The Ameri
can Philosophical Society was founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin. The society honors distinguished scientists, social scientists, humanities scholars, artists, and societal leaders with membership in the society. More than 240 members of the APS have won Nobel prizes. Members have included George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Robert Frost, Thomas Edison, Sandra Day O’Connor, Charles Darwin, Toni Morrison, and Albert Einstein.
This year 34 new members were elected to the society. Of these, 27 are Americans and seven new members are from foreign countries. After an analysis of the new member list by JBHE, it appears that of the 27 new American members, only one is an African American.
Danielle S. Allen is the UPS Foundation Professor in the School of Social Science at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey. In July she will be joining the faculty at Harvard University as a professor of government. Professor Allen will also serve as director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at the university.
Professor Allen is a summa cum laude graduate of Princeton University where she majored in the classics. She holds a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in the classics from Cambridge University. In addition, she has a master’s degree and Ph.D. in political science from Harvard University.
Dr. Allen is the author of four books: The World of Prometheus: The Politics of Punishing in Democratic Athens (Princeton University Press, 2000), Talking to Strangers: Anxieties of Citizenship Since Brown v. Board of Education (University of Chicago Press, 2004), Why Plato Wrote (Wiley-Blackwell, 2011), and Our Declaration: A Reading of the Declaration of Independence in Defense of Equality (Liveright, 2014).
