Teaching
I served as a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Maine for 46 years before retiring in the fall of 2020. I loved teaching and greatly enjoyed my lively interactions with my students. My curriculum vitae provides extensive information on my areas of teaching and various teaching honors.
My teaching experience included Banaras Hindu University in India (1963-64) as a Fulbright Instructor; Southern Illinois University (1967-72) as Instructor and Assistant Professor; Vanderbilt University (1972-73) as Visiting Assistant Professor; Central Connecticut State University (1973-74) as Assistant Professor; and the University of Maine (1974-2022) as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Full Professor (since 1981). I served as Chairperson of Philosophy (1979-82 and 1998-2003). I was also a member of the Graduate Faculty.
I taught the following courses at the University of Maine: Introduction to Philosophy; Introduction. to Religious Studies; Social Issues in Recent Religious and Philosophical Thought; Problems of Philosophy; Honors; Marxist Philosophy (Marx); Twentieth Century Marxist Philosophy; The Nature of Religious Experience; Hinduism; Buddhism; Views of Self: East and West; Theories of Myth; Mircea Eliade; and Mahatma Gandhi. At other universities, I have taught the following courses: Ethics; History of Modern Philosophy; Philosophy of Religion; and Afro-American Philosophy. I have also taught Graduate seminars on Indian Philosophy and the Phenomenology of Religion.
Also directly relevant to my teaching at the University of Maine are the following: Coordinator of the Marxist-Studies Interdisciplinary Minor for which I taught the foundational course on the philosophy of Karl Marx and coordinated the weekly Socialist and Marxist Studies Lecture Series; Past Coordinator of the interdisciplinary Religious Studies Minor for which I taught the foundational Introduction to Religious Studies course; regular lecturer for the Honors Program; Faculty Advisor and active participant in the Maine Peace Action Committee; and numerous presentations on and off campus. Information on these items can be found on my curriculum vitae pages.
Since retirement, I have actively continued to serve as the co-advisor of the Maine Peace Action Committee and the coordinator of the Socialist and Marxist Studies Lecture Series. I have continued to present many Zoom, webinar, and other lectures in Maine, throughout the USA, and especially in India. During 2022-2023, I teach an Independent Readings course on Gandhi with a Ph.D. student, serve on her Dissertation Committee, and serve on the Honors Thesis Committee of an undergraduate student. You can click here to view the recording of the lecture program that I gave on Nov. 10, 2022 to the Honors students, focusing on the philosophy of Karl Marx.