Gary L. Comstock

Gary L. Comstock is the Alumni Association Distinguished Undergraduate Professor of Philosophy at North Carolina State University (NC State), affiliated with the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. He previously held roles at Iowa State University (1982-2002) and has served as a faculty member in interdisciplinary studies and research ethics programs. His work bridges ethics, animal rights, cognitive science, and pedagogical innovation.

Education: Ph.D. in Religion and Literature (University of Chicago, 1983), A.M. in Religious Studies (University of Chicago, 1977), B.A. in Religious Studies and English Literature (Wheaton College, IL, 1976).

Research focuses on animal ethics (especially nonhuman personhood), critical thinking education, and the moral implications of cognitive science. Notable contributions include legal amicus briefs advocating for animal rights (e.g., Happy the elephant, chimpanzees) and curricular development in research ethics.

Grants include the $249,393 LANGURE initiative (2005-2010) for interdisciplinary ethics education and the $100,000 Singularity and Superiority project (2007-2009) exploring human enhancement ethics. He created the open online course How We Evaluate to scale critical thinking instruction.

Awards include the NC State Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professorship (2020), multiple teaching awards, and recognition for ethics scholarship. Comstock collaborates internationally with organizations like the National Humanities Center and has authored influential books such as Research Ethics (2013) and The Moral Rights of Animals (2016).