Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion

Dr. Jennifer Rehg

Assistant Professor of Anthropology

Research Focus:
"My main research interest is primate behavior and ecology, with a focus on New World monkeys in Central and South America. My research has concentrated on the mixed species groups of three monkeys, callimico (Callimico goeldii), red-bellied tamarins (Saguinus labiatus), and saddle-backed tamarins (Saguinus fuscicollis). These three species form groups of 5 to 15 individuals with other members of their own species, but also form larger groups in which all three species forage, travel, and even feed at the same resources together. Study of mixed species groups is a key approach to understanding why many primates are gregarious (live in groups), and the ecological costs and benefits of group-living. I am also very interested in conservation, especially in Neotropical environments, and the interaction between human communities and natural environments."

2007: EUE Grant, $4,500.00

Primary Courses Taught:

Introduction to Anthropology (ANTH 111)
Biological Anthropology Method and Theory (ANTH 360a&b)
Human Origins (ANTH 365)
Biology of Human Behavior (ANTH 366)
Primatology (ANTH 367)
Forensic Anthropology (ANTH 429)

Education:

1995  A.B. in Anthropology: summa cum laude, Washington University, St. Louis, MO

1999  A.M. in Biological Anthropology

2003    Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL

How does SIUE support your professional growth or activity as a Teacher-Scholar?
"SIUE is distinctive for its encouragement of integration of teaching and research at an undergraduate level. SIUE provides many types of resources to support faculty-initiated efforts towards both enhancing teaching and research. These include financial grants, such as those offered through Excellence in Undergraduate Education (EUE), as well as informational resources, such as workshops on pedagogy and research funding. I have taken advantage of many of these resources. In particular, I have been fortunate to be involved with the Rainforest Project at SIUE, in which students participate in travel study courses at Carara National Park in Costa Rica. This project has received support through EUE grants, to help fund student participation as well as equipment and supplies for course activities, including instruction in wildlife observation and ecology. As a result, I have been able to explore research opportunities related to this unique rainforest environment, as well as teach students about primates--and have them develop their own research questions—based on real-life, first-hand experiences."

What is a unique aspect of your professional life that enhances your service to the academic or greater community?
"My research has provided me with numerous opportunities to travel outside the U.S.—in working on projects I have visited developing megacities, rural villages, and remote rainforests and deserts. Observing different environments and experiencing diverse cultures has fundamentally impacted my world view. Visiting other parts of the world, and the process of traveling itself, encourages openness and curiosity; it stimulates the development of new perspectives; and it rewards creativity, problem-solving, and a ‘roll with the punches’ attitude. These experiences influence what and how I teach, my research interests and approaches, and my ability to interact with diverse types of people—whether in other parts of the world or at SIUE."