Happy Retirement to Dr. Kathy Rudy

Dr. Kathy Rudy has been a member of GSF at Duke (formerly known as Women’s Studies) since the 1980s. A member of the first class of Duke Women’s Studies certificate students in 1989 and the first to receive tenure in the department in 1999, Rudy has taught a wide range of topics, from Reproductive Ethics to Gender and Popular Culture. Her early research focuses on these subjects, as well as religious ethics, sexuality, feminist theory, and most saliently, reimagining animal advocacy. In her 2011 publication, Loving Animals: Toward a New Animal Advocacy, one of Rudy’s many arguments is that the first step towards humanity’s necessary emotional transformation is a shift in thinking that rejects the direct application of human rights and laws to animals. Since her start at Duke in the mid-1990s, Rudy has been published countless times in books and journals arguing for a reconstitution of human-animal social relations that is nothing short of revolutionary.

Rudy’s dedication to her studies and teaching are an inspiration to all who look for a mission greater than themselves. Her students have described her as:

“…a kind and warm-hearted person…”

“…a teacher that really cares about her students and wants to make a difference.”

“She knows her stuff and she’s funny.”

“Dr. Rudy is one of Duke’s greatest.”

“She stretched my mind and the class has definitely affected my perception of who I am and the world around me.”

Thank you, Dr. Rudy, for your exemplary scholarship and unwavering dedication. We wish you the very best in your retirement.