Visiting Professor of Philosophy Graham Parsons is no stranger to teaching in the Hudson Valley. Only now, his students are civilians. Prior to stepping onto Vassar’s campus in August, Parsons spent nearly 15 years teaching at the United States Military Academy at West Point. While there, he directed a course in philosophy and ethical reasoning that was required for all cadets, and he also taught electives related to nature, politics and Ancient Greek philosophy. His focus resided in the Departments of English and Philosophy, as well as the Department of Law and Philosophy.
Parsons made the decision to resign from his position at West Point due to an administrative environment which he said had become “painful and toxic” in recent years. At Vassar, he plans to spend the 2025-2026 academic year bringing his insights on the intersections of politics, gender and ethics to our own Philosophy Department. This semester, he is already teaching two courses: PHIL 238: “Social and Political Philosophy” and PHIL 106: “Philosophy & Contemporary Issues” with an emphasis on modern warfare, which Parsons shared is one of his favorite research topics, as well as one heavily inspired by his experiences at West Point.
“In the last five years or so, I got really into gender, and especially masculinity and how it influences how we think about war in the military,” said Parsons. “The gender performance [at West Point] is really obvious and conspicuous and I wanted to think more about that.”
Some basic differences between teaching West Point cadets and Vassar students? Parsons mentioned the lack of uniform inspections and a higher proportion of students coming from major metropolitan cities as opposed to rural areas, which he noticed more often at West Point. Yet, aside from our exteriors, what Parsons called stepping into “costume” for cadets and the variation in places we call home, the new professor explained that the vast majority of his pedagogical practices will remain the same. For example, he said he hopes to continue encouraging students to feel comfortable sharing their opinions on the classroom floor, a practice he noticed to be beneficial in fostering community for the West Point cadets and remains universally important to engaging with the topics of his courses.
Parsons also commented on the welcoming atmosphere created by upper administration and fellow Vassar faculty in contrast with the environment farther down the Hudson at West Point.
“It really feels like a breath of fresh air […] I feel so much more free. I feel more supported,” said Parsons. “Even the administration seems to value what I do, and I felt the opposite at West Point. And then just the sort of culture, you know, the president who likes to be called ‘Betsy.’”
Amidst increasing pressures on civilian institutions of higher education and a wave of pushback against the Trump administration’s attempts to cut research funding, dismantle DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) programs and Title IX laws and make it harder for international students to study in the United States, the executive branch crackdowns which facilitated West Point’s response strategy and Parsons’ resignation are not unique to military institutions. After I cited some of the similarities and contrasted Vassar’s own responses, Parsons said he agreed with President Bradley’s efforts to hold our school true to its values by avoiding compromise as a means for survival.
“What I saw at West Point was the opposite,” said Parsons. “Throw the values out of the window so that we would survive […] My question for the leaders when I was there was, what’s left? We’re not here to just keep the lights on. We have a mission we need to defend. And so yeah, I think Betsy’s message is right on the money,” said Parsons.
Parsons also said that an acknowledgment of values alone will not be enough to withstand external pressures, especially if the time comes when they threaten peoples’ job security—as they did Parsons’ at the end of his time at West Point.
“It’s easier for people at Vassar to say they’re going to defend the values because no one is really yet facing being fired or attacked more directly,” said Parsons. “One general lesson I learned in the last year at West Point was that when people’s jobs are on the line, they cave really quickly. I guess my advice would be for people to actually think about what they would do if continuing to defend the values might lead them to be fired for something like that […] and be prepared to actually take risks.”
Parsons has also shared his thoughts in publications such as The New York Times, PBS Newshour and CNN concerning the Trump administration’s impacts on a variety of issues, including diversity and partisanship at West Point and throughout the military.
Though the nationwide scale of the issues Parsons writes and speaks of may seem daunting—and perhaps distant from the privilege of the Vassar bubble, for the time being—Parsons is a reminder that protecting our community from encroaching threats will be a slow, imperfect and ever-continuing process, one which involves real students and the livelihoods of our professors and administrators. Parsons’ story exemplifies why we need to be prepared and honest with ourselves about where we are willing to take risks and preemptively plan exactly how far we are willing to take them.
For students, facing these pressures which threaten our community can begin with connections we make in the classroom while learning from professors like Parsons who bring real-world, first-hand experiences to guide how we discuss and take action alongside our peers at Vassar and beyond.
Cadet or college student, Parsons said that once you enter the classroom, there is little to no difference in how we teach, learn and engage in discourse.
“I’m really eager to meet everybody and hear their different perspectives. […] I feel so lucky that I’ve landed here. It’s such a welcoming and prestigious place, and so I feel like I won the lottery,” said Parsons.