Drury University Launches Animal Studies Minor Funded by Bob Barker

Former Price is Right host gave $2 million to his alma mater to establish Animal Rights program

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Students at Drury University in Springfield, Mo. now have the opportunity to earn a minor in Animal Studies thanks to donations from Drury alumnus and former Price is Right host Bob Barker. According to Dr. Patricia McEachern (Mc-Karen), the Dorothy Jo Barker Endowed Professor of Animal Rights, several students have already begun pursuing the minor.

“All of us associated with Drury are applauding Dr. McEachern and the excellent instructors she has assembled to present the courses.”

“This minor in Animal Studies has captured the interest of colleges and universities nationwide," said Bob Barker, Drury alumnus. “All of us associated with Drury are applauding Dr. McEachern and the excellent instructors she has assembled to present the courses.”

Since 2008, Barker has donated $2 million to his alma mater to establish the Drury University Forum on Animal Rights and the Dorothy Jo Barker Endowed Professorship of Animal Rights.

“The Animal Studies minor is for students interested in gaining an in-depth understanding of the diverse ways in which the lives of animals and humans intersect,” says McEachern. “The interdisciplinary nature of the minor allows students to consider historical and contemporary interactions between humans and animals from a range of perspectives.”

The foundational course for the minor is Animal Ethics. It is team-taught by instructors from the fields of biology, criminology, philosophy, psychology, religion and sociology. Besides Animal Ethics, the other five courses required for the 18 credit hour minor are: Animals in Literature, Animals and Society, Animal Law, Social Movements and an Undergraduate Internship Experience.

Visit the website to learn more about the Drury University Forum on Animal Rights.

Contact: Dr. Patricia McEachern, Director of the Drury University Forum on Animal Rights and the Dorothy Jo Barker Endowed Professor of Animal Rights, Office: [phone], Mobile: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail]

Drury is an independent University, church related, grounded in the liberal arts tradition and committed to personalized education in a community of scholars who value the arts of teaching and learning. Education at Drury seeks to cultivate spiritual sensibilities and imaginative faculties as well as ethical insight and critical thought; to foster the integration of theoretical and practical knowledge; and to liberate persons to participate responsibly in and contribute to a global community. For more information, visit www.drury.edu/strategicplan.