The Penn State Philosophy Department strives to be a national leader in increasing the diversity and inclusiveness of our discipline, and actively promotes the College’s and University’s diversity mission.
Our success in recruiting, mentoring, training, and placing graduate students from underrepresented minority groups has been recognized by the Chronicle of Higher Education and supported by a major grant from the Andrew W. Mellon foundation.
In conjunction with the Mellon grant, the department hosts CUSP (Cultivating Underrepresented Students in Philosophy) workshops designed for undergraduates from traditionally underrepresented groups who are interested in pursuing graduate study in philosophy. See our CUSP page for more information.
In partnership with the Rock Ethics Institute, the department supports the Critical Philosophy of Race Initiative and its journal, Critical Philosophy of Race, published by Penn State University Press and edited by Prof. Robert Bernasconi.
In addition, the department is home to The Collegium of Black Women Philosophers (CBWP), directed by Prof. Kathryn Sophia Belle; the Latina/x Feminisms Roundtable, directed by Prof. Mariana Ortega.