By Julianne Fullerton | Reporter
Following in the footsteps of figures like Plato and Aristotle, the field of philosophy has historically been a male-dominated area of education. At Baylor alone, only three out of the 13 full-time faculty members in the philosophy department are women.
Dr. Anne-Marie Schultz, a professor of philosophy and master teacher, is the first woman to get tenure in the department at Baylor. Schultz said she is aware of the gender imbalance in the discipline, especially in academic environments.
“The percentage of females gets increasingly smaller at every kind of level of academic achievement,” Schultz said.
Having taught at Baylor since 1993, Schultz said she still enjoys being in the college classroom environment because of the opportunity to help students find meaning in their lives through the material she teaches.
“It’s nice just learning to think for yourself and having ideas that get you outside of Plato’s cave,” Schultz said. “I love teaching students how to read texts carefully and how to think more deeply about ideas.”
Dr. Lenore Wright said she was the only woman to major in philosophy as an undergraduate at Morehead State University. While this was isolating at times, she said the experience helped her understanding of the field.
“I learned to engage in philosophical discussion and debate in the ways that the masculine tradition had created,” Wright said. “I kept thinking in the back of my mind that there has to be other ways and there has to be other pedagogies and approaches and strategies.”
However, since her undergraduate years, Wright said she has seen improvement.
“There are other forms of dialogue that can be more generative and inclusive and allow for all voices, situated experiences and positions to be considered,” Wright said. “Now, I think there’s a lot of sensitivity to wanting to be inclusive and create a community belonging.”
At Baylor, the undergraduate population is more balanced, with 45 of the 83 undergraduate philosophy students being women, according to Baylor’s Office of Institutional Research.
Schultz said she is hopeful for the future of philosophy at Baylor after seeing so many promising women rise to the top. She said she encourages women to pursue the discipline and to find mentors and community along the way.
“There are bright young philosophy female students everywhere I look,” Schultz said. “You can think your own thoughts, but philosophy is really something that’s best done in dialogue with other people.”
Wright also said she is impressed with the talented philosophy majors rising up in Baylor’s department and encourages them to spend time asking themselves what their ultimate trajectory is.
“It’s so exciting to see students who just bring a new energy and interest and perspective that we haven’t heard before,” Wright said. “Just to hear new, bright female students say, ‘I’m interested in philosophy, and I think I can change it and shape it in positive ways,’ is really rewarding to see.”
Wright said she enjoys sharing her love of philosophy with her students and working alongside them on their journey to pursue wisdom.
“Philosophy is the life of the mind,” Wright said. “If I can expose students to that as well, and ignite their imaginations, and get them excited, and maybe fire them up about thinking about the big questions of human existence, I will do that forever.”
