Ethical Conversations Workshops

The Parr Center will be hosting a number of ethics-centered workshops at local schools and examining how they impact students. These “Ethical Conversations” workshops will be run by trained UNC facilitators. In particular, we are hoping to work with teachers who can partner with us to bring these workshops to schools like yours.

We ask to host at least two workshops on different days at your school, during class for two different groups of students (they could be spaced apart in whatever way works best for your schedule—a week or two, a few days, etc.). We would offer the workshop first to one group of students and then to the other group of students on the next visit. Participating students would need to complete short surveys on both workshop days (ideally on an internet-enabled device), regardless of whether they participated in that day’s workshop.

For your school’s involvement, we are pleased to be able to offer a $300 (virtual or physical) gift card upon successful completion of all workshops and surveys.

Please complete this form to indicate your interest in the study, or contact Dr. Michael Vazquez (michael.vazquez@unc.edu). The parental permission form is available here.

We are grateful to the Intellectual Humility Science project at Georgia State University and the John Templeton Foundation for their generous support for this study.

Team

Michael Prinzing, Ph.D.  //  Project Co-Lead PI & Consulting Research Scientist

Michael Prinzing is a philosopher and scientist who studies human flourishing. That is, his research integrates empirical and philosophical methods, with the aim of better understanding what it means to be well and live a good life. Michael received his PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2022 and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Baylor University. Along with others at the Parr Center, Michael is organizing a quasi-experimental study to investigate how philosophy outreach programs might promote intellectual and civic virtues.

Michael Vazquez, Ph.D.  //  Project Co-Lead PI & Director of Outreach

Michael Vazquez is a Teaching Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Director of Outreach at the Parr Center for Ethics. He received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania and specializes in ancient philosophy and the philosophy of education. He is committed to forging lasting, democratic, and collaborative partnerships between the academy and the community, and to cultivating the philosophical voices of people of all ages. In addition to the Executive Committee of the National High School Ethics Bowl, he serves on the Public Philosophy Committee of the American Philosophical Association (APA) and the Academic Advisory Board of the Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization (PLATO). He is also a lecturer in Penn’s Mid-Career Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership.

Dashiell Shulman //  K-12 Schools Outreach Fellow

Dash is a first-year PhD student in Philosophy. Dashiell is a first-year Ph.D. student in Philosophy. Before joining UNC, he received a B.A. in Philosophy from Amherst College and an M.A. in Philosophy from Northern Illinois University. His primary research interests are in philosophy of language, epistemology, metaphysics, and metaethics. As the K-12 Schools Outreach Fellow, Dash oversees and implements a number of grant-funded programs centered on promoting ethical reflection among middle and high school students.

UNC IRB Study #23-2080. For more information, contact irb_questions@unc.edu.