With great sadness, the Philosophy Department reports that our friend and colleague, Dan Sturgis, passed away earlier this week. Dr. Sturgis earned his BA in Philosophy and Political Science in 1992 from Northwestern University and his PhD from our department in 2002, writing a dissertation 鈥楶rairies and Paintings: The Aesthetic Appreciation of Nature and Art,鈥� under the direction of now Professor Emeritus John A. Fisher. He then taught for the department every year after that, first as an Instructor and then, starting in 2010, as a Senior Instructor. He taught courses in applied ethics, critical thinking, ethics, and social and political philosophy. His courses 鈥榃ar and Morality,鈥� 鈥楽ocial and Political Philosophy,鈥� and 鈥楨nvironmental Ethics鈥� were particularly popular. Dan was also one of the founders of the department鈥檚 philosophy outreach program (POPCO) when he was a graduate student, and he continued to play a leading role in the program as its faculty advisor in the years that followed. He was also an assistant and director for the Summer Philosophy Institute of Colorado in 1997-8 and 2005-6.
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In an interview with one of his classes a couple of years ago, his students were unanimous in telling one of our colleagues that Dan was 鈥渇unny, nice, and down to earth,鈥� and unanimous in praising him for his 鈥渆ngaging and interactive鈥� teaching style and his consistent clarity and fairness in all of his interactions with them. In a series of letters from his students that the department received just last fall, one student called Dan a 鈥渕ore than wonderful professor,鈥� saying he did 鈥渁n amazing job鈥� in his class. A second student, a combat veteran who took Dan鈥檚 class on war and morality, specifically praised Dan鈥檚 handling of the experience of veterans in that class while another student in the same class called it simply a 鈥済reat class.鈥� And yet another student said that Dan was 鈥渁mazing鈥� and 鈥渋nspiring鈥� in his introduction to philosophy class and that he was 鈥渁bsolutely one of the best professors that I鈥檝e ever had.鈥�
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Dan won numerous teaching awards, including the Lindley Stiles 鈥楾he Best Should Teach鈥� award in 2000, the Graduate Teaching Excellence Award in 2000, and the 鈥楾eacher Who Makes a Significant Difference鈥� Award in 1999. He spent over a decade as an Academic Advisor to all undergraduate majors and minors in philosophy and he directed numerous undergraduate and graduate students in independent studies in Philosophy and Environmental Studies.
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Dan was a kind and lovely person, passionate about teaching philosophy, a great outdoorsman who reveled in backcountry skiing, mountain biking, hiking, camping, and fishing, and a loving and devoted husband and father. He is sorely missed by his colleagues.
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Dan leaves behind a wife and two young children. A friend of the family has set up a GoFundMe page to provide support for them. For those who might be inclined to make a contribution, .
Friends, colleagues and students of Dan鈥檚 are invited to join us for a department memorial gathering for Dan Sturgis. It will take place via Zoom on Friday October 9, starting at 6pm. Please contact David Boonin (david.boonin@colorado.edu) for the Zoom link.听