Ellen Feder

Ellen K. Feder
OccupationPhilosopher
Known forCare Ethics
Continental Philosophy
Feminist and Critical Race theory
Academic work
DisciplineBioethics
Sub-discipline
Feminism
InstitutionsAmerican University

Ellen K. Feder is a professor emerita and the William Fraser McDowell Professor of Philosophy at American University in Washington, D.C.. She served on the Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) medical advisory board, and some of her lectures are publicly available on YouTube.

Career

Feder was appointed the William Fraser McDowell Professor of Philosophy in September 1998. She joined the ISNA in 1999, after presenting a paper at the APA[clarification needed] considering the medical management of intersex peoples and bioethics. Feder was a member of the society's Medical Advisory Board until its closure in 2008.

In 2013, Feder, along with other physicians, bioethicics and scholars published an article in the New England Medical Review and Journal agreeing with the Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) that informed consent documents used in the Surfactant, Positive Pressure, and Oxygenation Randomized Trial (SUPPORT) were inadequate.

Feder is a member of the American Philosophical Association (APA), the Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy (SPEP), the Society for Women in Philosophy (SWIP) and Feminist Ethics and Social Thought (FEAST).

Selected publications

References

  1. 1 2 "Professor Emerita". American University. Retrieved February 27, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Ellen Feder, Ph.D." Intersex Society of North America. Retrieved February 27, 2026.
  3. ↑ "Ellen K. Feder | Ellen K. Feder". Manifold@UMinnPress. Retrieved April 21, 2026.
  4. ↑ Macklin, Ruth; Shepherd, Lois; Dreger, Alice; Asch, Adrienne; Feder, Ellen K.; et al. (July 11, 2013). "The OHRP and SUPPORT — Another View". New England Journal of Medicine. 369 (2): e3. doi:10.1056/NEJMc1308015. hdl:1807/127488. ISSN 0028-4793. Retrieved February 27, 2026.