STUDENT EXPERIENCE

We offer a community that is collaborative and inspiring for our tight-knit group of majors and minors. From small, discussion-based courses to the engaging debates at the center of Philosophy Club and Ethics Bowl, students explore their thoughts, lives, and worlds together in an intellectually supportive environment.

Philosophy Club

Philosophy Club is our most dynamic student gathering.  Meeting weekly, philosophy students join classmates from across campus to engage in deep discussion on topics picked by the group, ranging from the nature of time and the dimensions of human consciousness to the ethical challenges of global business and sustainability.  Meetings take place in Eddy 6 every Friday at 4 pm.

“I equate Philosophy Club with going to the gym. This is training in quality thinking. There’s such a real, rich form of dialogue here and everyone has the opportunity to actually think, be heard, and make their case.” - Arisson (Philosophy & Psychology major; Club President 2018):

“I’ve come to every Philosophy Club this semester. I love the deep thought and conversation.” - Adela (Marketing major) 

“I come as often as I can. I enjoy the calm and informed discussions on precise topics.”Evyn (Math major)

“I could do this all day.  Good discussion!”George (Business major)

Want to get on our Philosophy Club list? 
Contact Faculty Advisor: Prof. Paul DiRado

Paul DiRado

  • Senior Instructor

Ethics Bowl

CSU has an award-winning Ethics Bowl team!  We participate in the Intercollegiate Ethics Bowl, a regional and national intercollegiate team debate competition focusing on the moral dimensions of public policy and current societal issues. The teams argue and defend their moral assessment of some of the most troubling and complex ethical issues facing society today, ranging from business and professional ethics, personal relationships, and social and political affairs.

In the competitions, students demonstrate their ability to:

  1. Understand the facts of the case;
  2. Articulate the ethical principles involved in the case;
  3. Present an effective argument on how the case should be resolved;
  4. Respond effectively to challenges put forth by the opposing team as well as the panel of expert judges.

Want To Join?

Our Ethics Bowl team is open to students of all majors. As a team, we focus on identifying, analyzing, and articulating the ethical positions present in various issues and constructing cogent positions and supporting arguments. Ethics Bowl provides students the opportunity to hone and apply their argumentation skills about real-world issues in professional and academic settings, and make some great friends in the process.

Have questions about the Ethics Bowl? 
Contact Faculty Advisor: Eric Easley

Eric Easley

  • Senior Instructor

Works in Progress

The purpose of the Works in Progress (WIP) series is to share current work and to get constructive feedback from fellow students, graduate students, and faculty in an informal setting. Suitable presentations include:

  1. Potential thesis topics
  2. Thesis outlines
  3. Professional and graduate student conference paper topics/ideas
  4. Current research projects or interests

Presentations may range in completion from the very early stages of brainstorming up to polished papers and may take the form of a talk, a summary of an outline, a set of rough, preliminary ideas or questions, etc. The idea is to share your work at whatever stage of development and to improve it via discussion.

Graduate students and undergrad capstone students are invited to join this engaging lunchtime discussion.  Students who have upcoming conference presentations are encouraged to present.

WIP Coordinator: Dr. Moti Gorin

Moti Gorin

  • Associate Professor
  • Director of Jann Benson Ethics Center

Majors/Minors Meet-Ups

Throughout the year, we host meetings pertinent to philosophy students at different stages of our programs.  Join us for the first-year welcome, sophomore degree planning, career preparation activities for juniors and seniors, or applications for PhD programs for our Master’s students.

Be on the lookout for messages from our Director of Student Success: Dr. Ashby Butnor

Ashby Butnor

  • Associate Professor
  • Director of Communications