Archives: Newsletter Post
The Way of Medicine: Ethics and the Healing Profession
“Medicine has lost its way because it lacks clarity about where the way should lead. We no longer have a shared public understanding of what medicine is for, of what the end of medicine is or should be.” In The Way of Medicine, Farr Curlin and Christopher Tollefsen offer a teleological approach to medicine. They consider the good […]
Virtues of the Mind
Why do we teach? For those of us involved in higher education, answers to this question are bound to vary. We may teach because we’re required to. Or because we desire to impart disciplinary knowledge and skills to our students. Or because we want to equip them for successful careers. Our reasons for teaching may […]
A Round of Golf With My Father
Published June 2021 Growing up, Stanford Education Professor William Damon believed his father had died in World War II. His father actually chose not to return, and established a new life and family for himself overseas. Over the years, there were clues that the family line about a deceased father was not true, but Damon […]
Making Caring Common Through Innovations in Higher Education
The Making Caring Common project at the Harvard Graduate School of Education has been working for about 8 years to elevate the importance of raising caring, justice-minded children and to provide resources to teachers and parents to encourage children to care about others and the common good, treat people well day to day, and come […]
Re-imagining Tech Fellowship Encourages Engineering and Computer Science Students Toward Moral Purpose in Work
This summer, 18 Duke undergraduates pursuing majors in engineering or computer science are exploring the ways moral purpose and character are central to what it means to do good work in technical fields. The Re-Imagining Tech Fellowship includes weekly meetings with readings, speakers and activities that confront the idea that engineers and computer scientists are neutral, and […]
Bad Deaths: An Ounce of Prevention
If the COVID-19 pandemic has brought into focus one truth about modern life, it’s that we are more concerned with the quick fix than slow preventative work. We’ll take that pound of cure any day, so long as we don’t have to contribute an ounce of prevention. Clinicians know this to be the case with […]
A Burning: A Novel
For the summer newsletter, we decided to highlight a work of fiction. “All I am guilty of, Purnendu, listen – all I am guilty of is being a coward.” – Jivan, p. 187 Megha Majumdar’s debut novel, A Burning, is classified in the “Mystery, Suspense and Thriller” category online, but this story is more about the […]
Virtual Events Worth Revisiting
The past year was marked by an abundance of virtual events that brought together panels and speakers who were physically distant and might not otherwise have been able to be together. Many of these talks were recorded and are available for summer viewing. Here is a roundup of some of our favorites from the past […]
Character Journals: Reflection as a Character Development Strategy
Founded in 1802, the United States Military Academy at West Point sits on the banks of the Hudson River about 50 miles north of New York City. West Point is a four-year military service academy. It is a hybrid of higher education and military training. On one hand, it has 13 academic departments and 37 […]
Lost in Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an Intellectual Life
“If human beings flourish from their inner core rather than in the realm of impact and results, then the inner work of learning is fundamental to human happiness, as far from pointless wheel spinning as are the forms of tenderness we owe our children or grandchildren.” – Zena Hitz, Lost in Thought Lost in Thought begins […]