What I love most about philosophy is its breadth. We can ask philosophical questions about everything, from the trivial to the profound. Most of my work is organized around the nature and role of moral responsibility — what it takes to deserve blame and praise for the things we do. More recently I’ve turned to questions exploring our evaluative interactions with others, for example, the ways in which one’s moral criticism of another may itself ground criticism. These projects often integrate work from other fields, including psychology and law.
My classes are usually organized around various puzzles that need sorting out. The focus is to equip each student with the background understanding and skills needed to start figuring out their own answers. There is a premium placed on discussion and student perspectives, and since I rely on my students to be participants in the process, each iteration of a class winds up distinctively unique. My courses aren’t by rote: they’re collaborations with my students.
I grew up just outside Washington DC, in Northern Virginia. I spent eight years on the other side of the Nation’s Capital, earning my doctorate at the University of Maryland. In between my degree and arriving here at UAB, I lived (and taught) in Minnesota, New York, and Los Angeles. I have been, at various times, a guitarist, a comics enthusiast, and an improv comedian. I can still play the guitar and, occasionally, tell a joke.
