April 15, 2003
CONTACT: Gordon Ovenshine (724)
738-4854; e-mail: gordon.ovenshine@sru.edu
SRU STUDENTS SWEEP STATE PHILOSOPHY
COMPETITION
SLIPPERY
ROCK, Pa. – As he prepared to announce the three winners of a
philosophy conferenceinvolving 75 students from many of the
Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities, SRU
philosophy faculty Dr. Bradley Wilson offered a light-hearted
disclaimer.
Although
Slippery Rock University hosted the State System of Higher
Education Association of Philosophy and Religious Studies
Conference April 5, no one from SRU sat on the panel that judged
the student papers.
Then
Wilson named the winners: All three are Slippery Rock University
philosophy majors. Jason Rogers of Oakton, Va., J. Edward Hackett
of New Castle and John Lienert of Pittsburgh swept the competition
for papers on Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, Thomas
Jefferson and a look at the problem of genocide.
•
Junior Jason Rogers received 1st prize and a check
from the association for $125 for his paper titled:
“Plantinga and Kierkegaard on Religious
Belief.”
•
Senior J. Edward Hackett received 2nd prize for
“A Proposed Phenomenology of Genocide.” Hackett placed
second last year too.
•
Senior John Lienert received 3rd prize for his paper,
“Knowledge is Power: Influential Thinkers in the Philosophy
of Thomas Jefferson.”
At the 2002 meeting held
at Lock Haven University, Slippery Rock philosophy students took
two of the top three prizes.
Wilson, convener and
assistant professor of philosophy, presented this year’s
awards to a large gathering at the Wolf Creek
Café.
Department
Chairperson Dr. Richard Findler, associate professor of philosophy,
said, “I’m really proud of our students at SRU for
winning the prizes. They work very hard, and surely deserve their
accolades.”
Wilson, who crafted this
conference and whose two nationally known plenary speakers, Dr.
Mark Risjord of Emery University and Dr. Dan Conway of Penn State
University, provided stimulating papers from distinct sides of the
philosophical spectrum, was “especially pleased that the very
high quality of work done by our students comes from so many
different perspectives.”
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