ABOUT ME
Teaching
I am currently a lecturer in the Department of Humanities and Philosophy at Diablo Valley College. Currently (Fall 2016) I am teaching Intro. to Philosophy, Ethics, and Early Western Philosophy. I am qualified to teach other introductory philosophy courses including Intro. to Philosophy, Critical Thinking, Philosophy of Religion, and Great Thinkers: East and West.
Research
My work primarily centers on Ethics and Political Philosophy. In particular, my masters thesis focuses on the intersection of virtue ethics and affective/emotional perception in the context of environmental philosophy. I am also interested in feminist theory as well as critical and philosophical approaches to prisons and police enforcement.
Questions that concern me most are those that relate to the human subject: What is the best way for a subject to relate to their social situation and material conditions? What is it for a person to flourish? What obstructs their flourishing and how can those obstructions be dealt with? What does it mean to have agency? In approaching these questions I draw heavily from the Continental tradition with special fondness for Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Foucault. I am motivated by the conviction that philosophy is empowering and can be used to reimagine our selves and our communities toward the cultivation freedom.
In my spare time I am teaching myself to garden. I enjoy exploring the bay area on my bike, writing letters and having long, deep conversations with close friends.