Dustin Sebell

Dustin Sebell is a Professor in the School of Civic Life and Leadership at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, specializing in the history of political thought. His research bridges ancient and modern political philosophy, focusing on ethical leadership, science's role in democracy, and the interplay between reason and religion in politics.

Education: PhD in Political Science from Boston College (2014). Previous roles include Associate Professor of Political Science at Michigan State University (with leadership roles in the LeFrak Forum and Symposium on Science, Reason, and Modern Democracy), Class of 1962 Resident Fellow at the U.S. Naval Academy’s Stockdale Center for Ethical Leadership (2022-24), and Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University’s Government Department (2014-15).

His seminal works include The Socratic Turn (2016, Penn Press, Delba Winthrop Award winner) and Xenophon’s Socratic Education (2021). His scholarship appears in journals like American Journal of Political Science and Review of Politics.

Awards: Delba Winthrop Award for Excellence in Political Science (2016). Scholarly contributions emphasize ethical dimensions of governance and the philosophical foundations of modern political systems.