Jennifer E. Smith (biologist)
Jennifer Elaine Smith is a behavioral ecologist and evolutionary biologist. She is an associate professor of Biology at University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire. Previously, she was an associate professor and chair of biology at Mills College, in Oakland, California, prior to its merger with Northeastern University. Her research focuses primarily on the social lives of mammals based on insights gained from long-term studies on marked individuals and comparative approaches.
Early life and education
Smith was born in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. She holds a B.A. in biology with a concentration in environmental science from Colby College and an M.S. in integrative biology from University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. She went on to complete dual PhDs in zoology and the Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Program at Michigan State University. Her dissertation research with Kay E. Holekamp involved extensive fieldwork in Kenya and focused on the evolutionary and ecological forces shaping patterns of cooperation among spotted hyenasBefore joining the faculty at Mills College, she was an American Association of University Women postdoctoral fellow with Daniel T. Blumstein at the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, as well as in the Institute for Society and Genetics, at the University of California, Los Angeles.