High School students from across the region gathered to answer some ethical questions as part of the ninth annual Ethics Bowl hosted by Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York.
Sponsored by the college’s philosophy program in cooperation with the Marshall Institute for Ethical Thought and Action, the regional bowl was held Jan. 27. The competition pitted high school students from top-tier regional high schools, including Arlington High School, Dover High School, the French-American School of New York, George F. Baker High School, Haldane High School, School of the Holy Child, John S. Burke Catholic High School, The Montfort Academy, Paraclete Academy, Poughkeepsie High School, and Salesian High School.
Paraclete Academy in Greenwich, Connecticut, placed first for the region followed by runner-up Haldane High School in Cold Spring, New York.
Manhattanville students, alumni, friends and professors watched five rounds to determine the winning team. In addition to Manhattanville faculty and students, a unique roster of judges presided over the event, including a former U.S. Appellate Court Judge.
The teams came from throughout the county and were presented with 16-20 ethical scenarios to study ahead of time that they then had to discuss as part of the competition. During the competition, teams are asked to come up with a solution and, more importantly, defend their position in an intelligent and logical fashion.
The students were judged by whether they had captured the salient ethical issues and how clearly they stated their cases. Although it is a competition, the bowl is about the process and how opposing teams work together to arrive at the truth.
