Kent Place School wins sixth annual National High School Ethics Bowl

Students from across the United States came to UNC-Chapel Hill to discuss complex and timely ethical dilemmas collaboratively in the sixth annual event.

Kent Place School from Summit, New Jersey, won the 2018 National High School Ethics Bowl. They were followed by Stanford Online High School, from Stanford, California, in second place; Glendora High School, from Glendora, California, in third place; and Maryville High School, from Maryville, Tennessee, in fourth place.

The Bob Ladenson Spirit of the Ethics Bowl Award is awarded to the team that best embodies respect, civility, thoughtfulness and collaboration, as voted by the teams themselves. This year there was a tie for three winners. Gregorio Luperon High School, from New York City, Herron High School from Indianapolis, Indiana, and Tatum High School, from Tatum, Texas, shared the honor as voted by their peers.

It was the largest National High School Ethics Bowl to date: 480 teams representing 335 schools participated in 33 regionals across the United States from September to March, reaching almost 5,000 high school students, for their chance to compete in the national championship.

Hosted by the Parr Center for Ethics in UNC’s College of Arts & Sciences, students spent the weekend exercising their philosophical and ethical muscles as they analyzed timely and complex ethical dilemmas. Cases and questions are developed under the guidance of the Parr Center and cover a broad range of topics including doxing, Confederate monuments, online dating, no fly lists and the Electoral College.

The performance of each team is judged on the basis of how clearly, articulately and perceptively the students develop the positions they decide to take; their ability to communicate respectfully and collaboratively; and their willingness to take diverse viewpoints into account.

The National High School Ethics Bowl is supported by the Parr Center for Ethics, Marc Sanders Foundation, Fenwick Foundation, Howell Family Charitable Foundation, UNC’s College of Arts & Sciences, UNC’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions, UNC’s Department of Philosophy and the American Philosophical Association.

For more information, please visit nhseb.unc.edu.

Visit the National High School Ethics Bowl and UNC-Chapel Hill Parr Center for Ethics Facebook pages to see photos and updates from throughout the weekend.