Jill Pruetz
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Jill Pruetz | |
|---|---|
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | UIUC |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Anthropology |
| Sub-discipline | Primatology |
| Institutions | TXST |
| Website | Jill Pruetz publications on Academia.edu |
Jill Pruetz is an American anthropologist and primatologist. She currently works in the Department of Anthropology at Texas State University. Pruetz is known for her groundbreaking research on savanna-dwelling chimpanzees in Senegal and her uncanny ability to engage public audiences. Pruetz has worked with the National Geographic Society and National Science Foundation. Her research has also been shared by media icons such as the Today Show, BBC, and Dr. Neil de Grasse Tyson.[1]
Pruetz received two bachelor's degrees, in Anthropology and Sociology, from Texas State University in 1989. Pruetz attained a PhD in anthropology in 1999, this time at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her dissertation research focused on the socioecology of vervet and patas monkeys, specifically investigating how food availability impacted female dominance hierarchies. For the following year Pruetz worked in a post-doctoral position at Ohio's Miami University, in the Department of Zoology.[1][2] This project brought her to Senegal where she assessed the distribution of chimpanzees in savanna habitats.[2]
Pruetz was a professor at Iowa State University’s Department of Anthropology from 2001 to 2017. In 2017, Pruetz returned to her undergraduate alma mater, Texas State University. She has been with Texas State University's Department of Anthropology ever since.
Teaching and mentoring
Pruetz teaches courses in Costa Rica, Panama, and Nicaragua, and the American universities she is employed by. She is an extremely active mentor. Pruetz has assisted at least fifty students in getting graduate degrees. She also advises undergraduate students and works with students at her field sites.[1]
Pruetz is an active member of social media. Her Twitter and Instagram accounts keep her connected to professional and personal networks. Through these platforms, Pruetz shares intriguing publications, updates her followers about the shenanigans her dogs get into, and has introduced the world to Edith the Calf, an adopted bovine family member that the science community adores.