Current Graduate Students

Alex’s main research interest is in the ethics of collective action, especially environmental ethics and the ethics of voting. He engages arguments that explore the efficacy of individuals and how collective action shapes moral requirements. He also enjoys the history of philosophy, particularly as related to modern political philosophy as well as ancient and contemporary accounts of virtue ethics. Alex earned a B.A. in philosophy from Bethel University in Saint Paul, MN (’05) and an M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary in Princeton, NJ (’08). He spent a few years cultivating his love of teaching philosophy at community colleges in New Jersey and Minnesota before arriving at Bowling Green.

Andrew received his M.A. in philosophy from San Jose State University and his B.A in philosophy from Humboldt State University. He is writing his dissertation on rule consequentialism. His other area of interest is in applied ethics.

Sara studied biochemistry, art, and philosophy as an undergraduate student at The College of St. Catherine, in St. Paul, Minnesota. She graduated with a major in philosophy and a minor in biochemistry.  Sara received her master’s degree in philosophy at Ohio University, in Athens, Ohio. Her master’s thesis argued that knowledge that others are capable of holding themselves accountable to our second-personal demands is not dependent on the knowledge that we can hold ourselves accountable—we can have knowledge of both concurrently.  She is now completing her doctoral degree in applied philosophy and researching problems in moral responsibility.  One of her favorite works in philosophy is Ludwig Wittgenstein’s Philosophical Investigations.

Tatiana received her B.A. in philosophy from Minnesota State University Moorhead and an M.A. in philosophy from Bowling Green State University. Her primary area of research is medical ethics, focusing on addressing the shortcomings of traditional bioethical theories to guide decision-making in clinical practice. Her work in bioethics also includes research regarding end-of-life policies and practices, paternalism in the clinical setting, and the impact of food policies on patient health outcomes.

Zeke received his B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Michigan. He also received a B.A. in Anthropology, focusing on Archaeology. He finished his M.A. in Philosophy at Wayne State University in Detroit, writing on the ethics of cognitive enhancement.  His primary interests are ethics (meta, normative, and applied), anything relating to John Stuart Mill, and 16th-17th century Metaphysics. When he isn't agonizing over whether or not he's doing the "right" thing, Zeke is an avid gamer (both the video and tabletop variety) with an intense interest in game design, speed-running, and E-sports. He also enjoys playing bass guitar and savoring rye whiskeys.  

Ian studied philosophy and economics at Pepperdine University before arriving at BGSU.  His main philosophical interests include accounts of political legitimacy and the justification of coercion.  In his spare time, Ian does audio engineering and plays video games.

Colin received his B.A. in philosophy at Ohio University and his M.A. in philosophy at Bowling Green State University. He is currently working on issues of policy individuation in public-reason liberalism. His other interests include ethics, political philosophy, and privacy.

Austin is interested in the will and its connection to ethics. 

Liz received her B.S. in Animal Science from Cornell University. She also holds degrees in Equine Science and Veterinary Technology, and she is a Registered Veterinary Technician. Before returning to academia, she spent several years working in private veterinary practice. Unsurprisingly, her primary philosophical area of interest is animal ethics, but she also has interests in metaphysics and the philosophy of gender. Outside of philosophy, she enjoys bird watching, spending time with her cats, and playing electric guitar.

Erica received her bachelor's degree from Purdue University Northwest. Her interests primarily lie with issues at the intersection of metaphysics and ethics, especially regarding the relationship between persons and points in time, such as personal identity, the Shape of a Life Phenomenon, and the Nonidentity Problem. She also has great interest in philosophy of logic, philosophy of science, philosophy of mind, and philosophy of psychiatry. Outside of philosophical interests, Erica is interested in writing and producing music, trading card games, and video games.

I received my BA in international relations and philosophy at UBC in Canada. After a long hiatus from book learnin', I got an MA from the University of Houston. I then worked as an adjunct at UNLV for a few years before coming to BG to pursue a PhD. In the broadest terms, my research revolves around the growth of science denialism and conspiracism and their effects on public policy-making within a liberal democracy. I'm interested in how accounts of public justification handle the rise and prevalence of denialism and conspiracism. My dissertation examines the above problem within the domain of public healthcare policy. Other and related areas of interest include applied epistemology, paternalism, and existentialism. In my spare time I coach the BGSU judo and grappling club and hike with my dog Otis Ponens.

I received a B.A. in a double major: Law and Social Thought and Philosophy and a M.A. in Sociology, both from the University of Toledo.  My M.A. was focused on Critical Race Theory, researching the relationship between race, racism, and power, and wrote my thesis “Don’t Kill My Vibe: An Analysis of the Language Used in Political Hip-Hop”.  My philosophical interests include: philosophy of race, social and political philosophy, political aesthetics, and existentialism.  In my personal research I like to focus on questions such as: “how are systems of power socially, politically, and economically structured?”, “how do our ideas of beauty pervade our social and political institutions?”, and “how do these institutions evolve out of our public discourse?”.

Julia came to formal philosophy later in life, but sees that all her life has been pointing in that direction. She studied art history at Queen’s and then went to Queen’s law school. She got married and bought a car and a house in the years of 20% interest rates. Tired of the grind of practising law, she went back to school at LSE and obtained her LL.M. Having always been somewhat involved politically, she worked on Parliament Hill for a number of years during the upheaval of the Bloc and Reform Party years. When Reform turned into Conservative, she ended up teaching law at a community college, where she was then diagnosed with breast cancer, which was a life-changer. Determined to go back to school to pursue her interests in identity and belonging, she obtained her MA in philosophy at Carleton and now finds herself content and busy and challenged at BGSU.

Tim tried out several possible majors, including political science and art history, before realizing that his real interest was in the philosophy of the various fields he was drawn to. His present philosophical interests are in all areas of ethics, with side interests in philosophy of mind and epistemology. In ethics, he is currently interested in a variety of puzzles that arise when considering the interaction between present and future ethical demands (as well as concurrent ethical demands that differ in temporal scope), and how these puzzles relate to collective action problems. He is also interested in the ethics of emerging technologies—in particular, the ethics of “virtue engineering” and of human enhancement more generally.

Adam is most interested in political philosophy. Much of his writing is on the confrontation between state sovereignty and global authority. Adam teaches some of the department’s introductory courses as an adjunct. Away from philosophy Adam can be found wearing down his running shoes in modest 5K doses; trying to outsmart the stock market (nope); and missing sports questions for our otherwise excellent trivia bar philosophy team.