g r a d u a t e

I am presently department Director of Graduate Admissions, and was previously department Director of Graduate Placement. I have taught graduate level courses on aesthetics, ethical theory, epistemology, normative reasons in ethics and epistemology, luck and credit​, and the philosophy of love. I have also served on several PhD dissertation committees.

​Graduate students are particularly encouraged to participate in the Ethics Seminar, and talks in this speaker series sometimes overlap with my advanced classes (they are often scheduled with course topics in mind; topics previously selected for this purpose include ethical theory, love and reasons).

U N D E R G R A D U A T E

I teach an Introduction to Ethics class almost every semester. I find it particularly satisfying to help a large number of students who are mostly new to philosophy develop critical thinking skills and an appreciation of the complexity of the ethical domain. Whether or not they go on to study more philosophy, it is important that students have an opportunity to work at improving their critical thinking skills and moral reasoning, given the direct relevance of doing so to many significant decisions that they will need to make in their own lives. I use classroom polls to garner the students' opinions and moral judgments throughout this course. Other undergraduate courses I have taught include Applied Ethics, Contemporary Ethical Theory, Epistemology, History of Ethics, Philosophy of Love, and Types of Ethical Theory.

In advanced undergraduate and graduate courses, I structure proceedings around extended discussions between students that are focused on interpreting and critically assessing ideas and arguments in carefully chosen texts. This fits with my general aim, when teaching any course, of facilitating active learning and critical reflection, rather than simply the passive digestion of a stream of information.