“Not only is Sam’s research at the leading edge at the frontier of philosophical knowledge, it builds on those facets that are simultaneously public-facing and community-building.”
Sam Sumpter, a doctoral candidate in Philosophy, has received the Alvord Fellowship in the Humanities for dissertation research into microaggressions and trans identity. Sumpter will join the Society of Scholars at the Simpson Center for 2018-2019.
The Alvord Fellowship is the College of Arts & Science’s most prestigious graduate student award in the humanities, providing a stipend of $16,000 supported by private donors and a waiver of tuition from the Graduate School. Sumpter was also awarded a scholarship from the Frank L. and Catherine D. Doleshy Endowed Fund.
Sumpter’s dissertation, “Constructing and Being Constructed: Relational Trans Identity and Responsibility for Microaggressions,” extends feminist relational-identity theory into a range of non-normative gender identities, charting theoretical ground while also laying groundwork for social change.
“Sam’s work exemplifies a rarified combination of qualities: intellectual acuity, analytical rigor, attunement with the most vulnerable voices, and an orientation towards creating and translating knowledge into practical action through social action,” said Carole Lee, Associate Professor of Philosophy and Sumpter’s dissertation advisor. “Not only is Sam’s research at the leading edge at the frontier of philosophical knowledge, it builds on those facets that are simultaneously public-facing and community-building.”
Congratulations, Sam!