Current Students

Born in the Bronx, NY, Robert discovered his passion for philosophy during his senior year of high school. After graduating from La Salle University with a BA in Philosophy and Communication he discovered that he also had a strong passion for education, and he was determined on becoming a professor of philosophy. In his words, “The greatest way in which I can add to the betterment of society and incite social change is by influencing the minds of our future generations. I intend to get to the root problems in education and reform it in a way that will empower individuals to achieve their personal goals, not simply join in the rat race of the monotonous workforce.” His research interests include but are not limited to education policy, epistemology, and existentialism. He is also interested in thinkers like Dewey, Rousseau, and Montaigne. Robert currently works as a presenter with a company called Elevate Education in which he goes out to middle/high schools throughout the five boroughs and he helps the youth to become better students by teaching them various study skills and belief systems. When he is not engaging in scholarly endeavors, he can be found skateboarding around the concrete jungle of NYC.

Zev is a master's student from California. He holds his B.A. in Philosophy from Reed College, at which he matriculated after two years of study at Montana State University. Zev is deeply experienced with youth work, and currently serves as the Program Director for the Leadership & Service program of the National Student Leadership Conference. He is committed to creating change in young people worldwide, through education and through philosophy and through their entanglement in content and in form. Beyond academia, Zev is an avid fly fisherman and musician.

Joseph Hagan graduated from the University of Southern Maine in 2020 with a B.A. in Philosophy, in which he discovered Existentialism, the nature of emotions, relationships between philosophy and literature, poetic language, and compassion. After graduating, he continued working in a vocational high school music program and substituting grades K-12 within Portland Public Schools in Maine. Some interests he brings to the Philosophy and Education program include the importance of self-awareness and reflection, bringing philosophy to middle and high schools, the lessons of boredom and loneliness, the meanings of suicide and courage.

Kevin is a first-year Master’s student hailing from Chicago, where they helped oversee educational programs of a nonprofit K-12 learning center working in one of the two largest Rohingya refugee communities in the United States. Kevin is interested in critical social theory and education as a prefigurative practice. They like to connect with youth, activism, and others committed to social transformation and imaginative play. Kevin is Mexican-born and holds a B.S. in Mathematics from DePaul University.

Becky Lallande is an educator, dancer, and vocalist from Annandale, Virginia and holds a MA in Psychology in Education and a BA in Religious Studies. Prior to attending graduate school she developed a career as a teaching artist with a focus on early childhood development in the arts. Now with over 15 years of experience in arts education she is passionate in the foundations of learning and cultivating meaningful relationships in educative spaces. She is trained in arts integration techniques for the classroom, trauma-informed arts-based practices, and the modern dance style of Isadora Duncan for children. As an educator she finds a deep importance in understanding the ways in which people communicate with each other, especially through a wide range of perspectives and needs. With deep inquiry toward the intersections of post-materialist science, music, and imagination, she seeks methods of practical implications of research on these topics in education and everyday life. Additional academic research interests include embodied cognition, perceptual studies, policy in education, and the history of psychology and education in the United States.

Hieu earned his Bachelor from London School of Economics (UK) in 2007, his Ph.D. from Stanford University (USA) in 2012, and an MBA from University of Oxford (UK) in 2016. Hieu is a leading expert in Vietnam’s education sector, directly setting up and transforming 100+ Vietnamese and foreign K-12 schools, colleges, education institutes, non-profit organizations, ranging from boutique models to big-scale systems, in multiple capacities: school model design, new school creation, school restructuring, product R&D, professional development, general management, corporate finance & strategy, system operations. As a teacher & professor, Hieu has taught the entire range of primary, middle, high school, college, graduate school students, young professionals and corporate executives across multiple subjects. Dr. Nguyen is a pioneering thought leader in Vietnamese education and an active contributor on national news, media as well as a published author with numerous best-selling books in education and related issues.

Brittany holds a BA in English and art history from Muhlenberg College and an MA TESOL from the New School. She teaches English as a Second Language at the American Language Program, Columbia University. Brittany’s pedagogical interests include extensive listening, critical thinking, and incorporating art, poetry, and music into ESL instruction. At TC, Brittany hopes to study the relationship between poetry and education and the ethics of English-language teaching. In her free time, Brittany reads and writes poetry about rock and roll, films, and other poems.

Lake Ouyang was born in Guangdong, China. He graduated from Stony Brook University with a BS in Mathematics and an MAT in Mathematics. During his undergraduate years, he has done personal readings in Buddhist philosophy, Confucianism, and Daoism, finding a deep resonance with all three. This experience formed his belief that education fundamentally cultivates and influences the development of humanity, and shapes our future world. Driven by this conviction, Lake became a middle school teacher. He has a research interest in Virtue ethics and Character Education, seeking answers to questions such as how to teach virtue and practical wisdom, how to guide people in pursuing a good life, and how to introduce philosophy to both children and the general public. Additionally, Lake enjoys comparative studies of Eastern and Western philosophy and wishes to find common ground between these traditions.

Theseus has spent the past two decades working at a nonprofit youth organization, where he developed, implemented and managed comprehensive afterschool programs for elementary and middle school students in public schools throughout Manhattan. These programs supported learning goals in literacy, STEM and leadership development through project-based learning. He is currently building a new nonprofit organization that will work to support the social/emotional needs and mental wellness of children and teens.

Emilia has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Maryland-College Park. Her experiences with researching empathy in STEM education surprised her, resulting in a desire to pursue more philosophical questions about STEM and education. Emilia also currently teaches kindergarten and first grade Math full-time at a public charter school in the South Bronx.

Yuri Zhang has worked for five years in China's education system. During that time, she served as a primary school teacher and textbook creator. She also held several marketing positions in international schools. Yuri comes to the philosophy and education program with lots of questions. She is eager to understand education as a whole by reflecting on the big issues confronting education today. Her hobbies are meeting different people, going to the gym, and taking dance classes. She hopes to have a dog one day.

Addison Zipter graduated from Texas A&M University with a bachelor's degree in Education. Inspired by her year of student teaching, she is eager to explore and research the big questions of teaching, such as what to teach, how to teach, and the underlying purpose of education. She hopes to find answers throughout her master's program.

Sam obtained a Master of Arts from the Philosophy and Education Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. She has been an educator across New York City for the past 10 years. Sam currently teaches second grade at City and Country School, a progressive school in Greenwich Village. Prior to studying at Teachers College, Sam majored in Philosophy and English and was a Take Five Scholar in Mathematics at the University of Rochester. She is particularly interested in studying the ways in which educators can engage in philosophy with young children, what it means to be a philosopher, and how philosophy serves as a foundation for education. Her current research interests include Plato, Rousseau, Marx, Dewey and the work of Caroline Pratt. Sam loves exploring New York City and spending time with her husband and cat.