# Department News ## Latest News [### Zoë Johnson King Wins Phi Beta Kappa Award for Excellence in Teaching ](/news/2026/05/zoe-johnson-king-wins-phi-beta-kappa-award-excellence-teaching) May 27, 2026 Professor Zoë Johnson King has received the Alpha-Iota Prize for Excellence in Teaching, awarded annually by the Phi Beta Kappa Society. Each year, the undergraduate members of Alpha Iota, led by four Phi Beta Kappa Marshals, select three members of the... ![Zoe Johnson King portrait](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/zoe_johnson_king.jpg?h=fdbf2904&itok=ew91Fz0x) [### Congratulations to the 2025/2026 Philosophy Department Prize Winners! ](/news/2026/05/congratulations-20252026-philosophy-department-prize-winners) May 19, 2026 The Department of Philosophy is delighted to announce the winners of this year's Adams, Carrier, Bechtel, and Bowen Prizes. Congratulations to all of these deserving undergraduate and graduate students! ![Harvard Yard](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-05/213939_1324895.png?itok=yr9kAov0) [### Samantha Matherne Named Harvard College Professor ](/news/2026/05/samantha-matherne-named-harvard-college-professor) May 08, 2026 Professor Samantha Matherne will join four other Harvard faculty members as Harvard College Professors in recognition of their commitment to undergraduate teaching. Matherne, who explores the relationship between perception and aesthetics through a... ![Samantha Matherne](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-05/samantha.jpg?h=bcb01ebd&itok=svNp5qzs) [### Philosophy Concentrators Among 2026 Hoopes Prize Winners ](/news/2026/05/philosophy-concentrators-among-2026-hoopes-prize-winners) May 08, 2026 Three Philosophy concentrators, Ariel (Ari) Kohn, Willa Kramer, and Arundhati (Dhati) Oommen were among 71 Harvard College seniors awarded Hoopes prizes for their senior theses. Willa is a joint concentrator Philosophy and Women’s & Gender Studies, whose... ![emerson2.jpg](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/emerson2.jpg?h=75d39699&itok=7Zn7u8zA) [### Gina Schouten Selected as a 2026 Guggenheim Fellow ](/news/2026/04/gina-schouten-selected-2026-guggenheim-fellow) April 16, 2026 Professor Gina Schouten has been awarded a Guggenheim fellowship. From nearly 5000 applicants, 223 fellows working across 55 disciplines were selected. Only two other philosophers were selected. Each Fellow receives a monetary stipend to pursue... ![Gina Schouten](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/schouten_photo_0.jpg?itok=5q71LLKL) [### Gina Schouten Selected as a Marc Sanders Media Fellow ](/news/2026/04/gina-schouten-selected-marc-sanders-media-fellow) April 07, 2026 Professor Gina Schouten has been selected as a 2026 Marc Sanders Media Fellow. Fellows were selected from a pool of 230 applicants this year through a selection committee consisting of academic philosophers and media industry professionals. Funded by... ![Gina Schouten](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/schouten_photo_0.jpg?itok=5q71LLKL) [### Gina Schouten Elected to FAS Faculty Council ](/news/2026/04/gina-schouten-elected-fas-faculty-council) April 06, 2026 Professor Gina Schouten has been elected to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Faculty Council. The Faculty Council — a 19-member body chaired by FAS Dean Hopi E. Hoekstra — is the FAS’ top faculty committee, reviewing policy before it reaches a full... ![Gina Schouten](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/schouten_photo_0.jpg?itok=5q71LLKL) [### Quinn White Receives 2026 Everett I. Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Award ](/news/2026/02/quinn-white-receives-2026-everett-i-mendelsohn-excellence-mentoring-award) February 20, 2026 Professor Quinn White has recieved the 2026 Everett I. Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Award. This award is presented annually to one or more Harvard faculty members on the basis of nominations from Harvard Griffin GSAS students. Click here to read... ![Quinn White Wins Award](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2026-04/quinnaward1.jpg?itok=5-bAYV4m) [### Philosophy Concentrator Michele Chung '28 Selected for 2026 Frederick Douglass–Daniel O’Connell Global Internship ](/news/2026/02/philosophy-concentrator-michele-chung-28-selected-2026-frederick-douglass-daniel) February 19, 2026 Philosophy concentrator Michelle Chung '28 has been selected for the 2026 Frederick Douglass–Daniel O’Connell Global Internship. Chung will join a distinguished cohort of 14 students for the eight-week program in Dublin, Ireland. Co-sponsored by CIEE... ![Michelle Chung](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2026-02/Michelle%20Chung.png?itok=gCmywrLk) [### PhD Candidate Matthew Lyskawa Publishes "The Eighth Amendment and Prison Staff-to-Sentenced Prisoner Sexual Violence" in the Howard Law Journal ](/news/2026/02/phd-candidate-matthew-lyskawa-publishes-eighth-amendment-and-prison-staff-sentenced) February 17, 2026 PhD Candidate Matthew Lyskawa, who holds a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law, has published "The Eighth Amendment and Prison Staff-to-Sentenced Prisoner Sexual Violence" in the Howard Law Journal. Read the article here. ![Matt Lyskawa portrait](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/matt_lyskawa_0.jpg?h=acb7b7f1&itok=3ciCIzNJ) [### Several Philosophy Concentrators Among Harvard Phi Beta Kappa Class of 2026’s Recent Electees ](/news/2025/12/several-philosophy-concentrators-among-harvard-phi-beta-kappa-class-2026s-recent) December 01, 2025 Harvard’s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa Society selected 48 seniors from the Class of 2026. This year’s “Senior 48” join the “Junior 24” elected last spring. Several philosophy concetrators are among the electees: Katherine Cassese, Joel Crawford, Theo Datta... ![emerson2.jpg](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/emerson2.jpg?h=75d39699&itok=7Zn7u8zA) [### Zoë Johnson King Publishes "Praiseworthiness: The Lighter Side of Moral Responsibility" ](/news/2025/11/zoe-johnson-king-publishes-praiseworthiness-lighter-side-moral-responsibility) November 21, 2025 Professor Zoë Johnson King, John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Humanities, and Associate Professor of Philosophy, has published a new book, "Praiseworthiness: The Lighter Side of Moral Responsibility". See the publisher’s website here for more... ![Praiseworthiness Cover](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-11/61IvjwjQG9L._SL1500_.jpg?h=c6c945c1&itok=pxMzX481) [### Embedded EthiCS Team Discusses Increased Demand for Integrated Ethics in Computer Science Courses (Harvard Gazette) ](/news/2025/11/embedded-ethics-team-discusses-increased-demand-integrated-ethics-computer-science) November 20, 2025 Harvard’s Embedded EthiCS program—launched in 2017 to bring philosophy scholars into computer science classrooms to help students grapple with the ethical and social implications of their work—is experiencing surging demand as AI technologies like ChatGPT... ![Kopec](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/profile-picture.jpeg?h=82d16c3c&itok=6utBCAaS) [### Philosophy Concentrator Yael S. Goldstein '26 Awarded Rhodes Scholarship ](/news/2025/11/philosophy-concentrator-yael-s-goldstein-26-awarded-rhodes-scholarship) November 17, 2025 Yael S. Golstein is a philosophy concentrator whose senior thesis will examine the fundamental right to housing. At Oxford, Goldstein plans to continue studying philosophy. Read more about the Harvard Rhodes Scholars here. ![Widener Library](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-10/205113_1379992.jpg.1500x1000_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg?itok=49iGK9Cg) [### Jeff Behrends Interviewed in Harvard Gazette Article on AI's Threat to Critcal Thinking ](/news/2025/11/jeff-behrends-interviewed-harvard-gazette-article-ais-threat-critcal-thinking) November 14, 2025 Professor Jeff Behrends shares his thoughts on the potential effects of LLMs (large language models) on critical reasoning skills. Read more here. ![Jeff Behrends](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-09/071425_AI-Philosophy-JeffBehrends_039_my.edits%20_0.jpg?h=e38267f3&itok=E0kX9A6M) [### Philosophy Concentrator Will Flintoft '26 Awarded Rhodes Scholarship ](/news/2025/10/philosophy-concentrator-will-flintoft-26-awarded-rhodes-scholarship) October 08, 2025 Will J. Flintoft ’26, a joint concentrator in Philosophy and Mathematics, was awarded the Rhodes Scholarship last month. Flintoft studies the intersection of the two fields, and is currently writing a thesis on Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorem. Read more... ![Widener Library](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-10/205113_1379992.jpg.1500x1000_q95_crop-smart_upscale.jpg?itok=49iGK9Cg) [### Susanna Siegel to give 2025 Rutgers Lectures in Philosophy ](/news/2025/10/susanna-siegel-give-2025-rutgers-lectures-philosophy) October 07, 2025 Professor Susanna Siegel will give the 2025 Rutgers Lectures in Philosophy on October 13, October 15, and October 16. This annual series brings world-renowned philosophers to Rutgers University–New Brunswick where they present three original lectures to... ![Susanna Siegel](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-01/SusannaSiegel.jpeg?h=5c3149d0&itok=7iKyM4EP) [### Zoë Johnson King Named the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Humanities ](/news/2025/09/zoe-johnson-king-named-john-l-loeb-associate-professor-humanities) September 30, 2025 Professor Zoë Johnson King has been appointed as the John L. Loeb Associate Professor of the Humanities. Congratulations! ![Zoe Johnson King portrait](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/zoe_johnson_king.jpg?h=fdbf2904&itok=ew91Fz0x) [### Peter Koellner Named the Walter Beverly Pearson Professor of Modern Mathematics and Mathematical Logic ](/news/2025/09/peter-koellner-named-walter-beverly-pearson-professor-modern-mathematics-and) September 29, 2025 Professor Peter Koellner has been appointed as the Walter Beverly Pearson Professor of Modern Mathematics and Mathematical Logic. Congratulations! ![unknown.png](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/phildept/files/unknown.png?itok=PV8OYq1s) [### Jeff Behrends, Zoë Johnson King, and Mathias Risse Interviewed in Harvard Gazette Article ](/news/2025/09/jeff-behrends-zoe-johnson-king-and-mathias-risse-interviewed-harvard-gazette-article) September 11, 2025 Professors Jeff Behrends, Zoë Johnson King, and Mathias Risse shared their thoughts on the value of effort and struggle - and what's at stake when AI offers an easier alternative. Read more here. ![Jeff Behrends](/sites/g/files/omnuum4436/files/styles/hwp_16_9__480x270/public/2025-09/071425_AI-Philosophy-JeffBehrends_039_my.edits%20_0.jpg?h=e38267f3&itok=E0kX9A6M) [ More arrow\_circle\_right ](/news)