Primate Behavior and Ecology Program

College of the Sciences
Ellensburg
Dean Hall, room 357A
509-963-3201
Fax: 509-963-3215
https://www.cwu.edu/academics/primate/about/undergraduate-program/index.php

Program Director
April K. Binder, PhD, Dean Hall, room 370, Science 236J

Professors
Matthew Altman, PhD, philosophy, applied ethics (including environmental ethics and animal ethics), philosophy of law, history of philosophy
Clay Arango, PhD, biology, stream ecosystem ecology, nitrogen cycling, human-ecosystem interactions
Kristina Ernest, PhD, biology, terrestrial ecology, small mammals, species interactions, connectivity
Kara I. Gabriel, PhD, psychology, conservation psychology, evolutionary psychology, visitor effects, enrichment, and human-primate interactions
Lori K. Sheeran, PhD, anthropology, biological anthropology, macaques, anthropogenic impacts on primates, primate ecology, primate conservation, primate social behavior
Lixing Sun, PhD, biology, ecology and evolution of animal behavior (especially communication systems), primatology

Associate Professors
J. Hope Amason, PhD, anthropology, political economy and globalization, politics of representation, race, class, and gender, museums, memorials, and heritage sites, tourism studies
April K. Binder, PhD, biology, hormone physiology, metabolism, reproduction and developmental biology
Ralf Greenwald, PhD, psychology, general cognition, human neurophysiology, working memory, attention, language
Jessica A. Mayhew, PhD, anthropology, biological anthropology, primate social behavior, play behavior, primate socio-cognition, ethnoprimatology, large-bodied apes, Macaca spp.
Mary Radeke, PhD, psychology, use of facial cues in emotion and personality assessment, conversation development in young children, personality traits, technology in the classroom, primate communication, eye tracking and Facial Action Unit Coding laboratory

Assistant Professors
Rodrigo Renteria-Valencia, PhD, anthropology, environmental anthropology, linguistic anthropology, semiotics, visual anthropology, ritual and performance theory, human geography, maritime anthropology, indigenous studies
Nicole Jastremski, PhD, anthropology, biological anthropology, forensic anthropology, bioarchaeology, mortuary analysis, paleopathology, taphonomy, identity formation, Ecuador

Lecturers
Kathleen Barlow, PhD, anthropology, learning and culture, childhood, psychological anthropology, museum anthropology, symbolism, gender, art and aesthetics, material culture, regional ethnography
Mary Lee Jensvold, PhD, primatology, chimpanzee sign language studies, ape behavior, communication, culture, chimpanzee care and enrichment, non-verbal behavior
JB Mulcahy, MS, primatology, captive primate welfare, environmental enrichment, chimpanzee behavior

Staff
Penelope Anderson, secretary senior

Program Information
This program provides majors with interdisciplinary perspectives on the behavior and ecology of nonhuman primates in both captive and free-living settings. It serves as background for graduate study in the behavior, ecology, or phylogeny of primates, as well as for care-giving careers with primates living in laboratories, zoos, or other captive facilities. Lab fees required for PRIM 320, and ANTH 416.

A double major is REQUIRED with the PBE degree. Students must complete the requirements for the PBE major as well as the requirements for a 45-plus-credit major in anthropology, biology, or psychology. Students interested in the major should contact the program office as soon as possible for further information, application forms, and assignment of an advisor. PBE majors are expected to meet with their advisor at least once a quarter.

Special Programs
The program sponsors and is affiliated with a wide range of on- and off-campus activities that provide students with opportunities to conduct faculty-mentored scientific projects or internships.

The PBE library in room 204 Dean Hall houses several hundred books, articles, and DVDs/videotapes related to primatology. The room includes a TV, DVD player, and four computer work stations.

The PBE program has available for student use one video camera, two digital cameras, two DVD players, one television, observational software (The Observer), and two PDAs for using this software at remote locations. The Observer software can also be used on two desktop computers.

Students and faculty who have been approved to conduct research at CHCI may have access to resources housed there. These include an extensive library of articles, books, videos, and DVDs, and more than 20 years of archived video footage collected from the chimpanzees living there. CHCI also houses several VCRs, TVs, DVD players, video cameras, and computers that students can use in research projects conducted at CHCI. Access is considered on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the director and associate director of CHCI.

The Anthropological Genetics Laboratory in room 232A Dean Hall is equipped for performing DNA extractions, PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) amplification, genotyping, and DNA sequencing. Software for analyzing genetic data and performing phylogenetic analysis is also available.

The anthropology department owns casts of fossil and living nonhuman primates. These span a variety of taxa including prosimians, monkeys, and apes. Access is considered on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the anthropology faculty.

The PBE program is affiliated with the Conservation and Biodiversity Field School in China, which is coordinated through the CWU Office of International Study and Programs.

Students can develop faculty-mentored internship experiences based at CHCI, the Woodland Park Zoo, and other sites.

Primate Behavior, MS
This program is interdisciplinary and emphasizes the approaches and contributions to primatology made by biologists, anthropologists, psychologists, and philosophers. It includes a basic core of 21 credits in primatology, with 18 elective credits selected in consultation with the student’s advisor.

Students must complete at least 45 credits as outlined in an approved course of study filed with the Office of Graduate Studies and Research. The course of study is selected by advisement before completing 20 credits. Two quarters in residence are required.

Admission Requirements
In addition to general guidelines for admission to master’s programs, applicants for admission must have the following qualifications:

1. An undergraduate degree in anthropology, psychology, or biology. Before admission, program faculty will evaluate the academic course work and experience of all applicants for admission, and will recommend remedial course work if, in their judgment, there are deficiencies in pre-baccalaureate work which need to be overcome before entrance into the program.
2. Students must submit GRE scores for the general test.
3. International students for whom English is a second language must provide TOEFEL scores to demonstrate English proficiency.
4. Students must arrange for a graduate faculty advisor in the program to serve as their major advisor.

Admission to the program and continuation in it may be conditional on the applicant’s satisfactory completion of remedial courses. Such courses will not count toward the program credit requirement, but in some cases they may be taken after admission to the program.

Graduate Committee
The student will have at least a three-member graduate committee selected in consultation with the thesis committee chair.

Program Fees
Lab fees are attached to the following courses conducted at the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute: PRIM 595C, PRIM 700, and PRIM 516.

Course Offerings
Frequency of course offering information can be found at the department website: https://www.cwu.edu/academics/primate/about/undergraduate-program/index.php or by contacting the department directly.