Mudd Center Fellows Program

Artwork of people walking on a trail surrounded by mountains, trees, and plants

Washington and Lee University The Roger Mudd Center for Ethics Mudd Center Fellows Program
Mudd Center

The Mudd Fellows Program has been a cornerstone of the Center’s intellectual community since its inception in 2010. The program brings faculty and staff from across disciplines into sustained, in-depth engagement with the annual theme. Fellows read and discuss works by visiting scholars and speakers and participate in conversations that forge connections across fields and perspectives.

We value the depth of this engagement while also recognizing the demands on faculty and staff time. To make participation both meaningful and manageable, we aim to hold two sessions each term centered on a shared reading. Please feel free to attend these sessions whenever your schedule allows; attendance at these sessions is not required for participation in the Mudd Fellows Program. Fellows also have opportunities to attend special dinners and informal gatherings with visiting speakers, further deepening these intellectual exchanges.

Mudd Center Fellows Sign Up

2026-2027 Sign Up

September 14, 2026, 5:00-6:00 pm, Mason Taylor New

Please join us for a lively discussion of Maya Lin’s work as it relates to memory and monuments. We’ll think through the following short readings together over appetizers, beverages, and good fellowship.

Maya Lin, renown sculptor, architect, and artist, will be our keynote speaker for the Memory, Mind, and Morality series on September 17, 2026, at 5:15 pm in Keller Theater. She will examine some of her iconic projects such as the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in Washington, DC and the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama, alongside her multi-sited Confluence Project along the Columbia River in Washington State. Lin will conclude by discussing what she calls her “final memory work,” What Is Missing? – a global, diachronic project confronting biodiversity loss and climate change.

October 14, 2026, 5:00-6:00 pm, Mattingly House 201

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Angela Sun will lead us in a discussion of Dr. Sven Bernecker’s work on the ethics of memory. Bernecker is one of the leading scholars in this emerging field.

As always, we’ll provide appetizers, drinks, and good conversation.