I grew up in central Minnesota and attended the University of Minnesota. I graduated summa cum laude in 2005 with a BA in Philosophy and Psychology. After finishing my undergraduate degree, I loaded up my Chevy Blazer and started a graduate program in sunny Riverside, California. After earning my PhD in 2011, I began working at CWU. 

My teaching is split between three main areas. In the Fall, I teach a course on Greco-Roman philosophy. In the Winter, I tend toward theoretical discussions of moral philosophy and political theory. In the Spring, I offer courses on practical and emerging issues in culture and  philosophy. Over the past few years I’ve taught Philosophy of Technology and American Wilderness Philosophy in Spring Quarter. 

My research focuses on the intersection of issues in Game Studies, Ethics, and Philosophy of Technology. Most recently, I’ve been interested in evaluations of computer-generated content. In this work, I argue that the role of narrative in modern video-games plays an important role in shaping our moral evaluations of content in those games. I’m also interested in broader concerns regarding the ontological status of objects in game worlds, the ability of game rules to trump moral rules, and the ethics of choosing to play a game (as opposed to performing actions within the game).