Why do we love penguins? How do we love penguins? Just what is going on, really, at the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, and what's in it for the dogs? These are some of the questions asked and answered by the emerging field of animal studies.
Starting this spring, NYU students will be able to take classes geared toward a newly created minor in the field. The minor will be housed in the Environmental Studies program, but it will not be limited to students in the major.
One of the main draws of the program, professors emphasize, is that the field is interdisciplinary in nature.
"I think animal studies is a minor that has a very broad appeal," said Dale Jamieson, director of the program. "People doing literature, for example, might want to broaden their studies by taking on this minor."
Colin Jerolmack, who will teach "Animals and Society" in the spring, said his course will combine philosophy, anthropology, sociology and history.
"We'll discuss the pet phenomenon, animals' role in the food industry and animal cognition," Jerolmack said.
Other courses that will be offered under the minor this spring include: "Performing Animal," "Food, Animals and Environment" and "Texts and Ideas: Topics — Animal Humans."
"Relationships with animals are playing an important role in our culture, and there is an increasing interest in animal welfare and animal rights," Jerolmack said.
Stern alumnus Brad Goldberg donated $1 million to help launch the new program. He decided to make the donation after observing an increased interest in the field among both students and faculty.
"I hope students will become both informed and motivated so they can go on to live their lives in a way that will contribute to a more just and compassionate society with regard to the status of animals," Goldberg said. "To not give animals serious academic consideration is a grave oversight in our academic system."
The program currently has four faculty members — Jamieson, Jerolmack, Chris Schlottmann and Una Chaudhuri — and is looking to hire another.
The field is still relatively small, but it's growing at an increasingly fast pace, especially as universities create official academic programs around it.
Michigan State University has an Animal Studies program based on principles similar to NYU's future minor.
"Our program's success is dependent upon its interdisciplinary breadth," said MSU animal studies professor Linda Kalof. "Graduates will likely be looking for academic jobs in sociology, anthropology and English."
CAS sophomore and environmental studies major Melissa Cronin said she plans to pursue the newly formed minor.
"I want to work with animals for my career, and this kind of area is exactly what I was looking for when I decided to study environmental science," she said. "I love animals and am an avid supporter of animal rights. They are so often overlooked in our society."
