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Hopkins Ethics Bowl Team Participates in the National Championships
The Hopkins School Ethics Bowl team traveled to Chapel Hill, North Carolina, from April 11–13, 2025, to participate in the National High School Ethics Bowl (NHSEB) Championship. After winning both the state and regional competitions, the five-person team—Logan M. ’25, Sarah G. ’25, Henry F. ’25, Ripley C. ’26, and Vidwan A. ’27—was invited to the national tournament, hosted by the Parr Center for Ethics at the University of North Carolina.
Over three days, 24 teams from across the country gathered to collaborate on and present cases addressing a range of ethical dilemmas. Examples of this year’s cases included:
- "Is there a moral difference between pursuing biomedical interventions to achieve typical human life spans and to pursuing such interventions to exceed typical human life spans?"
- "When, if ever, is it permissible for artists to produce work by drawing from cultures not their own?
- "Is it ever permissible to differentiate pay based on employee need rather than on a principle of equal pay for equal work?"
The Ethics Bowl format encourages teams to engage deeply with these questions. One team presents their reasoning, another offers commentary and constructive critique, and both teams respond to questions posed by a panel of judges—typically faculty and graduate students in philosophy and related fields. Teams are scored on the strength of their reasoning, the insightfulness of their critiques, and the level of respectful engagement demonstrated throughout.
While the Hopkins team did not advance to the quarterfinals of the National tournament, they engaged fully in both the content and spirit of the weekend. Club adviser Thom Peters noted the team’s growth throughout the season: "In January, we certainly weren't expecting to be able to travel to Nationals. We were just hoping to do well in the state level competition. Look at us now!"
The team was supported on the trip by chaperones Thom Peters and Keri Matthews, with funding from student families and additional support by Head of School Matt Glendinning.
As part of a social media contest hosted during the event, Hopkins students collaborated with peers from Dwight-Englewood School (NJ) to recreate Raphael’s School of Athens painting, earning recognition for "Platonic Rizz.”
The NHSEB event fostered respectful dialogue, critical thinking, and thoughtful collaboration—values reflected throughout the weekend's activities.
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Hopkins is a private middle school and high school for grades 7-12. Located on a campus overlooking New Haven, CT, the School takes pride in its intellectually curious students as well as its dedicated faculty and staff.
