Teaching for 14 years total and 11 years here at West Chester University, Dr. Joan Woolfrey is the department chair of the Philosophy Department. Earning her undergraduate degree in sociology, psychology and women’s studies at North Dakota State University, she continued her education at The New School for Social Research in New York City studying philosophy. She then received her Doctorate in Philosophy from the University of Oregon. Woolfrey teaches The Intellectual Roots of Western Feminism, Introduction to Ethics, Ethical Theories, Environmental Ethics, Contemporary Moral Issues and a graduate course in Bioethics. She has been an advisor of Women’s and Gender Studies club, and GenEthics (now defunct), but currently doesn’t advise any clubs.
The one thing she loves about teaching is “When [she has] a conversation with students about a difficult concept and [she] can see that they get it.” A few of the things she loves about West Chester are the students, close proximity to New York City and Philadelphia, the lovely campus, her colleagues and her secretary.
She shared that her best academic accomplishment was “bringing great energies to the Philosophy Department, being elected as chair of the department and getting to hire new faculty.” Woolfrey explains that her biggest life accomplishment so far was defending her dissertation and earning her doctorate.
Woolfrey’s current academic goal is to get back in the classroom when the new chair is elected, focusing more on her scholarship and writing for publication. Her current life goal is going up for promotion. She is currently an associate professor and wants to be a full professor. She wants to travel and write more as well.
Woolfrey is working on the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s (http://www.iep.utm.edu/) entry on Olympe de Gouges (1748-1793), early feminist activist and French Revolutionary (who got beheaded because she wouldn’t stop demanding rights for the female citizen along with the male) on top of her already published works: “Group Moral Virtue:Environmental Responsibility and Beyond,” Social Philosophy Today (2009) and “Ectogenesis: Liberation, Technological Tyranny, or Just More of the Same?” in Ectogenesis: The Artificial Womb and the Future of Human Reproduction, ed. Scott Gelfand and John R. Shook (2006).
She’s also written “My Experiences as an Ethics Professor,” in Connecting to Place: Greening of the Campus V Conference Proceedings, ed. R.J. Koester (2003), and “Feminist Awareness as Virtue: A Path to Moderation,” American Philosophical Association Newsletters (2002) and also “What Happens Now? Oregon and Physician-Assisted Suicide,” Hastings Center Report (1998).
Woolfrey’s advice to students is take classes you wouldn’t think to normally take and “curl up with a good book.”
Some students wanted to share their thoughts about Dr. Woolfrey. Kacey Doran, a senior who took Roots of Western Feminism with Dr. Woolfrey, stated “I think Dr. Woolfrey is an amazing professor, advisor, and department head. When I had her for Roots of Western Feminism, she was challenging, but also approachable and had a great sense of humor. Her sunny disposition helped beyond when the material got really tough. The dense readings for her class prepared me for the rest of my major classes, as well as my general education classes. When I became really interested in philosophy this year, she helped me get into a philosophy grad class, apply to grad school for philosophy, and wrote me a stunning recommendation letter. In other words, she’s one of the most supportive professors I’ve had the pleasure to work with.”
Laura McLaughlin, a fifth year Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies major took Roots of Western Feminism and an independent study of Ethical Theories and worked on a creative group project/performance under Dr. Woolfrey’s and Simon Ruchti’s guidance.
McLaughlin likes Woolfrey as a teacher because “Dr. Woolfrey makes philosophy easy to understand and engaging. She also reveals how philosophy work is a continuous endeavor, connecting history with arguments that recur today and new ideas that occur.” Dr. Woolfrey impacted McLaughlin’s education by pushing her to think in ways that challenged McLaughlin’s own ideas.
Dr. Woolfrey can be located on the first floor of Main Hall.
Rebekah Balmer is a fourth-year student majoring in women’s and gender studies and sociology . She can be reached at RB649636@wcupa.edu.