Students from Paraclete Academy at 9th Ethics Bowl at Manhattanville
High School students from across the region gathered to answer some thorny ethical questions as part of the 9th Annual Ethics Bowl hosted by Manhattanville College. Sponsored by the college’s philosophy program in cooperation with the Marshall Institute for Ethical Thought and Action, the regional bowl was held January 27.
The competition pitted high school students from top-tier regional high schools including Arlington High School, Dover High School, the French-American School of New York, George F. Baker High School, Haldane High School, School of the Holy Child, John S. Burke Catholic High School, The Montfort Academy, Paraclete Academy, Poughkeepsie High School, and Salesian High School.
Paraclete Academy in Greenwich, CT placed first for the region followed by runner-up Haldane High School in Cold Spring, NY. Paraclete Academy will compete with the New Jersey Regional High School Ethics Bowl Champions in a Divisional Playoff on February 7th (to be held online) to determine who will compete at the National Level at UNC – Chapel Hill.
The region’s best and brightest prepared themselves for a day of mental fortitude and battling of wits that lasted until the closing ceremonies. Manhattanville students, alumni, friends, and professors watched five rounds to determine the winning team. In addition to Manhattanville faculty and students, a unique roster of judges presided over the event, including a former U.S. Appellate Court Judge.
The teams came from throughout the county and were presented with 16-20 ethical scenarios to study ahead of time that they then had to discuss as part of the competition. During the competition, teams are asked to come up with a solution and, more importantly, defend their position in an intelligent and logical fashion.
One topic included whether artwork produced by artificial intelligence (AI) should have a copyright. Other topics included state secession and the ethics of “savior babies” (children who are born to provide a sibling in medical need with biological material). The students were judged by whether they had captured the salient ethical issues and how clearly they stated their cases.
“We are grateful that so many bright high school students are willing to tackle complicated ethical problems. Clear thinking and ethical dialogue are two of the hallmarks of philosophy at Manhattanville,”said Professor Siobhan Nash-Marshall, Ph.D., Manhattanville’s Mary T. Clark Chair of Christian Philosophy.
