Dear friends,
At the U‑M Department of Philosophy, our students come to us with big questions: What do we owe one another? How should we live? What makes a society just? These questions have never been more urgent, and our students are eager to take them on. Will you support the Department of Philosophy by making a gift today? Your gift will help us meet a moment of remarkable growth. The department is robust and expanding, with more undergraduates studying philosophy than we have seen in many years.
This growing interest is exciting—but it also presents a pressing challenge. More undergraduates want to take philosophy courses than we currently have the capacity to serve. Graduate students play an essential role in helping teach more classes and sustain the small-group learning that makes philosophical education so powerful. Without additional funding, we cannot expand graduate student support, increase course offerings, or fully meet student demand.
One recent example is Alex Voorhees, a philosophy and neuroscience graduate, first-generation college student, HAIL Scholarship recipient, and Wasserstein Award recipient. Alex was honored with the Raoul Wallenberg Humanitarian Award for his thesis on democratic legitimacy and exception-making—work that reflects the power of philosophical inquiry to illuminate urgent questions of governance, rights, and human responsibility. Reflecting on his experience, Alex wrote: “I’ve always known that I wanted to study philosophy. The discipline is an inspiration to me because its study is that of life, knowledge, and, ultimately, of everything. Studying at U‑M has cultivated a perspective of rigor, a way of approaching ideas with care and questioning them fully. The mentorship I have received from faculty—and the passion I have encountered across such a wide range of philosophical subjects—have brought me more ideas than I could have ever found alone.”
Alex’s story is one of many. Our students go on to a multitude of career paths. They become people who ask better questions, reason with care, and act with purpose.
A gift to the Philosophy Department will help expand our capacity and strengthen undergraduate education. Your generosity directly benefits students by opening more seats in courses and creating opportunities for intellectual growth. Your gift today will help us prepare the next generation of thoughtful, rigorous, and compassionate leaders.
Thank you for supporting the U‑M Department of Philosophy.
Tad Schmaltz,
Professor of Philosophy; Department Chair
