The Prindle Institute for Ethics is pleased to announce the appointment of three distinguished faculty members as the inaugural Janet Prindle Memorial Professors at DePauw University. Made possible through the generosity of Janet Prindle Seidler ’58, these professorships recognize faculty members who have demonstrated a strong commitment to integrating ethical inquiry into their teaching and scholarship. The initiative aims to strengthen connections between the Prindle Institute for Ethics and academic departments across campus, fostering deep interdisciplinary engagement with ethical issues.

The Prindle Memorial Professorships are three-year appointments, beginning in the 2025-2026 academic year, and include an annual faculty development stipend to support research, pedagogy, and programming related to ethics. As part of their role, each Prindle Professor will lead at least one faculty or staff reading group on an ethics-related topic and continue to foreground ethical questions in their teaching and scholarly work.

For the inaugural selection, the committee focused on faculty with fewer than ten years at DePauw to cultivate lasting collaborations between the Prindle Institute and a diverse range of academic disciplines. The selection committee included: Jeff Dunn, Phyllis W. Nicholas Director of the Prindle Institute, Erik Wielenberg, Blair Anderson and Martha Caroline Rieth Chair in Applied Ethics, and Bridget Gourley, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The inaugural Prindle Memorial Professors are as follows:

Farah Ali is Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies, specializing in sociolinguistics and second/heritage language acquisition. Her research explores the relationship between language and identity in multilingual contexts, with a focus on immigration, gender, and media discourse. She has published on multilingualism in Catalonia and migration narratives in Spain-Morocco relations. At DePauw, Ali teaches Spanish and linguistics, emphasizing language as a social practice shaped by cultural and political histories.

Town Oh is Assistant Professor of Economics and Management with a specialty in applied microeconomics. His research explores economic decision-making and policy implications. His interest in economics was sparked during his service in the Korean army, where he worked as an interpreter and assisted with legal research on affirmative action. At DePauw, he teaches introductory and advanced courses, emphasizing the role of economics in understanding human interactions and social choices.

Sarah Rowley is Associate Professor of History, specializing in 20th-century U.S. history. She explores political, cultural, and social transformations, emphasizing the history of sexuality and the ways historical context shapes contemporary issues. Passionate about student engagement, she fosters deep discussions and critical thinking in her classroom. Rowley believes historical thinking is a “superpower,” helping students analyze the past to better understand the present and their role in an evolving world.

On the occasion of the appointments, Phyllis Nicholas Director Jeff Dunn said: “Questions of ethics arise in every discipline and Janet’s support for these new roles is evidence that DePauw is committed to helping students develop their capacity for ethical reflection across all different fields of study.” The Institute congratulates our first Prindle Memorial Professors and looks forward to the contributions they will make in advancing ethics education and discourse on campus.