Bioethics Symposium Highlights Student Research

This year’s Bioethics Symposium, whose theme was “Bioethics for Everyone: Issues in Public Health,” showcased the research of 12 Kent Place students. The Bioethics students worked in pairs, combining their topics into one cohesive presentation. 

The Bioethics Project is a signature program of the Ethics Institute at Kent Place School. Students are selected via a rigorous application process in the spring and must complete a two-week summer course before embarking on a yearlong research project, collaborating with mentors from the Kennedy School of Ethics at Georgetown University. The class culminates in an original paper on the Bioethics website. 

The symposium opened with welcome remarks from Karen Rezach, Director of the Ethics Institute, and Julie Gentile, Assistant Head of School.

Phoebe Krowtiz ’26 and Krisana Manglani ’28 presented “Distribution or Discrimination? Ethical Tensions Between Population Prioritization and Demographic Stigma in Preventative Healthcare,” in which they explored the ethical ramifications of distributing healthcare opportunities and resources to specific populations, considering whether these practices are equity-focused or discriminatory.

What is the impact on medical care and trust when patients and healthcare professionals express their autonomy? This was the question Anna Bultó ’26 and Jacquelyn Reig ’26 asked when they presented “Risking Trust: The Role of Personal Beliefs in Public Health.” 

Should we minimize interventions that address present needs to prevent future harms? Kate Lee ’26 and Talia Sarafian ’26 presented “Creating Tomorrow’s Crisis: Weighing Short-term Benefits Against Long-term Harms in Healthcare.” They discussed private-equity acquisition of hospitals, which may ultimately worsen long-term quality of care, and antibiotic-prescribing practices, which may ultimately contribute to the long-term loss of effective antibiotics.

In “Reevaluating Life in the Age of Care Robots and Embryoids,” Nisha Raval ’27 and Katie MacKay ’27 explored embryoids as well as care robots, bringing together their topics to take a look at how new technologies influence our understanding of human life and its value. 

What is the cost of control? In their presentation, Ella Kerins ’28 and Harli Glatt ’28 explored issues of autonomy and responsibility in the wellness industry, combining their topics of the dietary-supplement industry and biohacking. 

Are there such things as “national values”? If so, who decides what they are and what is prioritized? Sailee Shah ’28 and Vivienne Vengroff ’27, combining the social media ban in Australia and gun regulations in the United States, considered “national values” in policymaking. 

“Our 14th-Annual Bioethics Project Symposium showcased the outstanding thinking and collaboration of our Bioethics Project students,” said Dr. Rezach. “It’s incredibly rewarding to listen to the audience participation in each of the sessions — the questions, discussions, and interactions by the students, parents, and faculty in attendance. We’re achieving the vision of the Bioethics Project, which is to bring community awareness to some of the most pressing bioethical issues of our day.”

"Watching our students present their Bioethics research last Wednesday, I was filled with immense pride,” said Debbie Fermo, Director of the Upper School. “They’ve not only explored the complex relationship of ethics and public health but have also eloquently articulated how these critical considerations shape our world. This was my first symposium, and I was utterly blown away.”