Department of Philosophy

The Department of Philosophy is part of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and offers both a Major and a Minor in Philosophy.

The Department counts 21 full-time faculty members working in a variety of specialties, who are active scholars committed to undergraduate education. They share their expertise in a wide variety of philosophical schools, national traditions, historical periods, and specialized areas of philosophical work.

The curriculum is designed to provide students with a foundation in the history of philosophy and also to encourage students to pursue work in their own areas of interest. Formal coursework is only one part of the Philosophy student's education. Since inquiry and study are most fruitful when conducted in a vital community of fellow scholars, the Department is committed to offering a number of excellent learning opportunities that go beyond traditional classroom structures.


Office Hours

Faculty Office Hours Fall 2024

Last Name First Name Office Hours Office Email Action
Xie Wenhui Tues./Thurs. 2:30 PM-4:00 PM B3 203 MAK xiew@iskatesports.net View
Vessey David Mon./Wednes./Fri. 1:00 PM-2:00 PM B3 201 MAK vesseyd@iskatesports.net View
Spear Andrew Tues./Thurs. 2:30 PM-3:30 PM & by appointment B3 213 MAK speara@iskatesports.net View
Shang Geling PHI 400: Tues./Thurs. 10:00 AM-11:30 AM & 2:30 PM-4:00 PM PHI 102: Tues./Thurs. 1:00 PM-2:30 PM B3 208 MAK shangg@iskatesports.net View
Pestana Mark Tues./Thurs. 1:00 PM-5:00 PM & by appointment B3 202 MAK pestanam@iskatesports.net View
Pelayo Areins Wednes. 1:00 PM-4:00 PM B3 212 MAK pelayoa@iskatesports.net View
Parker Kelly Tues./Thurs. 9:00 AM-9:45 AM (DeVos C 1st Floor Atrium), Wednes. 4:00 PM-5:00 PM (Allendale or Zoom) & by arrangement B3 200 MAK parkerk@iskatesports.net View
Meyerson Noah Mon./Wednes. 12:00 PM-2:00 PM & by appointment B3 229 MAK meyernoa@iskatesports.net View
Loeffler Ronald Tues./Thurs. 4:00 PM-5:00 PM B3 206 MAK loeffler@iskatesports.net View
Killoren David Mon./Wednes. 4:30 PM-5:30 PM B3 225 MAK killored@iskatesports.net View
Hogg Charles (Robb) Tues./Thurs. 11:30 AM-12:20 PM B3 219 MAK hoggc@iskatesports.net View
Harr Quinn Tues./Thurs. 10:00 AM-11:15 AM & 1:00 PM-2:15 PM B3 231 MAK harrq@iskatesports.net View
Greenman Craig Mon. 3:00 PM-4:00 PM , Thurs. 1:00 PM-2:00 PM & by appointment B3 204 MAK greenmcr@iskatesports.net View
Cimitile Maria Mon. 1:30 PM-3:00 PM & Tues. 1:00 PM-2:00 PM 132 NMH cimitilm@iskatesports.net View
Castelao-Lawless Teresa Thurs. 1:00 PM-2:00 PM & by appointment on Zoom B3 207 MAK castelat@iskatesports.net View
Byrnes Jeffrey Mon. 12:00 PM-1:30 PM B3 217 MAK byrnesj@iskatesports.net View
August John Mon./Wednes. 12:00 PM-1:30 PM (Allendale) & Tues. 5:00 PM-6:00 PM (Pew) B3 215 MAK augustj@iskatesports.net View

Articles/Interviews

Professor Judy Whipps is featured on the Society for the Advancement of American Philosophy’s homepage in their “I am an American philosopher” interview series. Read the whole interview here (http://american-philosophy.org/i-am-an-american-philosopher-interview-series/i-am-an-american-philosopher-judy-whipps/)

Professor Judy Whipps

Professor Judy Whipps


Recent Happenings For GVSU Philosophy

Professors Wenhui Xie and Andrew Spear in front of Pantheon in Rome, Italy at night.

GVSU philosophers in the world: Professors. Wenhui Xie and Andrew Spear at the world Congress of philosophy in Rome, August 2024. Professors Xie and Spear both presented their research, attended other sessions at the conference, and spent some time one evening checking out the architecture of Rome.


Upcoming Events

GVSU Philosophy Department Presents How Social Movements Work on Friday December 6, 2024 from 3:00 PM-4:30 PM in MAK-BLL-110

Social movements such as Black Lives Matter, the pro-life movement, veganism, and Effective Altruism do not have official governments, formal leadership, or fixed decision-making procedures. So how do they manage to efficaciously and rationally pursue their aims? In fact, how do they come to have aims at all? In this talk, I'll argue that we might move toward answers to these (and other) questions by investigating the capacities of social movements for certain forms of collective speech. 


Past Events

CLAS presents...What They Did With That Distinguished Humanities Alumni Discuss Their Studies, Their, Stories, And Their Accomplishments
GVSU Philosophy at Major Fair

Majors Fair

BMS and Philosophy Major Jonathan McCabe and Prof. of Philosophy Andrew Spear want YOU to major in Philosophy!

What Are You Going To Do With That? Career-Pathways and Possibilities Student Event Hosted on March 14 from 6-7:30 PM in the Alumni House



Page last modified November 25, 2024