Program Alumni » Laura DeSisto 2007
Laura DeSisto '07
Laura DeSisto is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Liberal Arts and Sciences at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. Her responsibilities as a Fellow include offering courses in philosophy and education to undergraduate students who are participating in the teacher certification program, as well as teaching interdisciplinary courses in the liberal arts and sciences to the broader Lawrence student body. Laura's primary research interest is in the humanistic foundations of the practice of education. Her dissertation, entitled "Education and the Human Condition: Reconceptualizing the Activity of Teaching and Learning," uses existential philosophy to show how the challenges, possibilities, and limitations of human existence also characterize the activities of teaching and learning. In addition, recently Laura contributed to a higher education reform project in the Middle East and she continues to explore the connections that may be drawn between that work and her philosophical study of the field of education.
"The Philosophy and Education Program at Teachers College, Columbia University proved to be an ideal setting to pose and wrestle with philosophical questions about the practice of education. Not only has the program supported my scholarly interests, it has provided me with invaluable opportunities to deepen my understanding of the field, teach courses of my own design, and participate in fieldwork in educational settings. Furthermore, the sense of community generated within this program is outstanding. I am especially grateful for the opportunity to work with the professors at Teachers College and fellow graduate students; I look forward to sustaining these relationships in the years to come."
