Joel Michael Reynolds

Joel Michael Reynolds is an Associate Professor of Philosophy and Disability Studies at Georgetown University, with a joint appointment in the Department of Family Medicine and the Pellegrino Center for Clinical Bioethics at the Georgetown School of Medicine. He also serves as Senior Research Scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, Director of the Disability Studies Program, and President of the Society for Philosophy and Disability. Additionally, he is a Visiting Lecturer in Bioethics at Yale School of Medicine and will be a Faculty Fellow at the Georgetown-Howard Center for Medical Humanities and Health Justice (2025-26).

Reynolds holds a PhD and MA in Philosophy from Emory University and a BA in Philosophy from the University of Oregon. His research bridges ethics, disability studies, and medical humanities, focusing on disability justice, bioethics, and embodiment. He has published over 70 scholarly works, including six books such as The Life Worth Living: Disability, Pain, and Morality and Disability Justice in Public Health Emergencies.

He has received notable recognitions, including the Honorary Fellowship from McLaughlin College of Public Policy (2022) and Fellowship at The Hastings Center (2023). His work explores health equity, accessibility, and the lived experiences of marginalized groups, supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Mellon Foundation, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and Greenwall Foundation.

Reynolds leads initiatives like the Journal of Philosophy of Disability and co-edits the Oxford Studies in Disability, Ethics, and Society. He advises on disability-inclusive healthcare policies and speaks globally on ethics, disability, and medical education.