College of the Sciences Primate Behavior and Ecology Program

IV.D. Masters Projects

Not applicable.

IV.E. Program Policies and Advising Services for Students

To declare a major in PBE, each student schedules an appointment with a member of the PBE faculty to serve as her or his advisor. This advisor may or may not be the same as the advisor for the student’s second major (psychology, biology, or anthropology). The PBE advisor initially meets with the student to discuss her or his career goals and interests and background education. The advisor then discusses with the student classes for the PBE and the second major. Careful and regular advisement is needed to ensure the student completes both degrees in a timely manner; most advisors meet with their students every quarter. A “Background Information” questionnaire is given to students as part of the application package, and what the student includes on this may serve as a guide to the initial discussion with the advisor.

Program faculty meet several times each quarter, and during these meetings issues that impact on curriculum are discussed (for example, changes in course offerings). This information is made available to the students through one-on-one advisement sessions, on the program webpage (http://www.cwu.edu/~primate/advising.htm), and occasionally during a fall orientation meeting (usually in October).

IV.F. Other Student Services

Professional Societies
PBE undergraduate students have presented the results of their faculty-mentored research at three professional venues. Program faculty and students are members of these professional organizations.

• 
  Rocky Mountain Psychological Association (http://www.rockymountainpsych.org/)
  
• 
  Northwest Anthropological Association (http://www.class.uidaho.edu/nwaa/)
  
• 
  American Society of Primatologists (http://www.asp.org)
  

Faculty-Led Clubs
The Wildlife Conservation Group was formed by students enrolled in Primate Conservation (ANTH 499) during winter quarter, 2006 as a direct outgrowth of their concern over the plight of free-living nonhuman primates. Group members have raised more than $1,500 to be donated to various environmental causes, members attended a lecture at Washington State University-Pullman given by Dr. Jane Goodall, the club sponsored a lecture at CWU by Dr. Birute Galdikas, and members planned to attend a lecture (later canceled) by Dr. Frances White.

Friends of Washoe is a non-profit organization associated with Central’s Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute. PBE program faculty Ms. Deborah Fouts and Dr. Mary Lee Jensvold are board members. FOW is an important educational resource for students interested in animal rights and conservation, particularly as these relate to chimpanzees. Many PBE students are volunteers at the Institute.

Apprentice/Earthwatch Leaders at CHCI

Particularly promising undergraduate PBE students are hired to work at the Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute (CHCI) during the summer. Until recently, CHCI hosted Earthwatch volunteers every summer, and PBE undergraduates helped coordinate their activities and research. CHCI also hosts a summer apprenticeship program that attracts students from around the world who are interested in animal behavior. PBE undergraduates are sometimes hired to lead apprentice research teams (although more typically graduate students do so).

Expanding Your Horizons

Expanding Your Horizons is an annual career fair held at Central intended to expose middle-school girls to potential career paths in the sciences. Drs. Mary Lee Jensvold, Megan Matheson, and Lori Sheeran have made presentations about primatology at this fair in 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005.

V. Facilities and Equipment by Location

V.A. Facilities Available

The PBE program has a reading room in Farrell Hall 320 that houses several hundred books, articles, and DVDs/videotapes related to primatology, many of which are not available in the CWU library. The room includes a TV, DVD player, computer terminal, and some limited work space.

The Chimpanzee and Human Communication Institute has an extensive library of articles, books, videos, and DVDs, including more than 20 years of archived video footage collected from the chimpanzees living there. The Institute also houses several VCRs, TVs, DVD players, video cameras, and computers that PBE students can use in research associated with Intro to Primate Lab Procedures (PRIM 220), Laboratory Work in Primatology (PRIM 320), and independent research projects conducted at the Institute.

Existing resources are adequate to current program needs. More space, particularly more computer work stations for students, are planned as part of the anthropology department’s move to a new building, which will allow for program growth.

V.B. Equipment Available

The program is well-equipped and meets the needs of students and faculty. Through an intramural grant intended to stabilize interdisciplinary programs such as PBE, the program had a budget in 2006-7, part of which was used to purchase a video camera and a digital camera. A SEED grant and a National Institutes of Health grant awarded to Drs. Sheeran and Jensvold enabled the purchase (2006-7) of two DVDs, one television, one video camera, one computer, one projector, observational software (The Observer), and PDAs for using this software at remote locations. An intramural equipment grant partially funded the purchase (2005) of a computer to support The Observer software (for use with videotaped observations). The anthropology department has purchased casts of fossil and living nonhuman primates, with more purchases made in 2007 through an intramural equipment grant awarded to anthropology faculty. Casts are used in teaching Primate Social Behavior (ANTH 313) and Primate Evolution (ANTH 418).

V.C. Technology Available

Through the National Institutes of Health grant referred to above, Drs. Jensvold and Sheeran purchased (2006-7) computer software called The Observer. This program enables instantaneous data collection and entry, data analysis, and accommodates video footage and live data collection at remote locations. They also purchased (2007) two PDAs with The Observer software installed on it to use in collection of live data. Students will first be introduced to this technology in Primate Social Behavior (ANTH 313), and they will be encouraged to use it for research projects conducted in other courses (e.g., Laboratory Work in Primatology [PRIM 320], Anthropological Field Experience [ANTH 493], Design & Analysis for Observational Field Research [PSY 498], and internships). The software has been installed on two PDAs and two desktop computers (one at CHCI and one in the Primate Reading Room).

ITS services two general use computer labs in Farrell Hall. PBE program faculty have office computers available for use through their home departments.

Existing resources are adequate to current program needs. More space, particularly more computer work stations for students, are planned as part of the anthropology department’s move to a new building, which will allow for program growth.