Welcome to the Liberal Art Department’s Professor Profile! This monthly series will highlight a different faculty member and their passion for education.
In this month’s feature we spoke with Professor J. Wade Allen, Professor of Philosophy and Ethics at ACC.
Welcome to our series Professor. How long have you been teaching at ACC? What brought you here?
I’ve been teaching and tutoring at ACC since 2009 and, before that, I was teaching at Houston Community College. What brought me to ACC was twofold: (a) ACC’s Department of Philosophy, Religion, and Humanities is incredibly rich, lively, and diverse, in which the quality of the faculty is comparable to the faculty at a 4-year institution, and (b) I always wanted to live in Austin, with its incredible music scene and outdoor activities.
What originally attracted you to Philosophy and Ethics?
I became obsessed with philosophy after taking an Introduction to Ethics course and a Philosophy of Religion course at UTSA. Coming from a small town in which philosophy was completely alien to me, taking these courses was liberating in the sense that I felt free to question, challenge, and analyze some of the most important questions we face. My professors at UTSA were truly inspiring and encouraged me to major in philosophy and apply to graduate school.
Tell us about your favorite in-class moments?
My favorite in-class moments have to be when I’m describing a fairly complex argument in class, and in order for students to understand what I’m talking about, I try to make a reference to Seinfeld, The Office, or The Simpsons. Making these references to things in popular culture are often “eureka” moments to students, which makes my job all the more worthwhile and amazing.
Is there something about you that may surprise your students or colleagues?
What might surprise many students and colleagues is that I’m an active musician in the Austin music scene. I play guitar and sing in a band called Honey and Salt, and I’m in a couple of other projects that are reminiscent of the 90’s punk and post-punk era (band names forthcoming). Honey and Salt has toured the U.S. multiple times, and my dream is to go on tour in Europe and/or Japan someday. I also work at Waterloo Records from time to time and know probably too much about vinyl.
What is your favorite taco joint in Austin?
I would say my favorite taco spot is right by my house — Taquerias Arandinas. Their breakfast tacos are amazing!
Interested in taking a class under Professor Allen? Check out his Phil 1301-Introduction to Philosophy or Phil 2306- Ethics that he’ll be teaching this fall.
We hope you enjoyed this month’s Professor Profile. Keep an eye out for an upcoming series special this fall- Honors Professors.