King scholar to visits Arkansas' school of agriculture, food and life sciences

Andrew McLean developed and now manages the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre.
Andrew McLean developed and now manages the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre. | File photo

Andrew McLean, the King Visiting Scholar for 2016 in the Dale Bumpers College of Agriculture, Food and Life Sciences’ Department of Animal Science, is scheduled to visit students at the University of Arkansas on Thursday.

McLean developed and now manages the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre, which is an internationally known horse training and behavior modification center. He created this center with assistance from The HELP Foundation – Human Elephant Learning Programs.

McLean has received the Eureka Prize, which is the highest science award in Australia. He has been a lecturer at the University of Tasmania for 11 years, where he discussed topics like animal behavior, genetics and Tasmanian fauna.

Among his accomplishments is show-jumping at the Grand Prix level. He has also raced bareback in New Zealand and Australia, and has a racehorse owner-trainer’s license.

While in Arkansas, McLean will present a lecture for faculty, students and staff at the Hembree Auditorium, which is located in the Agricultura, Food and Life Sciences Building. This presentation will last for an hour and will cover an introduction to improving human interactions with animals and learning theory about animals.

There will be a free public lecture at the Pauline Whitaker Animal Science Center starting at 6 p.m. This two-hour lecture will discuss how to better understand learning theory and biomechanics to improve horse welfare and take advantage of training.