The Canisius University Alumni Association conferred its Kenneth L. Koessler Distinguished Faculty Award upon Susan W. Margulis, PhD, professor of animal behavior, ecology and conservation (ABEC) and biology, and program director of the undergraduate anthrozoology program. Presented at the university’s Awards Ceremony on Friday, May 17, the Distinguished Faculty Award recognizes teaching excellence and outstanding contributions to the academic world.
Margulis came to Canisius in 2009 as an assistant professor of biology and ABEC. She served as chair of ABEC from 2016 – 2022. Margulis was named professor of ABEC in 2018 and program director of the undergraduate anthrozoology program in 2022. Margulis helped develop the minors in conservation and environmental sustainability, the major in anthrozoology and the new master’s program in informal education.
A primatologist who has been working in the zoo field for many years, Margulis’ research focuses primarily on applied, zoo-based research questions. She spends significant time supervising individual undergraduate students doing research and many Canisius students have served as co-authors on publications, several in the first author role. She shares her love for primatology with her students as director of the Team Ape research group, comprised of students who collect behavioral data at the Buffalo Zoo.
Margulis has published more than 40 peer-reviewed articles as well as eight additional industry publications and book chapters. She also co-edited a volume entitled Exploring Animal Behavior in Laboratory and Field, which was released in 2021.
She has received countless awards and honors including the Canisius Arts and Sciences Faculty Scholarship Award in 2017, the Exceptional Service Award from the Animal Behavior Society in 2020, and the Penny Bernstein Distinguished Teaching Award from the Animal Behavior Society in 2023.
Margulis holds a BS from Bucknell University in animal behavior, a master’s degree in environmental, population, and organismic biology from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a PhD from the University of Chicago in evolutionary biology.
Canisius was founded in 1870 in Buffalo, NY, and is one of 27 Jesuit colleges and universities in the U.S. Consistently ranked among the top institutions in the Northeast, Canisius offers undergraduate, graduate and pre-professional programs distinguished by close student-faculty collaboration, mentoring and an emphasis on ethical, purpose-driven leadership.
