Every semester CSU Bakersfield hosts a series of events through the Kegley Institute of Ethics that dive into a plethora of topics. Their mission is to start conversations, understand different ethical perspectives, and foster a community within all areas of ethics.

Every Spring and Fall semester at CSUB, going into their 36th annual year, they have hosted lecture series and invited prominent people to engage in the CSUB community.   

In past, they have invited Dolores Huerta, a civil rights activist and co-founder of United Farm Workers Association, and Arun Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, where they talked about the ethical issues they encountered within their specialties. 

This year’s lecturer is Dr. Safiya Noble, UCLA professor and author of “Algorithms of Oppression,” where she will discuss the issues of racism in correlation to search engines.   

Dr. Jacquelyn Kegley, CSUB Co-Founder and Vice Chair of the Kegley Institute of Ethics and Philosophy professor at CSUB, finds that students enjoy grasping ethical topics and speaking up when they become the talking points in class. 

“Leading an ethical life is a good life.” Says Dr. Jacquelyn Kegley. 

Students have an opportunity to get involved with the KIE as Fellows, or attend the Civil Disagreement Program where they learn with other universities about how to understand different ethical perspectives and facilitate healthy dialog. Furthermore, there is the Wendy Wayne Ethics Award, a scholarship awarded to individuals that are determined to make the world better. 

The fellowship program is a yearlong program that starts in the Fall semester. Students can apply, and over the year they will work with a mentor and have an ethical project that they will present in the Spring semester. 

Sarah Alame, M.A. Biology student and KIE Fellow, is focusing on environmental ethics and spreading awareness with the link between human impact. Whereas Carmen Vasquez, Philosophy and Religious studies major and KIE Fellow, is spreading awareness on civil disagreements in high schools and making space for free speech. 

Ethics are all around us, in everything that we discuss in today’s world. The KIE doesn’t have a set of ethical topics, rather they explore all topics with a mission to promote ethical understanding along with the inspiration to take action. 

With topics such as racism, discrimination, religion, and politics, etc., it may cause people to be uncomfortable voicing their opinions. Yet, the KIE creates an atmosphere of self-reflection, shared understanding, and psychological safety. 

The KIE events can also show you your blindness when it comes to understanding different perspectives. 

Jessica Grimes, a new board member of the Kegley Institute of Ethics, is excited to be involved. Grimes hopes to add her voice, and bring awareness to the communities that are sometimes invisible by asking herself how she can make this table more inclusive. 

“This is the fabric that makes a community.” Says Grimes. 

The KIE also helps by taking the resource of knowledge and making it available for everyone. Grimes explained how everyone matters, and that we can’t only hear hard conversations from one group of people. 

A way that they bring in diverse voices is by collaborating with groups on campus. They have partnered with the LGBTQ+ PRIDE faculty and staff affinity group, Campus Programing, and Services for Students with Disabilities for the Fall 2023 events.  

“Ethics is best done in conversation with others when many different perspectives are represented and heard.” says Dr. Nate Olson, Philosophy professor and Interim Director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics.  

From attending a lecture series to participating in the fellowship program, there are plenty of opportunities to get involved in the Kegley Institute of Ethics. Students can look forward to  OUTober Brown Bag: Queer and/or Transgender Pacific Islanders (QTPI) on Oct. 5, Ethics in Film: Crip Camp co-hosted with the Services for Students with Disabilities on Oct 12., CSUB perspectives on Ethics and AI on Nov.14, and many more ethical events brought to you from the Kegley Institute. 

For more information on the Fall 2023 events, the institute mission, and getting involved, you can visit:  https://www.cs.csubak.edu/~kie/