Charles R. Beitz

Charles R. Beitz is the Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Politics at Princeton University, where he has held leadership roles including director of the University Center for Human Values (2009–2016) and director of the Program in Political Philosophy. He previously served as dean for academic affairs and professor of government and legal studies at Bowdoin College, and taught at Swarthmore College. His research focuses on global political theory, democratic theory, human rights, and theories of justice from Hobbes to the present.

Beitz earned his B.A. in history from Colgate University (summa cum laude), M.A. in philosophy from the University of Michigan, and M.A. and Ph.D. in politics and political philosophy from Princeton University. He has held fellowships from the Rockefeller, MacArthur, and Guggenheim Foundations, and is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

His scholarship includes seminal works like Political Theory and International Relations (1979), Political Equality (1989), and The Idea of Human Rights (2009), which won the Estoril Global Issues Distinguished Book Award. He has edited journals such as Philosophy & Public Affairs and published widely on topics ranging from subsistence rights to partisan gerrymandering.

Beitz has received prestigious teaching awards, including the APSA Pi Sigma Alpha Award for Outstanding Teaching (2006) and the McGraw Center Graduate Mentoring Award (2006).