The Mentoring Workshop
For Early Career Women* Faculty in Philosophy
We are delighted to announce that the Seventh Biennial Mentoring Workshop for Early Career Women* in Philosophy will be held June 4-6, 2025, at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri.
Our Keynote Speaker this year will be Teresa Blankmeyer Burke of Gallaudet University.
About the Keynote Speaker:
I am a philosophy professor and bioethicist at Gallaudet University, the world’s only bilingual liberal arts college for deaf, hard of hearing and hearing students. I work in a field I define as deaf philosophy — the space where philosophy intersects with Deaf studies. (The use of upper case Deaf designates the cultural community of signed language users; lower case deaf designates audiological status). I currently serve as the Faculty Administrator for Faculty Development in the Office of the Provost at Gallaudet University. I am also Editor of the Journal of Philosophy of Disability, along with Joel Michael Reynolds.
The Mentoring Workshop began as an initiative of the Women in Philosophy Task Force, an umbrella group aimed at coordinating initiatives and intensifying efforts to advance the careers of women in Philosophy. Its inaugural workshop in 2011 followed a model designed by women in the American Economics Association. There is mounting evidence that mentoring is important for success in academia. The Mentoring Workshop aims to build long-term mentoring relationships between eminent senior and junior scholars in the discipline of Philosophy.
*While we retain the historic title for this workshop, the directors would like to emphasize that the goal of this workshop is to provide mentorship to philosophers who might have had difficulty finding it in virtue of their gender. Given the demographics of the field, this includes philosophers from one or more of the following groups: women, nonbinary people, and trans* people.
Support Us
The Marc Sanders Foundation is pledging a dollar-for-dollar match (up to $12000) for The Mentoring Workshop. Contribute today!
To make a gift contribution in support of The Mentoring Workshop, please use the form below, and you will be taken to our donation platform on Paypal. If you prefer to send a physical payment, please follow the instructions found on our Contribute page, noting The Mentoring Workshop in your payment memo.
The Mentoring Workshop began as a project of the Women in Philosophy Task Force. It is currently funded by the Marc Sanders Foundation and has been funded in the past by grants from the American Philosophical Association and by the departments that have hosted each of the workshops–including the Department of Philosophy at the University of Missouri, the Department of Philosophy at Boston University, the Department of Philosophy at University of Utah, the Department of Philosophy at University of Massachusetts Amherst, and the Department of Philosophy at the University of Kansas.
About the Workshop
The 7th Biennial Mentoring Workshop for Early Career Women* in Philosophy will be held June 4-6, 2025, at Washington University in St Louis, Missouri.
Mentees will be assigned a networking group consisting of a mentor and four fellow mentees working in similar fields. Each mentor will provide written feedback on the workshop papers of each mentee and will participate in discussions at the workshop. Mentees will take responsibility for providing written feedback on the papers of their group members and will serve as discussion leader and first reader for one paper and second reader for another. In the long term, group members will actively monitor the progress of each other’s careers, offering philosophical feedback and, in the case of the mentors, advice about professional development along the way.
Why Attend?
Women, non-binary people, and trans* people are underrepresented in the profession of Philosophy. While there are several explanations for these disparities–including those found in special issues of Hypatia and the Journal of Social Philosophy –good mentoring is clearly important for success in academia, and philosophers of other genders do not receive as much of it as cisgender men do. The Mentoring Workshop therefore aims to build long-term mentoring relationships among eminent senior and junior women, non-binary people, and trans* people in the discipline.
Eligibility:
Any woman, nonbinary person, or trans* person entering or holding a faculty (pre-tenure or contract) or postdoc position in Philosophy at a college or university is eligible to apply. Because the workshop is aimed specifically at those who are navigating academic life after their PhD, we require that applicants have successfully defended by the date of their submission. Members of groups underrepresented in Philosophy are especially encouraged to apply.
Cost:
There is no charge for participation in the workshop, but we expect mentees’ home institutions to cover the cost of their transportation, room, and board. We recognize and deeply regret if the cost of attending the workshop is prohibitive. While the Mentoring Workshop operates on a limited budget, we invite those without institutional support to contact us directly, so that we can offer support and advice as best we are able.
Accessibility:
The Mentoring Workshop is committed to making the workshop completely accessible to disabled philosophers. All meeting, dining, and guest rooms are wheelchair accessible. Philosophers requiring ASL interpreters or assistive technology are asked to communicate such needs on the relevant form.
For questions or comments, please send an email to kori@marcsandersfoundation.org.
Advisory Board
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- Alice MacLachlan, York University
- Nico Orlandi, University of California at Santa Cruz
- Susanne Sreedhar, Boston University
- Vanessa Wills, The George Washington University
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Past Workshops
2023, Sixth Biennial Workshop
2019, Fifth Biennial Workshop
2017, Fourth Biennial Workshop
2015, Third Biennial Workshop
2013, Second Biennial Workshop
2011, Inaugural Workshop
Publications
"The Mentoring Project,"
by Louise Antony and Ann E. Cudd
Contact Us
The Marc Sanders Foundation would be happy to hear from you. Please feel free to contact us (e-mail is preferred) about any questions you might have.
Copyright 2019 Marc Sanders Foundation