News & Events
Throop Hosts Presentation at Clemson University
From the GMC Journal
Week of September 22, 2008
Provost Bill Throop (philosophy) recently gave a presentation titled "Ecological Humility and Effective Leadership: A Meditation on Leadership in the Age of Climate Change" at the annual meeting of the Society for Human Ecology (SHE), where he serves on the board of directors. Recently, he also presented his paper, titled "Environmental Virtues and the Aims of Restoration," at a conference on “Human Flourishing and Restoration in the Age of Global Warming” at Clemson University.
Greentree Gazette Features
Interview with GMC Provost
From the GMC Journal
Week of September 15, 2008
Provost Bill Throop discusses how Green Mountain College weaves sustainability into the curriculum in an interview in the September edition of The Greentree Gazette.
The article, titled "The Leap from Carbon Footprint to College Curriculum," includes interviews with four higher education experts who are at the forefront of a "paradigm shift" away from "traditional information-heavy curricula" to one that highlights the "interconnectivity of environmental, economic and social issues." Throop discusses the College's ELA curriculum and the faculty's commitment to "interdisciplinary project-based programs."
Steven Fesmire Presents Paper at International Conference
From the GMC Journal
Week of September 2, 2008
Prof. Steven Fesmire (philosophy) presented at the International Network of Philosophers of Education (INPE) conference, held August 9-12 at Kyoto University in Kyoto, Japan. His paper was titled “Ecological Imagination in Classical American Pragmatism and the Kyoto School of Philosophy.” This was a preliminary study for Fulbright-funded research which he will pursue at Kyoto University during spring and summer 2009. He aims in this research to help clarify, develop, and critique aims for environmentally-responsive citizenship education in the U.S. and Japan.
GMC Provost Appointed to AASHE Board
From the GMC Journal
Week of April 28, 2008
Provost Bill Throop has been appointed to the board of directors for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). His nomination was unanimously approved at an April 12-13 meeting in Lexington, KY. Bill will serve a two-year term ending December 31, 2010. AASHE is a member organization of colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada working to create a sustainable future. Their mission is to promote sustainability in all sectors of higher education.
Steven Fesmire's book published in Chinese Translation
From the GMC Journal
Week of May 7, 2007
Prof. Steven Fesmire's (Philosophy & Environmental Studies) book John Dewey and Moral Imagination: Pragmatism in Ethics (Indiana University Press, 2003) will appear soon in Chinese translation with Peking University Press, China's top university press. The book is being translated by Xu Peng, Visiting Fellow at the Institute for American Thought, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.
2007 Sophomore Scholar Lecture: Dr. Walter Sinott-Armstrong, Professor of Philosophy & Legal Studies at Dartmouth College
From the GMC Journal
Week of March 12, 2007
The 2007 Sophomore Symposium will kick off on Thursday, March 15 with a guest lecture by world-renown philosopher, Dr. Walter Sinott-Armstrong, in a talk entitled, “From Moral Philosophy to Moral Neuroscience: How Our Paradigm is Shifting” on Thursday, March 15 at 7 p.m. in the Gorge of Withey Hall. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong is a Professor of Philosophy and Hardy Professor of Legal Studies at Dartmouth College. He has also served as Visiting Professor at The John's Hopkins University and Princeton University. In addition to numerous scholarly articles, he is also author of several books, including Moral Dilemmas & Understanding Arguments: An Introduction to Informal Logic (with Robert J. Fogelin), as well as God? A Debate between a Christian & an Atheist (with William Lane Craig) and Moral Skepticisms.
Religious Studies Minor Approved
From the GMC Journal
Week of Feb. 12, 2007
Provost Bill Throop has announced that a new minor in Religious Studies has been approved by President Jack Brennan and will go into effect in the fall of 2007. The program will be directed by Prof. Heather Keith, who says this is an excellent step forward in meeting growing student demand for religious studies offerings. "Many students have requested either a major or a minor in religious studies in recent years," says Keith. "Our world is changing quickly and an understanding of world religions is essential to understanding human culture, politics, and values."
The new 18-credit minor has both cross-cultural and interdenominational strengths. College Chaplain, Shirley Oskamp, teaches very popular courses in World Religions and Stories of the Spirit. Both have an international focus and ask students to think about religious beliefs outside of the context of beliefs they might already hold. Prof. Roger Ireson teaches courses in the history of the Judeo-Christian tradition (including philosophies from Hebrew, Greek and early Christian traditions). And Keith teaches Asian Philosophies regularly, which surveys the major traditions of Asia.
"Our students, like many, really care about finding meaning in their lives," says Keith, "and this program will give them a great opportunity to do so."
William Throop invited to national meeting on "The Future of Environmental Philosophy"
From the GMC Journal
Week of Feb. 5, 2007
Provost Bill Throop was invited to join a dozen environmental philosophers from around the nation for a two-day meeting (February 9 and 10) on "The Future of Environmental Philosophy." The University of North Texas, which offers the only Ph.D. in environmental philosophy in the country, hosted the meeting. Holmes Rolston, Baird Callicott, Bryan Norton and Dale Jamieson were among those who wrestled with questions about how to strengthen this relatively new field of philosophy and about which new directions for graduate education and research were warranted by our global environmental challenges.
Philosophy Speaker Presents "Killing Kenny: Our Daily Dose of Death"
From the GMC Journal
Week of Feb. 5, 2007
The GMC philosophy club, Agora, and the philosophy department presented Dr. Randall Auxier in a special talk on Tuesday, February 6 in the campus Coffee House (lower level of Moses Hall). Auxier is Professor of Philosophy at Southern Illinois University and editor of Library of Living Philosophers. His article, “Killing Kenny: Our Daily Dose of Death” will be featured in the forthcoming book, South Park and Philosophy (2007 Open Court, Edited by Richard Hanley). The talk is free and open to all.
Philosophy Club Talks Politics with George Lakoff
From the GMC Journal
Week of Nov. 28, 2005
GMC’s Agora Philosophy Club traveled with twelve students and Professors Steve Fesmire and Heather Keith to Williams College recently to see a presentation by George Lakoff, Professor of Linguistics at the University of California, Berkeley. Democratic party chair Howard Dean, in his foreword to Lakoff's recent book, Don't Think of an Elephant!, credits Lakoff as “one of the most influential political thinkers of the progressive movement.” Professor Lakoff hosted a discussion of American politics with the GMC group at the Williams Inn after his talk.
