As he writes below, I first encountered Nashay in my introduction to philosophy. It wasn't until near the end of the semester that I learned that he was just out of high school and in his first semester in college. I was surprised and delighted, as he had been a thoughtful and reflective contributor to class discussions. He took to philosophy very naturally and we've been working together ever since--first in class and later in the philosophy reading group, where he has been able to immerse himself in complex philosophical works, asking great questions and beginning to develop his own view.
What Nashay says about himself:
I was born and raised in West Philly. In my free time, I enjoy floor seats at Beyoncé concerts, reading, and thrift shopping. Currently, I am a student in the Liberal Arts program at the Community College of Philadelphia. I plan to transfer and then to pursue a PhD in either Philosophy, Sociology, or a program that will allow me to utilize both disciplines. My research interests include Critical Theory and the philosophy of race. I am interested in analyzing the ways in which the construction of race oppresses individuals, and the social and political implications of the black/white binary.
What Nashay says about working with Dr. C:
I can truly say that working with Dr. c has been a life changing experience. My first encounter with her was in the fall of my freshman year at the college when I enrolled in her introduction to philosophy course. From the moment she showed us the material, I knew that I was in for a treat. She had curated a syllabus and arranged each of the readings in such a way that not only spoke to her passion, but to her understanding of the canon. If it weren’t for this, I would have probably been too intimidated to develop interest in the field.
Throughout the semester, I fell in love with her class and teaching style. I felt that the passion she displayed during the entire course was most visibly manifested in her later lectures on Nietzsche, Camus, and Dostoevsky. It was in that week I began to question my own values and decided that I wanted a career in academia.
Having had such a moving experience in her course, I decided to enroll in a humanities course she was teaching in the spring. There, my love for philosophy and my knowledge in classics would only grow. My experiences with Dr. C continue to shape my character and mind, as we have a reading group with other students. There is no one else I’d want to be engaged with in such an intimate academic space on a weekly basis.