The UVa. Bioethics Society is a vibrant student organization made up of undergraduates from the College of Arts and Sciences and the Schools of Engineering and Nursing, who are interested in bioethics and the medical humanities. Our meetings are open to any and all students and faculty from the university community.

Speaker Series

The flagship program of Bioethics Society is the Speaker Series which meets biweekly and features scholars from all schools of the University. If you are an undergraduate student interested, just to take a few examples, in the ethics of biotechnology, military experimentation, or religious perspectives on medical treatment, the Speaker Series will meet your needs for community and intellectual stimulation.

Recent Speakers and topics:

(2003-2004)

Jonathan Moreno, "Human Experimentation in Military and National Security Research"
Ann Hamric and Walt Davis, "Moral Distress in Doctors and Nurses: What is it and what can we do about it?"
Reba Childress, "HIV/AIDS: the Politics of Disease"
John Portmann, "Therapeutic Masturbation: Religion and Science in Conflict"
Paul Lombardo, "Bioethics and Race: the Legacy of American Eugenics"
Elizabeth Machunis-Masuoka, "Containing Biological "Fallout": Public Health Necessities vs. the Ethical Treatment of Individuals Following the Release of Biological Weapons into a Civilian Population "
Phillip Nieburg and Ruth Gaare Bernheim, "Public Health Ethics and the AIDS Crisis in Africa ."
Christopher Krentz, " Deafness, Deaf Culture, and the Search for a Cure"
Wende Marshall , "Discourses of Disease, Discourses of Power."

(2004-2005)

John Arras, "Bioethics Issues in the 2004 Presidential Election"
Adam Katz, "The Ethics of Embryonic Stem Cell Research"
Marcia Day Childress, "Medicine and the Humanities"

Another important facet of Bioethics Society is peer mentorship. Every year we have a session early in the fall semester concerning the bioethics-related research and work experiences that our members have done over the summer. Throughout the year, students continue to discuss bioethics coursework and career opportunities with each other.

Attending conferences is also an essential part of the Society's mission. In the past three years, Bioethics Society members have had the opportunity to attend conferences (and sometimes deliver papers!) at Princeton, Boston University, and the University of Michigan. We look forward to attending future meetings and possibly holding another undergraduate bioethics conference here, as we did in 2000.

Governance

2004-2005 officers

Leah Rosenberg ( lbr3y@virginia.edu )
Bethany Garrison ( bkg3u@virginia.edu )
Brian Harry ( harry@virginia.edu )
Pamela Wren ( pamwren@virginia.edu )
Rory Schmidt ( rss9s@virginia.edu )

Faculty Advisor

Dr. John Arras of the Philosophy Department ( jda3a@virginia.edu ).