Cultivating an Interesting Mind for a Lifetime
Season 6, Episode 5
- Stu Gray
- William Dudley
- Jay Margalus
- Beth Staples
- Matthew Loar
- Holly Pickett
- Gene McCabe
- Melissa Kerin
- Lisa Alty
- Jenefer Davies
- Mark Drumbl
- Paul Youngman
- Wythe Whiting
- Rob Straughan
- Kish Parella
- Tom Camden
- Rob Fure
- Jeff Schatten
- Michael Hill
- James Dick
- Sascha Goluboff
- Harvey Markowitz
- Caleb Dance Podcast
- Amanda Bower Podcast
- Richard Bidlack Podcast
- Megan Hess Podcast
- Stephanie Sandberg Podcast
- Taha Khan Podcast
- George Bent Podcast
- Nadia Ayoub Podcast
- Tyler Lorig Podcast
- Elizabeth Knapp Podcast
- Jan Hathorn Podcast
- Rob Mish Podcast
- Brian Murchison Podcast
- Sybil Prince Nelson Podcast
- Elliott King Podcast
- Mark Rush Podcast
- Mikki Brock Podcast
- Howard Pickett Podcast
- Julie Woodzicka Podcast
- Karla Murdock Podcast
- Janet Ikeda Podcast
- Bill Hamilton Podcast
- Johanna Bond Podcast
- After Class Podcast
Cultivating an Interesting Mind for a Lifetime
A Conversation with President Will Dudley
In this episode, Will Dudley, Washington and Lee University president and philosophy professor, shares how a lifelong love of asking questions shaped his path from an aspiring mathematician to a college president. As an educator at heart, President Dudley elects to teach one philosophy course a year, which explores the university’s mission statement. He talks of how remaining in the classroom grounds him and positively influences his role as president as he invites discussions on honor, integrity and civil discourse. From the value of freedom of expression to the joy of fly-fishing with students, our conversation invites you to reflect on the enduring impact of a liberal arts education and how to keep your mind an interesting place to live.
Recorded: May 13, 2025
Aired: June 10, 2025
“Philosophy is about asking the most important questions, exploring them to the best of your ability [and] being comfortable with the fact that pretty rarely do you get the answers.”
- Will Dudley, President and Philosophy Professor at Washington and Lee University
- A Life Under Construction
- Cultivating an Interesting Mind for a Lifetime
- The Risk is Worth it
- Inviting the Imagination
- Learning What You Love
- Weathering the Storm of a Changing World
- Kindling Moments of Pure Joy
- Shaking Up The Consciousness
- Lessons in Chemistry
- Leaps and Bounds
- Facing the Gray
- W&L Through and Through
- Mindful Technology
- The Williams School: Not Just a Business School
- Real World Solutions
- Into the Vault
- A Good Education is a Habit of Mind
- The AI Revolution
- Paying It Forward
- The Case for Getting Outside
- Making the Strange Familiar and the Familiar Strange
- Walks With A Noise
- Studied Carelessness
- Absolut(e) W&L
- Russia Then and Now
- Accountant or Detective
- The Story Goes
- Protect Yourself!
- Art on the Wall
- Along Came a Spider
- The Nose Knows
- No Stone Unturned
- She's Got Game!
- All the World's a Stage
- Can They Say That?!?
- When You're a Statistical Improbability
- Let's Get Real… About Surrealism
- Not to Get Political But ...
- Which Witch?
- Real Opportunity for All
- Your Implicit Bias is Showing...
- The Pursuit of Happiness
- Enter the Clearing the Mind Abode
- Beer, Bacteria and Bison
- The New Social (Justice) Network
- Ralph Ellison Walks Into a Jazz Bar
Lifelong Learning
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- E: lifelong@wlu.edu
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Lifelong Learning
Washington and Lee University
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Lexington, VA 24450