Vita
Rita C. Manning
Philosophy Department
San Jose State University
San Jose, Ca. 95192-0096
408-924-4470 rita.manningr@sjsu.edu
Education
University of California at Riverside, MA, 1979, Ph.D., 1982
University of Massachusetts, Boston, BA, Philosophy, 1977
Areas of Specialization
Ethics, Social and Political Philosophy, Feminism, Business Ethics, Bioethics
Teaching Experience
Department Chair, San Jose State University, 2003-present
Professor, San Jose State University, 1985-present
Visiting Professor, United States Military Academy, West Point, 1994-95
Lecturer, California State University, Hayward, 1984-1985
Lecturer, California State University, San Bernardino, 1979-1984
Publications
Book Chapters :
"Caring Cryonics?", The Philosophy of Robert Ettinger, Charles Tandy, Scott Stroud,
Eds., Palo Alto: Ria University Press, 2002
“Vouchers in Caring Liberal Communities,” Ethical Issues in Teaching, Nel Noddings,
“Caring as an Ethical Perspective,” A Companion to Bioethics , Helga Kuhse, Peter
Singer, Eds. (Blackwell), 1998, substantially revised for 2009 edition.

“Agonistic Progressivism: Best Self Progressivism in a New Guise?” Educational Theory , 2008
"Comments on ‘The New G.A. Cohen, Marxism, and Socialism’ by Rodney Pfeffer and
‘Premature Autopsies’ by Olufemi Taiwo", Proceedings of Society for the Philosophical Study of
Marxism, American Philosophical Association (online)
“Rousseau’s Other Woman: Collette in Le devin du village”, Hypatia, (2001)
“Women in Technology” (with Mary Ann Shukait), Proceedings of the National Conference on Applied Ethics , California State University, Long Beach (1996)
“Liberal and Communitarian Defenses of Workplace Privacy,”
Journal of Business Ethics ,
(1995)
“Just Caring,” Explorations in Feminist Ethics, Eve Browning Cole and Susan Coultrap-McQuin, eds. (Indiana University Press), (1991)
“Reason in Moral Education,” The Bulletin of the Intellectual Skills Development Association ,
(1990)
“Dismemberment, Divorce and Hostile Takeovers: A Comment on Corporate Moral
Personhood,”
The Journal of Business Ethics (1988); anthologized in Waluchow and Poff, Eds.
Business Ethics in Canada , (Prentice-Hall), (1990)
“Redefining Obscenity,”
Journal of Value Inquiry , (1987)
“Can an Expert System Replace Sherlock Holmes?” Philosophical Studies , (1987)
“The Role of Narrative in Moral Reasoning,” Proceedings of the First International Conference on Argumentation , (Foris Publications), (1986)
“Confessions of a Critical Thinking Teacher,” APA Newsletter on Teaching Philosophy , (1985)
“The Random Collective as a Moral Agent,”
Social Theory and Practice , (1985)
“Materialism, Dualism, and Functionalism in Aristotle’s Philosophy of Mind,” Apeiron , (1985)
“Air Pollution: Group and Individual Obligation,”
Environmental Ethics (1984)
“Corporate Responsibility and Corporate Personhood,” Journal of Business Ethics (1983)
“A More Charitable Principle of Charity,”
Informal Logic (1983)
“`Ought Implies Can’ and the Price of Duty,” Southern Journal of Philosophy (1981)
"A Review of The Collected Works of Harriet Taylor", Utilitas (2008)
"A Review of Claudia Card, Ed., Feminist Ethics and Politics, Hypatia (2002)
“A Review of Sara Ahmed, Differences that Matter: Feminist Theory and Postmodernism”
,
Ethics (2001)
“A Review of Mary Jeanne Larrabee,
An Ethic of Care ; Virginia Held, Feminist Morality ; Joan
Tronto, Moral Boundaries, ” Philosophy and Feminism Newsletter (1995)

“Toward a Thick Theory of Moral Agency: a Review of Blustein, Care and Commitment ;
Oakley, Morality and the Emotions ; Smiley, Moral Responsibility and the Boundaries of
Community ,” Social Theory and Practice (1995)
“A Review of Jeffrey Blustein,
Care and Commitment
,”
Philosophical Review (1993)
“A Review of Larry Wright, Better Reasoning ,” Informal Logic (1983)
Papers
“Challenges for a Global Politics of Care”, Feminist Ethics and Social Theory Conference,
February 2008
“Agonistic Progressivism: Best Self Progressivism in a New Guise?” Proceedings of the
Philosophy of Education Society, April 2008
"Comments on 'Premature Autopsies' by Olufemi Taiwo and 'The New G.A. Cohen, Marxism, and Socialism' by Rodney Peffer", Society for the Philosophical Study of Marxism, American
Philosophical Association, March 2006
"Toward a Global Politics of Care", Ethics Center, Lock Haven University, October 2005
"Care, Rights and Katrina", Ethics Center, Lock Haven University, October 2005
"Care and Informed Consent" Ethics Center, Lock Haven University, October 2005
"Customizing Care", Society for Women in Philosophy, October 2004
"Care and the Foundation of Morality" Bay Area Feminist Philosophy, USF, October 2005
"The Tyranny of Bodily Strength: Harriet Taylor and John Stuart Mill on Domestic Abuse",
Society for Women In Philosophy, April 2003
"Is Character and Conscience Enough? Teaching Business Ethics in the Shadow of
Enron, Global Crossings et al", Society for Ethics Across the Curriculum, October
2002
"Toxic Children", Society for Women in Philosophy, May, 2002
"Teaching Leadership in Business Ethics Courses", Society for Ethics Across the
Curriculum, October 2001
"Customizing Care", Society for Women in Philosophy, May 2001
“Ethical Issues in End of Life Care,” Hong Kong Hospital Authority Convention, May, 2000,
Keynote Address
“Quality Care at the End of Life”, Hong Kong Hospital Authority Convention, May, 2000
“Communicating about Values,” Municipal Manager Assistants of Northern California,
November, 1998
“The Invisibility of Breast Cancer,” Society for Women in Philosophy, November, 1998
“Women Warriors,” SJSU Art Gallery, SJSU, October, 1998

“Care and Informed Consent,” University of Tel Aviv, April 1998
“Rousseau’s Other Woman: Collette in Le devin du village,” Keynote Address at Women’s
Studies Conference, University of Tel Aviv, April, 1998
“Care and Informed Consent,” California State University, Fresno, April, 1997
“Reflections on the O.J. Simpson Trial,” Society for Women in Philosophy, San Francisco, May
1996
“Women and Technology” (with Mary Ann Shukait), National Conference on Applied Ethics,
Long Beach, February, 1996
“Women in the Military” (with Captain Mary Kay Horvath), National Conference on Applied
Ethics, Long Beach, February, 1996
“The Military as Social Laboratory: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” (with Major Van Martin and Major
Jeffrey Whitman), Ethics in America Conference, Long Beach, February, 1995
“What is Feminist Philosophy?” United States Military Academy, West Point, October, 1995
“Care in Abusive Families,” Kent State University, November, 1993; University of Pittsburg,
November, 1993
“Gender and Moral Agency,” University of San Diego, March, 1993; United States Military
Academy, West Point, October, 1993
“Can and Should Moral Education be Done in a College Classroom?” Constructing Socialism
Conference, Havana, Cuba, July, 1993
“Reply to Critics,” Author Meets Critics, APA Pacific Division, March, 1993
“Putting Class on the Agenda,” Socialist Scholar’s Conference, New York, April, 1991; APA panel sponsored by APA committee on the status of Women, March, 1993
Discussion of Speaking From the Heart, San Jose State University Faculty Author Series,
February 1993
“Feminist Philosophy,” Women’s History Month Celebration, Santa Clara County, March, 1991
“What is Feminist Philosophy?” Bay Area Philosophy Clubs, November 1990
“Caring for Animals,” Society for Women in Philosophy Conference, October 1990
“The Effects of Gender, Race, Class, Age and Parenting on Moral Reasoning,” Radical Scholars and Activists Conference, Loyola University, October 1990
“Should a Feminist Care?” 1990 McGill Memorial Lecture, San Francisco State University,
April 1990
“The Role of Reason in Moral Education,” Seventh International Conference on Critical
Thinking and Educational Reform, Sonoma State University, August 1989
“Our Place in the Natural World,” Society for Women in Philosophy Conference, April 1989
“Integrating the Voices: Teaching Justice and Care,” Critical Thinking Network, January 1989
“Caring For, Caring About,” Explorations in Feminist Ethics: Theory and Practice, University of
Minnesota, Duluth, Oct. 1988
“Liberal and Communitarian Defenses of Privacy in the Workplace,” Conference on Privacy and the Workplace, Institute for Social Responsibility, San Jose State University, March 1988

Comments on “What’s So Critical About Critical Thinking?” Dianne Romain, American
Philosophical Association, Spring 1988
“On Teaching Creativity”(with Thomas Leddy), Fifth International Conference on Critical
Thinking and Educational Reform, August 1987
“Dilemmas, Role-Playing and Simulation in Moral Education (K-12),” Fifth International
Conference on Critical Thinking and Educational Reform, Sonoma State University, August,
1987
“Using Dilemmas, Role-Playing and Simulations to Teach Ethics,” Opening Address,
Conference on the Theory and Practice of Teaching Ethics, University of San Diego, February,
1987
“Caring,” Society for Women in Philosophy Conference, May, 1986
“Whistleblowing,” Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Management Division
Meeting, April, 1986
Related Activities
Sang the role of Collette in a concert version of Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s opera Le devin du village, American Association of Aesthetics 1996, San Jose State University, 1996
Played Nietzsche’s mother in A Friend to Nietzsche’s Madness
, a play by Peter Hadreas, performed at San Jose State University, 1996
Professional Organizations
American Philosophical Association
Society for Women in Philosophy