Class of 1947

Doris Leenhouts-Hunter, Ph. D.

Minister in the Unitarian Universalist Church

Author and Lecturer on Religion and Philosophy

College Professor and Counselor

Inducted into the Royal Oak High School Hall of Fame, 2014

Doris Anne Leenhouts graduated from Royal Oak High School in 1947. She can be seen in the school yearbook enjoying the senior trip to Mackinac Island. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Albion College before earning a degree from Boston University School of Theology and a doctorate in philosophy of religion from Boston University’s graduate school.

Doris combined raising a family with a career. She married the Rev. Dr. Howard E. Hunter, a professor at Tufts University. They have two children and four grandchildren.

Doris Leenhouts Hunter spent many years employed in higher education. She was an instructor and lecturer in religion and philosophy at Bentley College and Tufts University. She served as an assistant professor of humanities in the college of basic studies at Boston University and counseled women students at Boston University’s School of Theology.

Dr. Leenhouts Hunter was a pioneer. She was one of the first women to attend divinity school. In 1975 she became a minister in the Unitarian Universalist Church. She became an accredited interim minister and served many different churches in the greater New England area in that capacity. She is active in the Unitarian Universalist Association serving on many committees and on its board of trustees.

Doris Leenhouts Hunter has authored and co-authored many publications on the subject of religion and nonviolence. She is an active member of the International Association for Religious Freedom and has served as chair of its board of directors. Dr. Leenhouts Hunter can frequently be found at a conference or a retreat presenting a talk or leading a panel discussion. Her influence is felt internationally with presentations in Canada, England, Germany, India, and South Korea.

Dr. Leenhousts Hunter served as vice-president of the board of trustees for the James Luther Adams Foundation which promotes social ethics in the United States. She spent several years on the Clarence Skinner Award Committee which annauly recognizes the preacher of the sermon that best expresses the social principles of the church. As an interfaith leader she has served as president and vice-president of the Massachusetts Bay District Ministers Association.