Bioethics Center Staff
Carol Pollard, MA, MSc
Associate Director, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
Contact: carol.pollard@yale.edu
203 432-6188
Joining ISPS, and working on the formation of the Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, has made use of many of my past and present interests and then some. I worked in a hospital administration for eleven years, where I became acquainted with ethical issues involving euthanasia, quality of life, abortion, doctor/patient relationships, and end-of-life decision-making. For ten years after that, I founded and directed an international human rights organization that dealt, for the most part, with prisoner rights and acquainted me with international ethical values regarding human rights. The connection between these two areas—health/medical care and human rights—became very clear once I discovered the field of bioethics, and I’ve been happily ensconced in this area of study ever since. It’s where I was heading and didn’t really know it. Looking back at the beginning of the Center for Bioethics ten years ago, I really had no idea how far we’d be able to take our plans for a bioethics component on Yale’s campus. It’s quite a bit of work to build a program from scratch; we owe our existence to the continued support and leadership of Don Green, Margaret Farley, Bob Levine, and now David Smith. The ever-expanding development of the Center for Bioethics’ areas of interests, and of course the yearly additions to membership and staff, remain sure signs that we are on one amazing trip. Personally, I am so very grateful for all who are making the journey with us. I serve in an advisory capacity to the study groups and am a member of the Center for Bioethics Executive Committee.
Julius Landwirth, MD, JD
Associate Director, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics, Donaghue Initiative in Biomedical and Behavioral Research Ethics
Contact: julius.landwirth@yale.edu
203 432-5448
I’ve been told it’s time to update my “blurb”. Last time around I perseverated on the importance of “Interdisciplinary” as our Center’s middle name. I’ve recently had the good fortune to participate in a conference that, for me, gave new meaning to that term. If the beauty of interdisciplinary work begins at the intersection of different, occasionally clashing, perspectives on complex problems, what could beat a roomful of scientists, ethicists, and journalists gathered to discuss human embryonic stem cell research. This program was held at NYU Department of Journalism, sponsored by the New York Times Foundation. Based on past experience and personal bias, I came loaded with anecdotes to bolster my complaints about sensationalistic media “hype”, overemphasis on personalities, and seemingly intractable predisposition to misquote. No chance. On this unfamiliar turf of academic journalism, the table was quickly turned. Scientists were challenged to explain their tendency toward premature “hype” of research, their failure to appreciate the importance of background “color” in fully understanding the hows and whys of scientific progress, and not “getting” the clear public interest rationale for denying interviewees pre-publication drafts to edit. The lesson: meaningful interdisciplinary work means checking your personal biases at the door.
Mark R. Mercurio, MD, MA
Associate Director, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
Director, Pediatric Ethics Program, Medical School
Contact: mark.mercurio@yale.edu
I have spent many years practicing and teaching neonatology at Yale and elsewhere. My interest in bioethics began with an undergraduate course taught by Paul Ramsey, and was rekindled during my neonatology training. I have spent the past 21 years serving on hospital ethics committees, chairing or co-chairing three of them, and thus have broad exposure to ethical dilemmas faced by clinicians, families, and patients of all ages. My main interest, however, has remained ethical issues in pediatrics. Many years ago I began auditing ethics-related classes at Yale, and then spent several years earning a Master’s Degree in philosophy at Brown. My academic focus for the past several years has been to apply philosophical concepts and reasoning to clinical problems. In that capacity, my work at the Bioethics Center has been to help bridge the main campus (the non-clinical faculty and staff of the Bioethics Center) and the medical campus, bringing the perspective and experience from each to the other. Last year I became an Associate Director of the Center, and I continue to work toward that end.
I currently serve as Director of the Yale Pediatric Ethics Program, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Yale University School of Medicine, and an attending neonatologist at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital. In addition, I direct education in medical ethics for the pediatrics residents and fellows, and physician associate students, as well as a seminar series in ethics for medical students. I am Chair of the Pediatric Ethics Committee.
Brooke Crockett
Program Coordinator, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
Contact: brooke.crockett@yale.edu
This summer, I entered my second year as a program coordinator at the center and am excited to see the new opportunities that this year will bring. My undergraduate studies in Chemistry and Sociology at Texas A&M University provided a strong foundation in both the scientific and the social aspects of bioethics and led me to pursue a post-graduate degree in Public Health. Studying at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine where I received a Master’s in Public Health, I developed several specific interests in the field. These include the implementation of public health policies in disaster areas, conflict regions and international settings; understanding the barriers individuals experience while seeking medical care whether they be social, cultural, economic, political or religious; and the ethics of research on human subjects particularly in an international context. I am also interested in the geopolitical condition of nutrition, social justice, and urban inequalities. Recently, I have worked with at-risk youth populations and am concerned with the ethical issues these youth and their communities face as they age. I look forward my continued involvement with the workings groups and the study groups and contributing further to their projects. I continue to look forward to the new experiences, challenges, and opportunities to work and learn at the center.
Laurie Hurshman
Program Coordinator, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
Contact: laurie.hurshman@yale.edu
203 432-9736
I joined the center staff in June 2008. I enjoy working with all the thoughtful, intelligent people at the Center, from faculty to interns. Always a Renaissance woman at heart, I enjoy the opportunities afforded for inquiry into a wide variety of topics, as well as the chance to "play" on the computer (maintaining the website, for instance) and around the office (our move to 238 Prospect was a great chance to break out my cordless drill). I like very much to be of help to people, so don't be afraid to ask!
I have three well-brought-up cats, and in my spare time I enjoy cuddling with them while reading or playing word games. My husband is a PhD student in comparative literature here at Yale and can often be found at the Bioethics Center between classes, where he has on occasion found himself pressed into service. We met at Williams College, where I received my degree in Psychology in 1999.
Tara C. Maguire Knopick
Administrator, The Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale
Contact: tcmk@aya.yale.edu
I have been working with the Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale since the spring of 2007. The Forum, the world’s leading source of information and action on the emergent field of religion and ecology, has developed into a dynamic force for religious environmentalism in an ever-widening community. Created in 1998 at Harvard following a series of ten landmark conferences covering each of the world’s major religions and its current and historical relation to ecology, the Forum is now headquartered here at Yale University under the guidance of founders Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim.
The Forum recently held a conference at Yale Divinity School on grassroots religious-environmentalism, and our upcoming projects include the release of the new film, Journey of the Universe, by Brian Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker.
I met Mary Evelyn and John while studying at Yale, where I received my Master of Arts in Religion, with a concentration in Ethics. My undergraduate studies focused on comparative religion and interreligious dialogue, but I also received certification in educational administration and community development. I have a background in educational administration as the former administrator of a private elementary school, and I later ran the offices of a Connecticut-based mental healthcare practice.
My own personal interests lie in the areas of interreligious dialogue, environmental ethics, animal rights, the arts in elementary and secondary school education, and the global ethical implications of climate change.
Alison Jost
Research Assistant, Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics
Contact: alison.jost@yale.edu
(203) 432-6735
I suspect that philosophy majors are questioned about their choice of study more than most others (“what are you going to do with a philosophy major?”), so I feel particularly lucky to have found work in bioethics, an area of inquiry that for me raises the most interesting and challenging philosophical questions. After graduating from Bryn Mawr College in 2006, I began a two-year position as a research assistant at The Hastings Center, an independent bioethics research institute in Garrison, NY. While there, I worked on a range of bioethical issues, from ethical guidelines on end-of-life care, to the ethics of treating children with psychotropic medication, to parental refusal of vaccines for children. After my position ended, I was thrilled to join Yale’s Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics in March, 2009. I now spend my time assisting with research on new, equally interesting issues in bioethics: human subjects research; conscientious objection in end-of-life care; and post traumatic stress disorder, to name a few. Working with talented colleagues in Yale’s rich academic setting is extremely gratifying. And to the people who once asked what I’d do with my philosophy major, I’m pleased to point to Yale’s Bioethics Center and say, “this.”
