At the Center

The Cost of Dying

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:38:00 PST

Through writing about her own experience with her father's death, Lisa Krieger, reporter for the San Jose Mercury News, began research for a set of articles about the cost of dying and moral choices at the end of life, published in 2012. This month, Kreiger visited Santa Clara University in a talk sponsored by the Ethics Center and Commonwealth Club, Silicon Valley. You can listen to the podcast of her presentation here.

Athletics in College Admissions

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:00:00 PST

Is it ethical for a college to accept a football player with much poorer grades than his classmate? The latest case on the Center's Big Q blog deals with a form of affirmative action that has nothing to do with race.

The case was written by SCU student Samantha Mazza as part of a class on "Sports and Communication." The Big Q is an online dialog for undergraduates from colleges and universities across the country exploring the everyday ethical issues confronting college students.

Applications Invited for Research on Applied Ethics

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Tue, 14 May 2013 14:51:00 PST

Santa Clara University faculty, staff, and students may apply for funds to assist in research projects on applied ethics through the Hackworth Grants program. Applications are due Tuesday, May 28, for proposals.

Previous grants have supported projects such as "Hark," a narrative film about sex slavery in the Bay Area, research on "Ethical Reasoning in Games and Online Communities," and development of a course called "The Cardinal Virtues: Foundation of Catholic Ethics."

It's Not About You

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Mon, 13 May 2013 12:35:00 PST

Center Executive Director Kirk Hanson delivered the commencement address at University of Portland last week, advising the graduating seniors that "happiness, true happiness,...lies not in a narcissistic fascination with ourselves, but in service to others, indeed in living a life of service, to people and to things that matter."

Hanson received an honorary degree from the university.

Moral Choices at the End of Life

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Fri, 10 May 2013 10:38:00 PST

San Jose Mercury News reporter Lisa Krieger reflects on the cost of dying and the ethical issues that raises in a presentation Tuesday, May 14, noon, in the Arts & Sciences Building on the Santa Clara University campus. In a series of powerful articles in the last year, Krieger both documented the immense financial costs associated with her father's final illness and showed how such costs are impacting end-of-life care throughout our health care system as a whole.

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An Ethics Legacy

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:00:00 PST

In honor of the Ethics Center's 25th anniversary, Kristi Markkula Bowers reflects on what has sustained her family's involvement since the Center's inception. Bowers' father, A.C. "Mike" Markkula Jr., the co-founder of Apple Computer, and her mother, Linda Markkula, gave the seed funding for the Center, and, along with Bowers, they have continued to be major supporters.

Join us today, 4- 6 p.m., in the Arts & Sciences Building on the Santa Clara University campus to celebate this anniversary.

Bring Your Own Device

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulmlan) — Wed, 08 May 2013 11:15:00 PST

Pat Gelsinger, CEO of VMware, discusses some of the data security and personal privacy implications of employees bringing their own devices into the workplace, in the most recent entry in the Center's video series Internet Ethics: Views from Silicon Valley.

Celebrate Our Twenty-fifth Anniversary

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:00:00 PST

Please join us for an open house to celebrate the Ethics Center's first 25 years of work, May 9, 4-6 p.m., in the Arts & Sciences Building on the Santa Clara University campus.

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The Disconnect: Accountability and Consequences Online

ethics@scu.edu (Irina Raicu) — Wed, 01 May 2013 16:00:00 PST

Do we need more editorial control on the Web? In this brief clip, the Chairman, President, and CEO of Seagate Technology, Stephen Luczo, argues that we do. He also cautions that digital media channels sometimes unwittingly lend a gloss of credibility to stories that don't deserve it. Luczo sees this as a symptom of a broader breakdown between responsibility, accountability, and consequences in the online world.

Luczo's remarks are part of the video series "Internet Ethics: Views from Silicon Valley." Responding to them is Chad Raphael, Chair of the Communications Department and Associate Professor at Santa Clara University.

Catholic Heroes of Conscience

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Wed, 01 May 2013 10:30:00 PST

Catherine Wolff shares from her book, Not Less Than Everything, which features vivid stories by contemporary writers on Catholic heroes who appealed to conscience often in the face of the intense opposition of Catholic authorities, May 8, noon-1 p.m., Weigand Center, Arts & Sciences Building, Santa Clara University.

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Ethics for the Real World

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 15:00:00 PST

The work of the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics spans business ethics, bioethics, campus ethics, character education, government ethics, and Internet ethics, as well as addressing topic areas such as immigration, conscience, and sustainability. For a closer look at the Center's activities, see our new brochure, Ethics for the Real World.

Markkula Center for Applied Ethics Milestones

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:00:00 PST

A timeline of Center milestones from the past 25 years shows highlights of the Center's history including:

Development of the Framework for Ethical Decision Making
Ethics, Courts, and the Mass Media conference
Partnership with the Tech Museum on integrating ethics into exhibits
Access, Internet, and Public Libraries report to the Santa Clara County Library System
Receipt of the Helen Putnam Award for a program on campaign ethics with the city of Santa Clara
Ethics Camp
Sports Law and Ethics Symposium

and many other activities and events.

Sacred Texts in Business Ethics

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:00:00 PST

Center Executive Director Kirk O. Hanson spoke to a colloquium convened by Santa Clara University's Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education on April 18, 2013. He was asked to identify the five "sacred texts" of business ethics, documents which capture the highest ideals and values to be pursued by business ethics. Read his choices.

Political and Religious Developments in Egypt

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 10:30:00 PST

Ahmed Salah, one of the founders of the Kifaya Movement (the Egyptian Movement for Change), offers the perspective of a participant in the Arab spring on current developments in his country, May 2, 5-6 p.m., in the Learning Commons on the Santa Clara University Campus. RSVP

Timeline

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:28:00 PST

Markkula Center for Applied Ethics Milestones

Celebrating 25 years of programs

Protecting Privacy and Society

ethics@scu.edu (Irina Raicu) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 15:00:00 PST

Consumer and business data is increasingly moving to the "cloud," and people are clamoring for protection of that data. However, as Symantec's President, CEO, and Chairman of the Board Steve Bennett points out in this cliip, "maximum privacy" is really anonymity, and some people use anonymity as a shield for illegal and unethical behavior. How should cloud service providers deal with this dilemma?

Bennett's remarks are part of the video series, Internet Ethics: Views From Silicon Valley. Responding is Robert Henry, Chief Information Security Officer, Santa Clara University.

Internet Access is a Privilege

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 10:22:00 PST

A.C. "Mike" Markkula Jr., for whom the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics is named, considers ways to minimize some of the harms associated with the Internet, while fully appreciating its benefits, in the latest installment of the Center's video series "Internet Ethics: Views from Silicon Valley."

Mickey Edwards Speaks on Partisanship

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:52:00 PST

Former member of the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives Mickey Edwards spoke Friday on the influence of partisan politics on the US government. Edwards, author of The Parties Versus the People, described how party loyalty is interfering with problem solving. (Hear the talk)

Edward's appearance was sponsored by the Center's Public Sector Roundtable and the Silicon Valley Chapter of the Commonwealth Club.

White Lying to a Hiring Manager

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:00:00 PST

A college junior must decide whether to tell a hiring manager that she is only available to work until September when she knows that the company is looking for a longer term hire. This case study is the latest in the Center's Big Q project, an online dialog on everyday ethical issues for undergraduates.

Digital Journalism in the Public Square

mschulman@scu.edu (Miriam Schulman) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 15:46:00 PST

Representatives from news media outlets from the entrepreneurial to the massive are visiting Santa Clara University today for a Roundtable on Digital Journalism Ethics sponsored by the Ethics Center. The focus of this third annual event is journalism in the public square.

Keynote speaker Todd Gitlin, political writer, sociologist, and cultural commentator from Columbia University, kicks off the procedings with his presentation, "Who Can Deliver the Journalism We Need in the Digital Public Square?”

Other participants include Sue Gardner, Executive Director, Wikimedia Foundation;Henry Holzman, Chief Knowledge Officer, MIT Media Lab; and Richard Gingras, Head, News & Social Products at Google.

Image by Mike Licht, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license on Flickr.