Kenan Institute for Ethics

The Kenan Institute for Ethics is an interdisciplinary institute at Duke University dedicated to examining ethical challenges affecting individuals, organizations, and societies. Rather than operating as a conventional academic department, it combines research, teaching, public engagement, and practical experimentation in a “think and do” model. Its work connects philosophy and moral reasoning with fields including law, political science, anthropology, public policy, global health, religion, business, and international affairs. The institute began in 1995 as the Kenan Ethics Program, supported by a five-year grant from the William R. Kenan Jr. Fund for Ethics. Its creation reflected philanthropist Frank Hawkins Kenan’s concern about declining ethical standards in public affairs and business, as well as Duke President Nannerl Keohane’s interest in embedding ethical reflection across university life and extending it into public and civic institutions. A major endowment commitment in 1999 provided long-term financial support, and the program was formally renamed the Kenan Institute for Ethics in 2001. The institute’s research agenda has included human rights, global migration, regulation and governance, moral attitudes and decision-making, and the role of religions in public life. These themes have been addressed through faculty research, student programs, practitioner engagement, fellowships, public events, and partnerships with organizations beyond Duke. The institute has also explored business and human rights through collaboration with a United Nations working group and has examined how faith, citizenship, law, and globalization interact. At Duke, the institute has contributed to a broad institutional ethics infrastructure. Its activities have included work related to academic integrity and the university honor code, the undergraduate Ethical Inquiry requirement, research-ethics training for doctoral students, ethics preparation for participants in DukeEngage, an undergraduate certificate in ethics, graduate fellowships, DukeImmerse programming, and faculty appointments shared with Trinity College of Arts and Sciences. Its research service-learning work helped inform initiatives that later became institutionalized through DukeEngage. A prominent example of its educational and public-facing work was DukeImmerse: Uprooted/Rerouted, launched in spring 2012. The intensive semester program examined forced migration through ethics, political science, cultural anthropology, global health, and public policy. Students studied refugee experiences in Nepal, Egypt, and Jordan, conducted life-story interviews, assessed aid organizations, engaged with refugee communities in Durham, and transformed research into public performances, writing, and community programs. The project illustrates the institute’s characteristic effort to combine academic inquiry with direct engagement and practical outputs. The institute remains a Duke-based center for ethics research, education, and civic practice. Its identity is rooted less in a commercial product portfolio than in programs, scholarship, convening, and partnerships intended to improve ethical reasoning and action in public life.

The Kenan Institute for Ethics originated in the fall of 1995 as the Kenan Ethics Program at Duke University. Its founding was driven by philanthropist Frank Hawkins Kenan’s concern that ethical standards were weakening in public affairs and business, together with Duke President Nannerl O. Keohane’s goal of creating a university program that would influence both campus life and wider civic institutions. The initial program operated under a five-year grant from the William R. Kenan Jr. Fund for Ethics. Long-term institutional support followed in July 1999, when the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust established a $10 million endowment managed through the Kenan ethics fund. The endowment later grew to $20 million, according to the institute’s historical account. In January 2001, the program marked its transition into the Kenan Institute for Ethics, giving it a more permanent organizational identity and broader platform for research, education, and public engagement. Elizabeth Kiss served as the first director from 1996 through 2006. After her departure from Duke to become president of Agnes Scott College, Provost Peter Lange appointed Noah Pickus as director in July 2007. Pickus received a further five-year appointment in 2012. Suzanne Shanahan, who had become associate director in 2007, was also reappointed in 2012 and succeeded Pickus as director in 2017 when he accepted a curriculum and faculty-development position at Duke Kunshan University. Over time, the institute developed a portfolio that connected ethical theory to institutional practice. At Duke, it contributed to discussions and programs concerning academic integrity, the honor code and code-signing ceremony, the undergraduate Ethical Inquiry requirement, and research-ethics education for doctoral students. It also helped establish ethics training for DukeEngage participants, supported an undergraduate certificate in ethics, developed graduate fellowship activities, and participated in DukeImmerse, FOCUS, and faculty collaborations with Trinity College. Its research service-learning work helped shape an initiative that later became DukeEngage. The institute’s external-facing agenda has centered on several recurring areas: human rights, global migration, rethinking regulation, moral attitudes and decision-making, and religions and public life. Projects have included an intensive undergraduate program on forced migration, a laboratory focused on moral decision-making, practitioner-in-residence activities, collaboration with a United Nations working group on business and human rights, and research into the relationships among faith, citizenship, law, and globalization. The 2012 launch of DukeImmerse: Uprooted/Rerouted demonstrated the institute’s applied educational model. Twelve students worked with five professors during an intensive semester focused on the experiences of refugees and the operation of international aid systems. The academic component combined ethics with political science, cultural anthropology, global health, and public policy. Field groups studied Bhutanese refugees in Damak, Nepal, and Iraqi and Syrian refugee populations in urban settings in Cairo and, later, Amman. Students conducted life-story interviews, studied local languages, evaluated aid organizations, and maintained connections with refugee communities in Durham. On returning to Duke, they converted interviews into monologues performed at the Nasher Museum of Art and produced written and community-oriented projects. The institute’s development reflects a broader model of academic ethics centers: it treats ethics not only as a philosophical subject but also as a practical discipline relevant to governance, migration, organizational conduct, human rights, religion, and public decision-making. It remains part of Duke University rather than an independent commercial organization, and its principal outputs are research, teaching, partnerships, public programs, and community engagement.

• 2017

  Suzanne Shanahan appointed director

  [1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Shanahan succeeded Noah Pickus as director after serving as associate director.

• 2012

  Uprooted/Rerouted launched

  [1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  The institute launched a DukeImmerse program examining forced migration through international field research and community engagement.

• 2001

  Institute formally established

  [1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  The Kenan Ethics Program adopted the Kenan Institute for Ethics name and marked its new institutional status.

• 1999

  Permanent endowment created

  [1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  The William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust created a $10 million endowment to provide long-term support for the ethics program.

• 1995

  Kenan Ethics Program established

  [1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Duke University established the Kenan Ethics Program with a five-year grant from the William R. Kenan Jr. Fund for Ethics.

A university-based ethics center positioned between academic research, professional education, public dialogue, and applied community work. Its distinctive proposition is the integration of ethical reflection with field research and practical engagement.

• Experiential education · 2012

  DukeImmerse: Uprooted/Rerouted

  An intensive semester-long program focused on forced migration and refugee experiences. Students combined interdisciplinary coursework with field research in Nepal, Egypt, and Jordan, conducted life-story interviews, examined aid organizations, engaged refugee communities in Durham, and translated their findings into performances, publications, and community initiatives.

• Higher education

  Undergraduate ethics programs

  The institute has supported undergraduate ethics education at Duke through Ethical Inquiry coursework, an undergraduate certificate in ethics, FOCUS programming, and related opportunities for structured reflection on moral and civic questions.

• Research and convening · 1995

  Research and public engagement

  The institute’s core offering is a portfolio of interdisciplinary research, public events, practitioner engagement, fellowships, partnerships, and applied projects addressing human rights, migration, regulation, moral decision-making, and religion in public life.

• 2012

  Launch of Uprooted/ReroutedProduct launch

  Background

  The institute sought to provide students with sustained, interdisciplinary study of forced migration and direct exposure to refugee communities and aid systems.

  Action taken

  It created an intensive DukeImmerse program combining classroom preparation, international fieldwork, interviews, assessment of aid organizations, and post-field public and community projects.

  Aftermath

  Students produced public performances, written work, and local engagement initiatives connected to refugee communities in Durham.

  Source

• 2001

  Transition from program to instituteStrategy

  Background

  After several years of grant support and the creation of a substantial endowment, Duke and the Kenan charitable organizations moved the initiative toward a permanent institutional model.

  Action taken

  The Kenan Ethics Program was formally presented as the Kenan Institute for Ethics, with a broader mandate spanning research, education, and public engagement.

  Aftermath

  The institute expanded its role in Duke-wide ethics initiatives and developed a wider portfolio of interdisciplinary and community-facing work.

  Source

• 2017

  Suzanne Shanahan becomes institute director[1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change

  Suzanne Shanahan was named director after Noah Pickus moved to a leadership role at Duke Kunshan University.

• 2012

  Kenan Institute launches Uprooted/Rerouted DukeImmerse program[1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  The institute began an intensive semester program on forced migration, combining classroom study, international fieldwork, refugee interviews, and community engagement.

• 2001

  Program formally becomes the Kenan Institute for Ethics[1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The Kenan Ethics Program celebrated its formal status as the Kenan Institute for Ethics after the endowment structure was established.

• 1999

  Kenan Institute for Ethics receives major endowment commitment[1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust established a $10 million endowment commitment, supporting the program’s transition toward a permanent institute.

• 1995

  Kenan Ethics Program established at Duke University[1]Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Duke launched the Kenan Ethics Program with support from the William R. Kenan Jr. Fund for Ethics to develop university-wide and public-facing work on ethical standards.

1. 1Kenan Institute for Ethicsen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Kenan Institute for Ethics official websitekenan.ethics.duke.edu