Vazquez Wins Engaged Scholarship Award

Parr Center Director of Outreach Michael Vazquez has been honored with a university-wide Office of the Provost Engaged Scholarship Award. A Teaching Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy, Michael was recognized for his commitment to forging lasting, democratic and collaborative partnerships between the academy and the community through his teaching, and for cultivating the philosophical voices of people of all ages. The recognition was conferred at a ceremony at the Carolina Club hosted by the Carolina Center for Public Service, and attended by Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz, Provost Chris Clemens, and Parr Center Director Sarah Stroud.

Through his engaged scholarship and teaching, Michael has created democratic and intergenerational spaces for folks across the entire lifespan—young and old—to think about life’s biggest questions and to deliberate about society’s most pressing problems. In partnership with the Orange County Department on Aging, Vazquez has convened intergenerational discussions at the Seymour Center with students enrolled in “Philosophy across the Lifespan,” resulting in powerful unsolicited testimony from both students and older adult participants about the transformative nature of the intergenerational experience. Vazquez also works closely with the Parr Center’s National High School Ethics Bowl to facilitate civic and moral education among students and teachers in high schools across the country.

Congratulations to Michael, and thanks to CCPS and the Provost’s Office for this recognition!