DEPARTMENT OF PHILOSOPHY INDIANA UNIVERSITY PURDUE UNIVERSITY FORT WAYNE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES From he Acing Chair, Erik Ohlander As Professor Buld enjoys a welldeserved sabbaical his academic erm, i is boh my duy and pleasure as acing chair o wrie a brief noe prefacing his issue of Philosophy News. While cerainly no preending o fill his shoes, I do neverheless find a cerain saisfacion in being asked o fill in during his absence. As such, please accep my welcome o his, our fall 2012 newsleer. The beginning of every academic year brings wih i a hos of new designs, expecaions, and challenges, and his year is no differen. The passage of new sae legislaion direcly impacing he curricula of Indiana s public colleges and universiies, wide-ranging discussions regarding he place and role of regional campuses such as IPFW in he sae s universiy sysem, and he coninued financial srains fel by public insiuions of higher educaion in Indiana have given all of us a grea deal o hink abou. A he same ime, as a communiy of scholars and eachers commied o wha I firmly believe o be amongs he nobles of human pursuis, we know mos assuredly ha he endeavor ha we have inheried from hose preceding us and ha we srive o pass on o hose who will follow canno bu coninue o conribue o he public good, as i has always done. For all involved, he experience of universiy is mean o be ransformaive, and we as a deparmen ake grea pride in serving as caalyss in ha process. As he of-cied firs-cenury Greek lieraeur Pluarch (yes, I know he was a Roman ciizen) famously wroe, The mind does no require filling like a bole, bu raher, like wood, i only requires kindling o creae in i an impulse o hink independenly and an arden desire for he ruh. * This, I hink, prey much sums i up. While represening bu a selecion of many oher acs of kindling, as you will discover in he pages ha follow, he birh of he new academic year is winess o a group of faculy deeply engaged in hose many and varied scholarly, educaional, and oher pursuis so vial o he life of any universiy. Since he las newsleer, our faculy have published ye more books, chapers, aricles, and reviews in heir diverse areas of experise wih publishers boh domesic and inernaional; have given presenaions on opics various and sundry o audiences boh academic and popular a home and abroad; have developed and augh (or will be eaching shorly) a number of new courses; as well as have coninued o conribue in a muliude of ways o he universiy, he local communiy, and he profession a large. This, as always, in a shared commimen o ha everconinuing endeavor whose sublimiy never ceases o amaze. For heir par, our sudens have coninued o do all manner of wonderful hings. In his regard, I am paricularly delighed o recognize he mos recen awardees of our main deparmenal honors: Joshua Bersch, winner of he James Spencer Churchill Philosophy Essay Cones; and Daniel Todorovic, recipien of he Jean and Bill Bruening Scholarship. Congraulaions again o boh! So ha we may coninue o recognize such excellence, please do consider making a conribuion, however small, o he deparmen s scholarship and award fund. Conac he deparmen for informaion regarding how o conribue. In closing, I invie you, our alumni, friends, and associaes, o say in ouch. We are always eager o hear of your coninued successes and warmly welcome, nay, encourage, any suggesions or ideas as o conen for fuure issues of his newsleer. All our bes and yours in discourse, Erik S. Ohlander *Pluarch, Moralia, Loeb Classical Library ediion, vol. 1, p. 259. Faculy News *Pluarch, Moralia, Loeb Classical Library ediion, vol. 1, p. 259.
Faculy News Erik S. Ohlander: In addiion o oher projecs, 2012 saw he publicaion of he inaugural issue of he Journal of Sufi Sudies, for which I serve as execuive edior. Issued semiannually by he Duch academic publishing house Brill, he Journal of Sufi Sudies furnishes an inernaional scholarly forum for research on Sufism. Our firs issue feaures aricles and reviews by scholars from Germany, he Unied Kingdom, Turkey, and he Unied Saes. I also published he enry al-f ar uhi, c Izz al-d in in Brill s monumenal Encyclopaedia of Islam Three, and conribued wo iems o a subsanial Web-based resource for he field of Islamic sudies published by Oxford Universiy Press, Oxford Islamic Sudies Online, a Themaic Guide o Sufism and a lesson plan on he same. Finally, in May we welcomed he addiion of idenical win girls o our household, Karina Tara and Marina Kausar Ohlander. As one migh imagine, hey are keeping us quie busy, bu happily so. Jennifer Caseldine-Brach: I had a paper acceped for he Sepember 2012 Human Developmen and Capabiliies Associaion conference in Jakara, Indonesia. I am currenly doing research a he inersecion of ehics, gender, and global responsibiliy. I also gave a paper a an Inernaional Developmen and Ehics Associaion conference las year, which has subsequenly been acceped for inclusion in a fuure special issue of he Journal of Global Ehics ha will have he heme of empowermen. Joyce Lazier: I presened wih Samanha Birk a he Inernaional Humaniies Conference in Torono, and I presened a he American Associaion of Philosophy Teachers in Ausin, Texas. Boh presenaions showcased my work on he effecive use of ipads in he classroom. I augh wo TV/online courses in summer 2012. I had a paper acceped a he Inernaional Sociey for he Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Monreal. Finally, I spen ime wih my hree kids, ages nine, seven, and wo. Jeff Srayer: I had a one-person show a he IPFW Visual Ars Gallery ha ran Ocober 1 November 18. I gave a lecure a he opening on he opic Does Absrac Ar Have a Limi? The focus of he alk was an ouline of he philosophy ha mus underlie any aemp o deermine he more reducive arworks possible he philosophy ha is he subjec of my book Subjecs and Objecs: Ar, Essenialism, and Absracion (2007). I also alked abou how I have aemped o respond creaively o he quesion by producing wha I erm Essenialis arworks, or works ha reflec, as hey uilize, hings ha are essenial o making and apprehending works of ar. Abraham Schwab: Aside from puing ogeher my enure and promoion case and eaching wo summer classes, I appeared on NIPR s Midday Maers o discuss he Affordable Care Ac wih he CEOs of Physicians Healh Plan and Parkview Healh, pu he finishing ouches on my conribuions o he edied volume The Human Microbiome: Ehical, Legal, and Social Perspecives, and wroe a shor essay eniled The Non-Science of Medicine for Arium: The Repor of he Norhwesern Medical Humaniies and Bioehics Program. I also prepared for he larges ipad class on IPFW s campus his fall, PHIL 312, Medical Ehics. Clark Buler: The conference I sponsored on U.S. democracy was a success. My book The Dialecical Mehod: A Treaise Hegel Never Wroe and he edied volume Child Righs: The Movemen, Inernaional Law, and Opposiion appeared in spring 2012, as well as hree book chapers, one of which, The Coming World Welfare Sae Which Hegel Could No See, was included in Hegel and Global Jusice (2011). This summer I invesigaed an elemenary-classroom-esed ehics ex ha included chapers on logos, Chrisian ehics and human righs ehics. My curren main opic of research is world povery. In eaching, I wroe an elemenary draf manuscrip eniled Ehics: Theoreical Foundaions of Applied Ehics in he summer. I am now classroom esing i and have submied a book proposal o a exbook publisher. Ioan Munean: Togeher wih Bernd Buld and David McCary (Indiana Universiy Bloomingon), I organized he fourh PhiloSTEM workshop in he philosophy of science, echnology, engineering, and mahemaics. Philosem-4 was held in Ocober 2012, and i feaured invied speakers and a number of conribued papers. For informaion abou PhiloSTEM-4, see deails a inyurl.com/philosem. I will also be aending wo inernaional conferences: he final meeing of he Foundaions of Srucuralism Projec a he Universiy of Brisol and he 40h meeing of he Sociey for Exac Philosophy, a which I will alk abou several opics in philosophy of physics (dualiies and onic srucural realism in sring heory) and in meaphysics and philosophy of science. I have papers under review on he episemology of geneic algorihms and on he emergence of spaceime in sring heory. Finally, I have been invied o review aricles for he Briish Journal for he Philosophy of Science and Sudies in he Hisory and Philosophy of Modern Physics and o wrie wo book reviews for Meapsychology and Philosophical Psychology. Michael Spah During spring 2012, I gave wo gues lecures on campus, Healh Care for he Muslim Paien and Peacemaking and Conflic Resoluion in Islam ; wo presenaions in he communiy, The Three Pauls: Auhenic Paul, Conservaive Pseudo- Paul, Exremis Ani-Paul, and The Open House of Ramle ; and paricipaed in an inerfaih panel, Theodicy and Human Suffering. I also led a rip of sudens and communiy members o he Islamic Cener of America and Arab-American Museum. I was eleced board chair of he For Wayne Urban League, was appoined o he naional Unied Church of Chris Palesine- Israel Nework, and coninue my work as execuive direcor of he Indiana Cener for Middle Eas Peace. In he laer role, we hosed lecures on Syria and he Peace Corps in Afghanisan; a rerea for local Jewish, Chrisian, and Muslim eens; and a performance by a dance and drama roupe from Behlehem. Over spring break, I led a eam of audiologiss from For Wayne o work a he Dheisheh Refugee Camp and a school for special needs children in Behlehem, Palesine. Finally, I was honored o receive he Amisad Peace and Jusice Award from Plymouh Congregaional Church.
ilosophy Projec The Capabiliies Paradigm Jennifer Caseldine-Brach I recenly aended a Human Developmen and Capabiliy Associaion (HDCA) conference in Jakara, Indonesia. I was a privilege o engage wih oher philosophers, economiss, sociologiss, poliicians, and policy makers from around he world. I have an ineres in human developmen and he capabiliies approach because i provides a space where I can uilize my philosophical background o clarify conceps in developmen, as well as examine issues of social jusice, human righs, and he moral heories underlying developmen policies. One of he primary goals of he HDCA is o enable high-qualiy research o influence policy-making a he cenral and local governmen levels. In he 1980s, Amarya Sen argued ha developmen should be more han welfare economics. Raher, i should focus on developmen as human freedom. Marha Nussbaum wen on o develop a capabiliies lis, which includes such hings as equaliy, bodily healh, being able o live in relaion wih he naural world, and so forh. This capabiliies paradigm evenually moivaed he Unied Naions o creae a Human Developmen Index, which aemps o accuraely measure healh, gender equaliy, and oher componens imporan o human flourishing. In 1990, hey also creaed a Human Developmen Repor, which repors on he progress of naions by examining he richness of individual human lives insead of solely focusing on he wealh of naions. My own research focuses on he concep of responsibiliy and is appropriae role in a capabiliies approach o human developmen. Among many oher hings, I explore he following quesions: Is Nussbaum s heoreical capabiliies approach paradigm he bes way o frame issues of global injusice? Wha is a responsibiliy approach o global jusice issues? How are people moivaed o care abou global jusice? Wha are he benefis of combining a responsibiliy approach wih a more radical feminis mehodology in order o advance issues of gender and global jusice? Nussbaum offers a compelling and imporan rebual o hose who criicize her from a posmodern culural relaivis posiion, and she provides a persuasive argumen in favor of universal righs. While I do believe ha enaive universal liss are less problemaic han culural relaivism, I also wan o argue ha she needs o be more careful o heed he criiques of universalism and carefully consider why so many people are criical of universal liss. Whenever we are dealing wih universal principles, we should be very humble and look a he long hisory of ways in which false principles have been used o oppress people. These should only be viewed as a enaive, open lis, and is primary purpose is o challenge radiional values based on enculuraed prejudices which work o limi marginalized people s capabiliies. This means hose in he Wes mus focus much more seriously on our own oppressive values and he ways we have ofen been enculuraed o avoid our own responsibiliy for he hwared capabiliies of many people in he world. In Women and Human Developmen: The Capabiliies Approach (2000), Nussbaum presens sories from several Indian ciizens lives in order o illusrae he imporance of promoing such universal capabiliies. Many of he cases she explores are abou he challenges women face from corrup local governmens, pariarchal culure, and severe povery. I examine many of he cases illusraed in Nussbaum s work and demonsrae how considering Wesern compliciy and responsibiliy in hese anecdoal sories may lead us o differen conclusions regarding wha some of he primary obsacles are o he acualizaion of capabiliies around he world. For insance, Nussbaum menions ha we need o find ou how he widows in India are doing because his daa usually appears in measuremens of oher heads of households. If we look a his from Nussbaum s individualisic model a he micro level, i makes sense o dig deeper o ask how he widows are doing. Bu wha happens if we look a hings from a macro level? I will be fruiful o ask why some of hese women are widows in he firs place. Vandana Shiva has spoken abou Monsano widows. She poins ou ha here were formerly no farmer suicides in India; raher, suicides in he Indian farming communiies emerged in 1997 afer Monsano esablished a hold on Indian agriculure ( Lae Rains o Boos Bumper Foodgrain Producion, Economic Times [Nov. 26, 2004]: 3, as referenced in Vandana Shiva, Earh Democracy: Jusice, Susainabiliy and Peace [Cambridge:Souh End Press, 2005]: 120). Monsano is an American company. Wha responsibiliy do Americans have o proes some of hese policies? Perhaps his is a beer quesion o ask. I also argue ha a feminis care ehics framework may moivae people o develop an ineres in issues of global injusice. By examining how people ofen come o care abou hings and undersanding why hey should care, his approach can provide a way for people o accep responsibiliy for heir role in unjus srucural processes. Also, Lisa Schwarzman has provided a criique of Nussbaum s liberal, individualisic mehodology and (Coninued on following page)
ilosophy Suden Feaured Suden Daniel Todorovic My name is Daniel Todorovic, and I am double majoring in philosophy and psychology. I have been awarded he Jean and Bill Bruening Scholarship in philosophy. I am a senior, and while I will be graduaing soon, I am now finally a he poin of asking wha philosophy really means in is deepes sense. I know wha philosophy is, broadly speaking, and here are various ways you can formulae i: he love and pursui of wisdom, he ar of hinking, or he disincion beween how he world is and how i ough o be. Ye even hough all hese hings are par of wha philosophy is, i ells you very lile abou wha philosophy means. Many people are influenced by specific philosophical ideas or philosophers. Though some have been more influenial for me han ohers, i would be wrong o disinguish beween hose who have and have no influenced me; each in heir own way, even hose wih whom I have disagreed, have shaped me. From Plao, whose ideas ulimaely shaped he dominan religious docrines, which in urn shaped much of he world and is culure, o Arisole, whose ideas shaped how we look a he world, and o Kan, who despie having an incorrigible wriing syle laid he foundaion for hough and reason in our curren world, i canno be said ha he ideas of hese and ohers had no influence on us, or anyone else in our culure, considering ha we are heir legacy. Bu of hose hings ha I consider o be significan on a personal level, for me i all comes down o Arisole. Arisole presened an alernaive o Plao s raher exreme ideas, bu no so exreme as o be compleely on he oher side of he specrum. The middle pah is ofen he bes course of acion: being open o ye skepical of all hings. This sor of hinking can be seen in much of my work: In he essay ha I submied for he Bruening Scholarship, I argued for an insrumenalis approach o scienific knowledge, bu no so srongly as o deny scienific heories as being devoid of he poenial for ruh. Scienific heories ulimaely are ools ha give us a very pragmaic view of how he world migh and, for all pracical purposes, should be. Daniel Todorovic Anoher influenial hinker for my work is René Descares, paricularly his Mediaions on Firs Philosophy (1641). I had ofen experienced similar Caresian doubs even before I heard of him. His Mediaions voices my own innermos houghs. I resonae much more wih analyic philosophy han Coninenal philosophy; wha I coninue o find is ha ruh is somehing we all hold ono, ye is always ouside our grasp. Originally, he Bruening Scholarship was one of pracical imporance. Surprisingly, I only found ha here was a financial award afer I agreed o submi an applicaion. I had no inenion o apply for he scholarship for honor or pride, because I believe hose hings come from he inside, no based on he opinion and gifs of ohers. So, as I hough abou my graduaion, I hough ha i would look good on my résumé as I applied o graduae programs. Ulimaely hough, afer I received he award, I discovered ha he enire process had more han simple financial gain or pracical worh; i was a chance o es myself, which was, in iself, is own reward. And of course, I owe much o he philosophy faculy. They were very encouraging, and I found he discussion-based lecure syle ha persiss in upper-level philosophy courses o be he mos effecive kind for my learning. Raher han memorizing facual bis of informaion, he Socraic syle faciliaed a deeper level of hinking and undersanding ha is inegral o philosophical and academic hough. The mos valuable hing I have received from my sudy of philosophy is he abiliy o hink criically. The more one engages in philosophy, he more one begins o undersand he deeper issues of all hings around him or her. This, more han anyhing else, and cerainly more han a scholarship, is he mos valuable hing I have received from my work in philosophy a IPFW. (Coninued from page 3) poins ou ha i has ofen been helpful o look a issues such as unequal pay for equal work, domesic violence, rape, and so forh from a social and poliical perspecive. When feminiss begin o alk and uncover paerns, hen hey ofen realize ha wha hey once hough were heir own personal, individual failings are really ofen he resul of oppressive social and poliical pracices. I mainain his mehodology may be very helpful in changing some inernaional policies. For insance, he Convenion Relaing o he Saus of Refugees refers o refugees (among oher hings) as members of a paricular social group which has a well-founded fear of being persecued in heir own counry. A woman from Guaemala claimed ha she was a persecued member of a social group, specifically he group of Guaemalan women who have been involved inimaely wih Guaemalan male companions, who believe ha women are o live under male dominaion. The argumen was made ha he police did no offer proecion o people who were par of ha paricular group. She ulimaely won he case. By focusing on he concep of groups, we can uncover paerns of abuse and demonsrae he ways in which laws are ofen inerpreed and implemened in a discriminaory manner. Indiana Universiy Purdue Universiy For Wayne, Deparmen of Philosophy Newsleer, No.5, Fall 2012
Alumni Inerview Marcus Rogers Inerviewed by L. Michael Spah When were you a IPFW? I aended IPFW from fall 2002 unil fall 2006. I was a January graduae. Why did you choose IPFW? I chose IPFW because i worked wih my life siuaion. I was a new faher and needed a school ha was close o home and affordable. Wha caused you o pick philosophy as a major, Marcus? I ook an ehics course and jus fell in love wih he subjec. I addressed all he big quesions I had in my life. The class was augh by Johnahan Decker, who was very paien wih me and he oher ouspoken sudens. Looking back we were prey naïve, bu he genly guided us o a beer undersanding. I don always have ha paien qualiy myself, so I really admired he way he augh. Ehics ineresed me because I was sruggling wih wha is righ and wrong and wha I had been augh religiously. I had a feeling abou wha was righ and wrong bu could no ell you why I fel ha way. Once I realized his, I really waned o know why I believed wha I believed. My ehics class helped me o beer undersand myself and ohers. Was here a paricular philosopher, movemen, or area of philosophy ha you waned o sudy? There really wasn any one philosopher ha drew me ino my philosophy sudies. I was primarily ineresed in ehics and social/ poliical philosophy. Hegel is probably he philosopher I was mos ineresed in; I admired he noion ha wihin his ehical sysem, an individual s and a sociey s ehics merge ino a single ehics. I also enjoyed he sudy of pragmaism, alhough i was somewha negleced in he deparmen, especially he work of Charles Sander Pierce. I especially appreciaed his The Fixaion of Belief (1877). I recall seeing many similariies beween Peirce and Hegel. Peirce uilized a sysem similar o Hegel s dialecic in deermining wha ruh is. Peirce claims ha he selemen of opinion is he end of inquiry. The scienific mehod is he bes way o sele opinion as i akes ino accoun all opinions and ess hem agains one anoher. To me, his seemed similar o he dialecical mehod of Hegel in which an opinion is held unil challenged and hen i eiher prevails, loses, or a new ruh is formed, he hesis, anihesis, synhesis dialecic so commonly aribued o Hegel. These new insighs and connecions only furhered my ineres in coninuing my sudies in philosophy. Tell me a lile more. I hink I was ineresed in beer undersanding how I and ohers should behave in he world. I probably sared wih ehical quesions I had abou religion ha were never answered as I was growing up. I waned o know why an ac was considered bad or good, and I waned a good reason for i. Nobody could ever ell me why. My parens or religious leaders would simply say, Because he Bible says so. Tha wasn good enough for me, because i begged oher quesions: Why should I believe he Bible? Why he Bible and no he Koran or some oher religious ex? I spoke wih many pasors, priess, and laymen, bu none could give me a saisfacory answer. I wasn unil I sudied philosophy ha I was given he abiliy o enquire ino hese quesions wihou relying on auhoriy figures. Marcus Rogers Was here a paricular philosopher/movemen/radiion o which you were/are drawn? As a suden i was definiely Hegel. This was cerainly due o he influence of Clark Buler. I know I m a lile rusy on my Hegel (don ell Dr. Buler), bu I remember believing ha he dialecic seemed o me an inescapable ruh. Whenever I observed he evolving of hisory, I observed ha wha was considered ruh changed over ime, and more personally, wha I believed o be rue in my own life changed wih new informaion. The proposiion ha here is a hesis, anihesis, and evenually synhesis was empirically rue. Every ime I sudied anoher philosopher or subjec, somehow hey were assumed ino he philosophy of Hegel. I could no figh my way ou of Hegel; on he conrary, he always seemed o bring me back in. Describe your experience while you were in he Deparmen of Philosophy. I was fanasic! The deparmen used o be in Neff Hall, and all of he offices were ogeher in one room. I spen many hours here picking he brain of whaever professor foolishly opened his or her door. We had a suden lounge, and several of us jus hung ou in here and alked philosophy. Tha creaive and nururing environmen in he deparmen was he bes hing abou being a philosophy major. I had access o and regular discussions wih mos of he professors Jeff Srayer, Ken Long, Duson Moore, Clark Buler, Kahy Squadrio, Jonahan Decker, Quinon Dixie, Jeff Governale, Jennifer Caseldine-Brach (who was he secreary a he ime), and Michael Spah, and alhough his office was no in he deparmen, Bill Bruening s door was always open, and I walked hrough i many imes. All of hese people were available no only as menors in philosophy bu also as life coaches for me and my young family. I would never have made hrough school wihou heir suppor. Someimes we go ino some prey heaed discussions, bu wha was mos exciing o me was ha he people of our deparmen could engage in passionae and hough-provoking discussion and mainain a muual respec for everyone, suden and faculy. Marcus, describe your IPFW experience. Any ineresing anecdoes? Again, he firs philosophy class I ook was wih Decker, and I was hooked from ha poin on. All of my professors in he philosophy deparmen were grea. The only amusing hing ha comes o mind is he consan emphasis on Hegel in any class you ook wih Buler. He really pounded ha ino my brain and would work Hegel ino any class and any conversaion: Hooked on Hegel. If someone asked you how philosophy helps you in your profession, how would you answer him or her? If hey asked, Why should I sudy philosophy? Marcus, wha would you ell hem? By sudying philosophy you learn o hink. No oher major challenges you o quesion everyhing you have assumed o be rue. No oher major makes you show why your argumen should win ou. I is a fanasic skill. I would ell hem ha philosophy really eaches you how o hone ha skill and develop i fully. Philosophy akes you o he dephs of argumen and undersanding. You become a more open person. You recognize ha you migh be wrong and anoher migh be righ. Philosophy changes your life. Marcus, wha was he world like when you graduaed? How did your sudy of philosophy help you o face i and form your worldview? The world was much like he one sudens will ener now. Jobs are scarce and here was a lo of uncerainy, bu my philosophy background gave me he skills I needed o be successful. Upon graduaing law school, I sared my own firm. Many said I was crazy and i would be difficul, bu i has been very successful. I hink philosophy provided me wih he hinking, wriing, and communicaion skills I needed o work a an advanced level righ ou of school. (Coninued on back page) Indiana Universiy Purdue Universiy For Wayne, Deparmen of Philosophy Newsleer, No. 4, Spring 2012
Deparmen of Philosophy Indiana Universiy Purdue Universiy For Wayne 2101 Eas Coliseum Boulevard For Wayne, Indiana 46805 1499 RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED 11-12-519 W IPFW is an Equal Opporuniy/Equal Access Universiy. This produc is mean for educaional purposes only. Any resemblance o real persons, living or dead is purely coincidenal. Baeries no included. Acion figures sold separaely. No user-serviceable pars inside. Use only as direced. For exernal use only. Avoid conac wih eyes and skin. If rash, irriaion, redness, or swelling develops or if any of he following occurs: iching, verigo, dizziness, ingling in exremiies, loss of balance or coordinaion, slurred speech, emporary blindness, profuse sweaing, or hear palpiaions, disconinue reading. Keep away from fire or flames. Slippery when we. Limi one-per-family please. No money down. No purchase necessary. Mus no be presen o win. Freshes if read before dae on possamp. No preservaives added. No anchovies unless oherwise specified. Sealed for your proecion, do no read if safey seal is broken. Subjec o change wihou noice. (Coninued from page 4) I realize you are very busy, bu do you read anyhing philosophy-relaed? The hings I am reading hese days are relaed o he PHIL 260, Philosophy and Law, course I each a IPFW. The ex for my course is The Philosophy of Law: Classic and Conemporary Readings wih Commenary (1995) by Frederick Schauer. I ve also been reading works by Ronald Dworkin, Duncan Kennedy, Robero Unger, and Joel Feinberg. In addiion o preparaion for class, hey also help me o focus my own views abou he impac of law on sociey. I have also recenly begun reading several exbooks in preparaion for a planned fall 2013 course hrough IPFW s College of Healh and Human Services. The course will be on medical law, healh policy, and ehics for healh professionals. Wha are you doing hese days, Marcus? Wha abou your job, your family life, ec.? I am an aorney, alhough I have aken he las year off o spend ime wih my family. I was pracicing in Alaska, and we moved back o For Wayne so ha our children could be closer o heir grandparens. My wife is a regisered nurse and she has been financially supporing our family while I ake his ime wih our kids. I have also been eaching par-ime a IPFW, and augh PHIL 260 Philosophy and Law in he spring semeser. Finally, Marcus, wha do you picure yourself doing in five years? In en years? Has your philosophy background been helpful in your goal-seing? If I had my choice I would be eaching full-ime and pracicing law on he side. However, i looks like I will be primarily pracicing law. When I was pracicing in Alaska, I did a lo of work for he Alaska Nework on Domesic Violence and Sexual Assaul, helping women ge ou of abusive relaionships. I also did work for wha we call here CHINS (Children in Need of Services) cases. As a criminal defense aorney, I was able o help individuals who made a misake, bu didn deserve o have heir enire life ripped away. Whenever I am able o help people in hese siuaions, I really love being a lawyer. Any closing words or houghs? I would jus like o hank everyone in he deparmen for believing in me as a suden. I had few friends and family who suppored my educaional pursuis. I was primarily my wife and he faculy of he IPFW Deparmen of Philosophy who old me I could be successful. Join our deparmen s suden Phi-Club on Facebook. Log ino your Facebook accoun, search for Phi-Club IPFW, and connec!