituality and foster deeper connections with others.
“I know that maybe in some different faith experiences or church cultures, there can be difficulty at the entry level to start. But we really try to create spaces that don’t require any prior knowledge or prerequisite of knowledge of the Bible. We want to encourage people just to show up and to be present and try something new,” said Timothy Hoang, staff leader with InterVarsity Trojan Christian Fellowship at USC.
There are over 80 religious student organizations on campus, according to the university’s website.
Religions including Baha’i, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Quakerism and Sikhism are represented across the university’s faith-oriented student organizations. Over half of clubs are Christian — with 45 currently listed on the Christian student groups website.
“We’re all humans, we all want connection, and I think InterVarsity provides a space to build friendships and define a sense of belonging,” said Grace Wang, a small group leader with InterVarsity and a senior studying neuroscience at USC.
“People are very open to having vulnerable conversations here, and I think that really helps foster that kind of deep personal connection that you don’t get on a day-to-day interaction on campus.”