Professor Desmangles graduated from Eastern University in 1964 with a B.A. in Music, from Palmer Seminary in Philadelphia with an M. Div. in Theology, and from Temple University in 1975 with a Ph.D. in Anthropology of Religion, specializing in Caribbean and African Studies. He has taught at Ohio Wesleyan University from 1969-1976, at De Paul University from 1976-1978, and at Trinity since 1978.

A dedicated teacher, Professor Desmangles has two primary pedagogical goals:  to encourage his students to understand the importance of religious beliefs in human society; and to teach them to appreciate the drama and pageantry of rituals in the religious traditions of peoples across the world. He has published widely, most notably an award book entitled, The Faces of the Gods: Vodou and Roman Catholicism in Haiti, a Choice outstanding academic book for 1994. Moreover, he was also the associate editor for  the Encyclopedia of African and African American Religions,  also a Choice outstanding reference book for 2003. Professor Desmangles was honored at the meeting of the American Anthropological Association in 2007 for his scholarly contributions to the study of Caribbean religions.

Publications:

• Desmangles, Leslie G. “African Interpretations of the Christian Vodou Cross.” In Invisible Powers: Vodou in Haitian Life and Culture.  New York: Palgrave Macmillan, chapter 3, 2006.
• Desmangles, Leslie G. " Creolization of Religion." In Encyclopedia of Religion. Vol. 3, New York: The Macmillan Company, p. 2065-2069, 2005.
• Desmangles, Leslie G. " Vodou." In Encyclopedia of Religious Rituals. New York: Routledge, p. 437-440, 2003.
• Desmangles, Leslie G. " Understanding Caribbean Religions."  In Understanding the Contemporary Caribbean. Lynne Rienner Publishers, Chapter 10, 2004.
• Desmangles, Leslie G., associate editor. Encyclopedia of African and African American Religions. New York: Routledge, 2001.
• Desmangles, Leslie G. Haiti in the Global Context.  Edited inaugural issue of Journal of Haitian Studies, 1995.
• Desmangles, Leslie G., and Etzel Cardeña. "Trance Possession, Vodou Rituals and Psychotherapy in Haiti." In Jahrbuch fur Transkulturelle Medizin und Psychotherapie. Internationalen Instituts fur Kulturvergleichende Therapieforschung, Universitat Koblenz/ Landau, Nr 6. December 1995, pp. 297-307.
• Desmangles, Leslie G. The Faces of the Gods: Vodou and Roman Catholicism in Haiti. Chapel Hill and London: University of North Carolina Press. (A 1994 Choice outstanding academic book).

Presentations:

• Desmangles, Leslie G. “Continuity and Change: Caribbean Religions in the Diaspora." The New Hampshire Institute of Politics. Saint Anselm College. November, 2005.

Documentary Films:

• Consultant in making of The Legacy of the Spirits with producer Karen Kramer. A three year project about the practice of Haitian Vodun in New York City and its environs.  The project was funded by New York Council for the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts. This film was featured at the 1985 Margaret Mead Film Festival at the New York Museum of Natural Science, 1985.
  
   

• Awards from the Connecticut General Assembly and Governor John Rowland for commitment and service to the state of Connecticut. Award given on Immigration Day ceremony at the State Capitol in May, 2002
• Teacher of the Year award. Haitian American Alliance, New York City, 2000
• Award in recognition for contributions in promoting mutual understanding between Haiti and the United States. Presented by U.S. Ambassador William Swing as part of a fourth of July ceremony at the United States Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 1998
• Scholar-in-Residence. Santa Rosa College. February, 1997
• Faces of the Gods “Choice outstanding academic books for 1994”
• National Endowment for the Humanities, 1980