“Education is fundamentally about the formation of students’ souls. Working as an educator is thus one of the highest callings as well as a grave responsibility.”— Dr. David Diener
Faculty Information
Additional Faculty Information for David Diener
Education
Dual Ph.D., Indiana University, Philosophy and Philosophy of Education, 2010
M.A., Indiana University, Philosophy, 2008
M.S., Indiana University, History and Philosophy of Education, 2008
B.A., Wheaton College, Integrative Philosophy, 2001
Professional Service
Secretary, Board of Directors, Society for Classical Learning
Associate Editor, Principia: A Journal of Classical Education
Board of Academic Advisors, Classic Learning Test
Fellow, Alcuin Fellowship National Council
Director, Alcuin Fellowship Midwest Chapter
Member, National Council of Classical Educators
Selected Publications
“Augustine’s De Magistro: Teaching, Learning, Signs, and God.” Principia: A Journal of Classical Education 1, no. 1 (2022): 27-41.
“Neil Postman on Education, Technology, and Purpose.” RealClearEducation (August 6, 2021).
Plato: The Great Philosopher-Educator. Giants in the History of Education. Camp Hill: Classical Academic Press, 2015.
Series Editor. Giants in the History of Education. Camp Hill: Classical Academic Press. Titles include Mortimer Adler: The Paideia Way of Classical Education (2019); Augustine: Rejoicing in the Truth (2018); John Amos Comenius: A Visionary Reformer of Schools (2017); Plato: The Great Philosopher-Educator (2015); C. S. Lewis: An Apologist for Education (2015); John Milton: Classical Learning and the Progress of Virtue (2015).
“The Formative Power of Educational Metaphors.” The Journal of the Society for Classical Learning 8 (Winter 2015): 24-27.
“The Centrality of Virtue in the Ancient Understanding of Education.” The Journal of the Society for Classical Learning 7 (Winter 2014): 5-8.
“Kierkegaard on Authority, Obedience, and the Modern Approach to Religion.” Res Philosophica 90, no. 4 (October 2013): 609-628.
“The Rational Criteria of Authority and the Case of Adler: Kierkegaard’s Confusion.” University of Toledo Journal of Philosophy 10 (2009): 48-56.
“The Non-Normative Voice of ‘Situated Philosophy.’” In Philosophy of Education 2008, edited by Nicholas C. Burbules, 277-279. Urbana: Philosophy of Education Society, 2008.
“The Intellectual Climate of the Late Nineteenth Century and the Fate of American Normal Schools.” American Educational History Journal 35 (2008): 61-79.
“An Argument against Sight-lovers: Knowledge and Belief in Republic V.” In Philosophy of Education 2007, edited by Nicholas C. Burbules, 236-244. Urbana: Philosophy of Education Society, 2007.
“An Inquiry into Teaching in the Meno.” Philosophical Studies in Education 38 (2007): 141-150.
Biography
Dr. David Diener grew up in northern Michigan and northeast Ohio where he spent his childhood working in the family gardens, cutting wood, playing in corn fields, Bible quizzing, downhill skiing, playing music, and of course studying assiduously in school. He began his formal post-secondary education at Wheaton College where he graduated Summa Cum Laude with an undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Ancient Languages. After putting his philosophical training to work by building custom cabinets and doing high-end finish carpentry for an Amish company, he moved with his wife to Bogotá, Colombia, where they served as missionaries for three years at a Christian international school. He then attended graduate school at Indiana University where he earned an MA in Philosophy, an MS in History and Philosophy of Education, and a dual PhD in Philosophy and Philosophy of Education. Other random credentials include a ham radio license and a private pilot license. Following fifteen years in K-12 private education, eleven of those in administration and eight as headmaster of classical Christian schools, he now works at Hillsdale College where he is an Assistant Professor of Education. He also is a Fellow on the Alcuin Fellowship National Council and Director of the Alcuin Fellowship Midwest Chapter, serves on the Board of Directors for the Society for Classical Learning and the Board of Academic Advisors for the Classic Learning Test, and is a member of the National Council of Classical Educators. He is the author of Plato: The Great Philosopher-Educator and has published articles on Plato, Kierkegaard, and various topics in philosophy of education. He also serves as the series editor for Classical Academic Press’ series Giants in the History of Education and is an associate editor for the journal Principia: A Journal of Classical Education. In addition to reading and thinking about anything interesting, Dr. Diener enjoys outdoor activities, exercise and sports, singing and playing music, hunting, carpentry, electrical engineering, and of course spending time with his wife and four children.