Prindle Institute Staff

Jeffrey Dunn (Phyllis W. Nicholas Executive Director) is an associate professor of philosophy and began his directorship of the Prindle Institute in the summer of 2022. To find more about Jeff and his research interests, visit his about page. Contact him at jeffreydunn@depauw.edu.

Marcia McKelligan (Interim Director of Academics) is a professor of philosophy who focuses on the history of philosophy, philosophy of death, bioethics and related issues. She coaches DePauw’s Collegiate Ethics Bowl and Bioethics Bowl teams. The Ethics Bowl team has qualified for the national competition thirteen out of the last eighteen years, and won the national championship in 2013. Contact her at mamck@depauw.edu.

Emily (Jones) Knuth (Associate Director) (she/her/hers) Emily has over 20 years of professional experience, with a specific focus on leadership, developing people, and project management. Her work at the Prindle Institute includes co-founding the K-12 ethics education initiative and managing the institute’s national engagement efforts. In her role as director of the Hillman internship program, she provides learning and leadership opportunities for the institute’s student interns. Emily is also the Director of Girls Camp at the American Youth Foundation’s Camp Miniwanca. Besides leading the camp, she oversees K-12 Ethics Education internship opportunities for the Prindle Institute’s interns during the summer. Emily is a 7th-generation Putnam County resident and a DePauw alum. She and her husband, Dennis, are raising their three children in Greencastle. Contact her at eknuth@depauw.edu

Christiane Wisehart (Associate Director of Content) (she/her/hers) leads the Prindle Institute’s content strategy and development. She specializes in audio storytelling, and hosts and produces the Examining Ethics podcast. Contact her at christianewisehart@depauw.edu

Joseph Porter (Nancy Schaenen Endowed Visiting Scholar of Ethics and Assistant Director of Academic Services) received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2022. At the Prindle Institute, Joseph assists in a variety of capacities, including teaching an ethics course to the Hillman interns each semester and coordinating the Ethics Reading Course program. Joseph’s research focuses on democratic theory, food and animal ethics, and social power. Contact him at johnporter@depauw.edu

Ted Bitner (Scientific Research Coordinator) (he/him/his) leads several research projects at the Prindle Institute, including research on the moral development of children. Contact him at tedbitner@depauw.edu

Cheyanne Maddox (Communication Manager) (she/her/hers) oversees Prindle Institute communications and creates and maintains partnerships both externally and within the DePauw community. She assists in program and event planning, as well as content creation for the Prindle Institute social media accounts and marketing campaigns.  Contact her at cheyannemaddox@depauw.edu

Leslie Petiniot (Events and Facilities Manager) (she/her/hers) began working at DePauw University in 2013 and joined the Prindle Institute team in May 2019. She plans, executes and manages Express C.A.M.P., the Indiana State High School Ethics Bowl, the Summer High School Ethics Bowl Invitational, Prindlepalooza, the Dorothy Garrett Martin Lecture, and various other events throughout the year. Leslie also manages the Institute’s facilities and surrounding grounds, including handling maintenance and building reservation requests. Contact her at lesliepetiniot@depauw.edu

E. Tucker Sechrest (Editorial Fellow) (he/him/his) Tucker holds a PhD from Binghamton University with a focus in Political Philosophy and Philosophy of Law. He is the current editor of The Prindle Post. Contact him at evansechrest@depauw.edu

Megan Havens, MHA (Finance and Asset Manager) (she/her/hers) oversees Prindle Institute finances and assets, maintains partnerships with multiple departments both externally and internally at DePauw, and provides additional assistance with various programs within the Prindle Institute. She completed an undergraduate degree in psychology in 2018 and graduate degree in healthcare administration in 2020 from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College. Contact her at meganhavens@depauw.edu.

Haley Thompson (K-12 Ethics Education Graduate Fellow) (she/her/hers) graduated from DePauw University in 2020. Her focus is development and implementation of the Prindle Institute’s K-12 ethics education programs. She conducts research focused on children’s moral reasoning development. In addition, she leads the programming portion of the Hillman Internship. Contact her at haleythompson@depauw.edu

Marko Mavrovic (Ethics Education Graduate Fellow) graduated summa cum laude from DePauw University with a BA in political science in 2019. In 2020, he graduated from the London School of Economics with a MSc in International Relations. As the Institute’s Ethics Education Graduate Fellow, Marko designs and facilitates the Institute’s high school workshops, leads the First-Year Intern program, and serves as lead Ethics Bowl adviser. He has over four years of Ethics Bowl experience as a student, captain, and coach. Prior to joining the Institute, he was the Brent Scowcroft Award Fellow at The Aspen Institute. Contact him at markomavrovic@depauw.edu.

Linda Clute (Retired) (she/her/hers) began working at the Prindle Institute when it opened in early 2008. She retired from her position as Operations Manager after a decades-long career at DePauw at the end of 2020. She currently works on a part-time basis assisting with the transition of administrative duties. Contact Linda at lclute@depauw.edu

Kristen Fuhs-Wells (Executive Director of the Association for Practical and Professional Ethics) (she/her/hers) works with the Prindle Institute in her capacity as director of the world’s largest professional ethics organization. Prior to joining APPE she spent more than 12 years at Indiana Humanities. She lives in Greencastle with her family.

Read more about our current cohort of Hillman interns here!

Members of the advisory committee provide wide-ranging expertise and multiple perspectives as they advise on the work of the Institute. Please contact any of these committee members if you have questions, comments, or concerns.

DePauw faculty and staff who would like to serve on the Advisory Committee or nominate a colleague should fill out the form below this list of current committee members.

Members

Representing Arts or Humanities: Harry Brown 2019-2022 (English)
Representing Philosophy Department: Jeremy Anderson 2020-2023 and Tucker Sechrest 2020-2021 (filling in for Rich Cameron [2019-2022] on sabbatical)
Representing Library and Information Services: Victoria Peters 2022-2025
Representing Natural Sciences/Math: Mamunur Rashid 2018-2022 (Mathematics)
Representing Religious Studies: Jason Fuller 2022-2025
Representing Education Studies: Derek Ford 2021-2024

At-large Members

We are currently seeking two people to fill at-large vacancies. If you would like to nominate yourself or a colleague for this position, please fill out the form below this list.
Matthew Balensuela 2019-2022 (Music)
Lydia Marshall 2019-2022 (Anthropology)

Ex-Officio Members

Marcia McKelligan 2018-2022 (Blair Anderson and Martha Caroline Rieth Chair in Applied Ethics)
Bridget Gourley 2019-2022 (Dean of the Faculty)
Jessie Scott (Director of the Hartman Center and the Bonner Scholar Program)
Emily Knuth (Interim Director of Operations, Prindle Institute)
Christiane Wisehart (Associate Director of Content, Prindle Institute)
Joseph Porter (Nancy Schaenen Scholar and Assistant Director of Academic Services, Prindle Institute)
Cheyanne Maddox (Communication Manager, Prindle Institute)