After a long career in the WSU Department of Philosophy, Dr. Jeffrey Hershfield is retiring at the end of the Fall 2024 semester. Recipient of the John R. Barrier Distinguished Teaching Award in Humanities and Social Sciences, he has most recently served as the Director of the Legal Education Accelerated Degree (LEAD) program, the Director of the MA in Liberal Arts (MALS) program, and as the Pre-Law Advisor for Philosophy. Please join us in wishing Dr. Hershfield all the best in his retirement.
Come celebrate the end of the semester with us by decorating cookies (and eating them) in the Philosophy Library Annex, Fiske 009 from 11:00am - 1:00pm on Friday, December 6, 2024 from 11:00am to 1:00pm.
Thursday, October 10, 2024 at 3:30pm in McKinley 218, Dr. Jason Matteson gave a talk on the importance of "common values friendship" in professional fields like engineering.
Jay (Almer) Mandt, philosophy Professor Emeritus, passed away on June 20, 2024. Services are being provided by Downing and Lahey.
Please join us on Thursday, September 7th, when Emeritus Professors David Soles and Deborah Soles will deliver a talk entitled "Considerations on Loyalty." The talk will begin at 3:30pm in RSC 301 (Gridley Room).
The WSU Philosophy Department will host Prof. Symons on December 7, 5:00-6:30pm, in RSC 261. The talk is free and open to the public.
Dr. JS Johnson-Schwartz has resigned her position at WSU. We wish her all the best in all her upcoming projects and plans.
Curtis D. Gridley, a great friend to the Philosophy Department, sadly passed away last month.
The schedule for the 41st Kansas Philosophical Society meeting is now available. The meeting will take place at WSU on Saturday, April 13. Click this story for the schedule and additional information about this year's meeting.
Submissions are now open for the Philosophy Department's History of Philosophy Scholarship, which comes with an award of $1,500. Applications need to completed by 1 April, 2024. View this story for information about the scholarship and for submission instructions.
Alumni News
Here's what a few folks have done with their philosophy degree from WSU.
LCDR Joseph M. Hatfield retired from Naval Intelligence and is now an Assistant Professor in the Cyber Science
Department of the US Naval Academy (2025).
Misha Jacob-Warren returned to her roots and now is Deputy General Counsel at WSU (2025).
Lucy Petroucheva is a Coach at the Kansas Leadership Center (2025). "With a rich educational background
in psychology, philosophy, adaptive leadership, human-centered design, group dynamics,
adult learning theory, coaching, and Eastern contemplative practice, Lucy blends theory
and practical application. Her experience spans leading inclusive learning initiatives,
managing projects and teams, and fostering strategic partnerships across diverse sectors."
Courtney Minor is a graduate student in the PhD program in Philosophy at UCLA with full funding.
She's studying Philosophy of Law, Ethics, Political Philosophy, and Logic (2025).
Daniel Saunders finished his PhD in Philosophy at the University of British Columbia in philosophy
of science. He's now a Bayesian statisician with expertise in geospatial models and
time-series (2025).
Tyler Hiebert is finishing his dissertation for a PhD in Communications at the Annenberg School
of Communications, USC (2020).
Curt Gridley and Tracy Hoover founded Groover Labs, a creative concept to market maker space in Wichita's Old Town Opportunity Zone
(2019).
