The Kenan Instructorship in Ethics is awarded annually to an advanced graduate or professional school student proposing to design and teach an undergraduate course with a substantial ethical focus in his or her area of expertise. All graduate and professional students at Duke are eligible to apply, including students in Arts and Sciences, Business, Divinity, Engineering, Environmental Sciences, Law, Medicine, Nursing, and Public Policy.

The Instructorship award is for nine months beginning in September, with a stipend of $19,450 (2009-2010 level), plus fringe benefits provided. The Kenan Instructorship recipient is required to participate in the Kenan Graduate Colloquium in Ethics.

How to Apply

Eligibility and application requirements are as follows:

Application deadline: February 15 (in cases where this date falls on a weekend, applications are due by 5:00 pm the following Monday)

1. Applicants must be advanced doctoral students with all degree requirements met except the dissertation, and this within sight of completion.

2. Selection criteria include quality of the student’s graduate work as well as quality of the dissertation and its expected contribution to ethics scholarship and the discussion of normative issues; the creative and distinctive nature of the dissertation; and evidence that the dissertation will be completed during the fellowship year. Additional considerations may include whether the dissertation contributes to a diversity of disciplines (in the Colloquium and historically in terms of awards) and whether it shows promise of reaching an educated audience outside of its field.

3. No other award may be held concurrently with this fellowship without permission from the Dean of the Graduate School.

4. Applicants must be nominated by their department, program, or school, and applications submitted by the nominating unit to the Kenan Institute for Ethics. Departments, programs, or schools may nominate more than one student.

5. Applicants must submit four collated copies of the following:

• Cover/Information Sheet (Word document)
• Curriculum vitae
• A course proposal that includes a description of the major themes of the course, an outline of readings and topics, and a discussion of pedagogies to be employed and of how the course would contribute to the teaching of ethics at Duke (maximum five pages, Palatino Linotype Font size 11, double-spaced on 8 ½ x 11 paper)
• A letter from the Director of Undergraduate Studies (or another faculty member in the applicant’s department) commenting in detail on the applicant’s experience and skill as a teacher, the importance of the proposed course as a new addition to the department’s curriculum, the department’s approval of the course, and how the course will be evaluated. It is helpful for this letter to include summaries of past teaching evaluations. Applicants proposing to teach a course outside their own school or department must include a letter of endorsement from the department in which they propose to teach
• A summary of the candidate’s dissertation project, including a chapter outline and timetable for completion (maximum eight pages, Palatino Linotype font size 11, double-spaced on 8 ½ x 11 paper)
• Non-dissertation students should send a brief description of their background related to the proposed course and their interest in the teaching of ethics (maximum two pages; Palatino Linotype font size 11, double-spaced on 8 ½ x 11 paper)
• Three letters of recommendation
  Note: If an individual is writing a reference letter for both awards they may combine it into one letter indicating that they are writing to support the candidate for both the fellowship and instructorship
• Transcript (one original and three copies)

All submissions must be received no later than 5:00pm on February 15, either in the Kenan Institute for Ethics (West Duke Building, Room 102) or by mail (The Kenan Institute for Ethics, Duke University, Box 90432, Durham NC 27708). No late submissions will be accepted.

Note: Candidates submitting applications for both awards should still submit only four complete copies of the items required for the Fellowship, along with a course proposal that includes a description of the major themes of the course, an outline of readings and topics, and a discussion of pedagogies to be employed and of how the course would contribute to the teaching of ethics at Duke (maximum five pages, Palatino Linotype Font size 11, double-spaced on 8 ½ x 11 paper) for the Instructorship.

Past Winners

Recipients of this instructorship to date, listed with their disciplines and course titles, are:

• Aaron Thornburg (2009-10), Cultural Anthropology. “Anthropology and Ethics: Cultural Caring or Colonial Collusion”
• Alexander Loney (2008-09), Classical Studies. “The Poetics and Ethics of Revenge: Themes of Retributive Justice in Literature”
• Laura Grattan (2007-08), Political Science. “Imagining Immigration: The Ethics and Politics of the Border”
• Anne Gulick (2006-07), English. “Romancing the Law: Human Rights, Anti-colonialism, and Late 20th Century Narratives of Global Justice”
• Sahar Akhtar (2005-06), Philosophy. “The Ethics and Practice of Altruism”
• Marion Hourdequin (2004-05), Philosophy. “Pluralism, Relativism and Social Reform”
• Tamler Sommers (2003-04), Philosophy. “Freedom and Moral Responsibility”
• Craig Borowiak (2002-03), Political Science. “Democratic Possibilities in a Globalized World”
• Andrew Terjesen (2001-02), Philosophy. “Sympathy, Empathy and Morality”
• Brook Sadler (2000-01), Philosophy. “The Amoralist’s Challenge”
• Johnny Goldfinger (1999-00), Political Science. “Multiculturalism and Public Policy”
• Gregg Behr and John Simpkins (1998-99), Public Policy Studies. “The Content of our Character: Civic Leadership and Participation”
• Jennifer Doyle (1997-98), Literature. “Art and Ethics: U.S. Culture in Context”