Winners of Outstanding Philosophy Essay Prize Announced

The Philosophy Program has announced that three undergraduate students are winners of Outstanding Essay in Philosophy prizes for 2024. The winners are Avery Orr, Xavier Christy, and Teresa Heninger.

Avery Orr was recognized at the upper-division level for his essay, “Theory, Experiment, and Change: Popper, Cartwright, and Kuhn on Scientific Change.” He wrote the essay for Philosophy 4430 – Philosophy of Science, taught by Mike Roche. In the paper, Avery examines two influential challenges to Karl Popper’s account of scientific change. He argues that one of these, developed by Nancy Cartwright, can be dispelled; but the other, from Thomas Kuhn, creates a serious problem for Popper’s view. Avery presented this work at undergraduate philosophy conferences this spring at both Utah Valley University and Pacific University in Oregon. 

Of that experience, Avery says, “it's been great to meet fellow philosophers, bounce ideas back and forth, as we do, and make some new friends.” 

“The work that Avery is doing in our program is so impressive,” says Jim Skidmore, Director of Philosophy. “This paper is a model of the analytical and critical skills that we try to cultivate.” 

Avery is pursuing a B.A. in Philosophy and will graduate in the spring of 2025. 

At the introductory level, Xavier Christy was honored for his essay on Socrates’ argument for specialization and division of labor in Book II of Plato’s Republic. The essay was written for Philosophy 1103 – Introduction to Ethics, taught by Joshua Fox. 

“I found the class deeply enjoyable and intriguing,” says Xavier. “The paper gave me the opportunity to truly think through and understand some of Socrates's ideas about an ideal society.” 

The awards committee was impressed with Xavier’s ability to clearly articulate both the main steps in Socrates’ argument as well as a key vulnerability in the argument. Xavier is a senior at ISU majoring in Biology and Health Science.

Teresa Heninger was awarded honorable mention not for a single essay but for the outstanding final exam she wrote for Philosophy 1101 – Introduction to Philosophy, taught by Melissa Norton. The comprehensive exam covered a variety of topics, including arguments from Descartes’ Meditations and Hume’s Enquiry. The awards committee admired Teresa’s ability to explain these complex arguments, clearly and carefully, in the context of an in-class exam. Teresa is a sophomore at ISU majoring in psychology and sociology.

The Outstanding Essay in Philosophy prize was created to recognize annually the best undergraduate student work in philosophy at ISU. The faculty in Philosophy congratulate Avery, Xavier, and Teresa on their outstanding work.