PHD STUDENT PROFILES
Kelsey Borrowman
Kelsey’s research focuses on the intersection of the history of philosophy and disability studies, but she also works in the areas of critical phenomenology, public philosophy, feminist philosophy and critical theory. She’s currently writing her dissertation analyzing the role of health in the philosophies of Rousseau and Nietzsche.
MA, Stony Brook University
BA, Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville
Patrick Corry
Areas of Specialization: Ancient Philosophy, Metaphysics
Areas of Competence: Phenomenology, Late-antique Neoplatonism
Lilia Endter
Areas of Specialization: Social and Political Philosophy, History of Political Thought, Social Ontology, Nietzsche, Critical Theory
Areas of Competence: Feminisms, 19th and 20th century German philosophy, German Idealism
MSc, Political Theory, The London School of Economics and Political Science (UK)
BA, Philosophy and Political Science, University College Dublin (Ireland)
Constanza Filloy
Areas of Interest: Social and Political Philosophy, Modern and Contemporary Metaphysics, Contemporary French Philosophy, Aesthetics
Tertia Gillett
Areas of Specialization: Philosophy of Mind, Cognitive Science, Classical Indian Philosophy
Areas of Competence: Social Ontology, Metaphysics, Social & Political Philosophy
Shawn Huberdeau
Areas of Specialization: 20th century French philosophy, Foucault, psychoanalysis, phenomenology, feminist philosophy
Areas of Competence: Kant, Nietzsche, Marxism, Critical Theory, moral and political philosophy
MA, Philosophy, Concordia University
BA, Philosophy and Political Studies, University of Manitoba
Fen Inman
Fen specializes in Ancient Greek thought and 20th-century phenomenology, with a focus on metaphysics, ontologies of nature and language and the non-human animal; secondary interests include hermeneutics, aesthetics and history of philosophy.
BA, Politics, Philosophy & Economics, The King's College (New York)
MA, Philosophy, Boston College
Bryan Knittle
Areas of Specialization: Deleuze and Guattari, Psychoanalysis, Social and Political Theory
Areas of Competence: Continental Philosophy, Phenomenology, Philosophy of Mind, Buddhism
MA, Philosophy, Villanova University
MA, Philosophy, California State University, Los Angeles
BA, Philosophy, University of California, Berkeley
Thomas McGlone Jr
Areas of Specialization: social and political philosophy, modern philosophy (especially Rousseau and Marx), critical theory
Areas of Competence: African philosophy (especially Hountondji), history of philosophy, philosophy of film
MA, Philosophy, Villanova University
BA, Philosophy and Video/Television, Hofstra University
Christopher D. Quintana
Areas of Specialization: Philosophy & Ethics of Technology, Virtue Theory, Social & Political Philosophy
Areas of Competence: Applied Ethics, Ancient Philosophy, Social Epistemology
Research program: Philosophical perspectives on human-computer interaction, Neo-Aristotelian ethics of information communications technologies, especially user experiences and interface design
Brendan Rome
Areas of Specialization: 19th and 20th Century Continental Philosophy, Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Psychoanalysis
Areas of Competence: Early Modern Philosophy, Philosophy of Science (Especially French Historical Epistemology), Feminist Philosophy, Philosophy of Race, Critical Theory
MA, University of New Mexico
BA, Macalester College
Max Shmidheiser
Max's research interests include Enactive Approach, Philosophy of Mind, 4E Cognitive Science, Philosophy of Psychology & Mental Health, Virtue Ethics and Bioethics.
Daniel Shussett
Areas of Specialization: Social Ontology, Social Epistemology, and Science, Technology and Society
Areas of Competence: Social and Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Science, Philosophy of Mind, Environmental Philosophy
MA, Philosophy, Villanova University
BA, Philosophy, Gettysburg College
Hannah Sine
Hannah's primary research interests are in social epistemology, philosophy of science, philosophy of mind and Hegel. Hannah enjoys bringing together seemingly disparate or typically unconnected perspectives by identifying issues that are common to them. She tends to pair contemporary philosophical concerns with historical approaches to provide new ways of understanding the problem at hand and shed light on the fundamental concerns that unite contemporary and historical philosophical discourse. Recently Hannah has been thinking about the compatibility between Hegel’s philosophy and the extended mind, as well as investigating issues at the intersection of academic specialization, interdisciplinary communication and intellectually virtuous research collaboration.
Areas of Specialization: Social epistemology, Philosophy of Mind, Hegel
Areas of Competence: Philosophy of Science, Feminist Philosophy
BA, Philosophy, New College of Florida
Claryn Spies
Areas of Specialization: post-structuralism (esp. Foucault), phenomenology, queer theory
Areas of Competence: contemporary continental philosophy, critical theory, social and political theory
MA, Philosophy, Villanova University
MA, Social, Political, Ethical and Legal Philosophy, Binghamton University
BA, Political Studies and Philosophy, Bard College
Yue Jennifer Wang
Jen's research is at the intersection of phenomenology and theology, and the working title of her dissertation is "A Phenomenology of Mystical Embodiment: Merleau-Ponty and Hildegard on the Transformation of Sense Perception.” Jen is also interested in the applications of her research to aesthetics, especially to a phenomenological understanding of the work of art and the commodity form.
Areas of Interest: phenomenology (esp. Merleau-Ponty, Levinas, Marion), theology (esp. medieval mysticism, patristics), Marx, aesthetics
Hui Zhang
Hui's research interests include Social and Political Thoughts, Marxism/historical materialism.
DEADLINES
January 8, 2024: For admission to the PhD program with or without assistantship
Students are admitted for the fall term, only.
Please contact the program director, Dr. Julie Klein, with questions about your application.
STUDENT NEWS
Opportunities Abound to Present Scholarly Work
From the annual Graduate Student Research Symposium to the international Three-minute Thesis (3MT) competition, Villanova University offers many opportunities for graduate students to develop and showcase their research communication skills. This year, Philosophy doctoral student Katherine Kurtz advanced to the national round of the 3MT competition, after winning the University event and placing second at regionals. Her presentation, "Deviant Bodies: Toward an Aesthetics of Feminine Monstrosity," is based on her dissertation work.