Fresh out of the Pacific Northwest with bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Washington State in hand, John McGlone descended upon central Illinois — “the heart of pig country” — in pursuit of his Ph.D.
It was 1979 — what would turn out to be a historic year at the UI for his field of study, thanks to pioneering Professor Stan Curtis.
“He was a larger-then-life professor of animal science and animal welfare,” McGlone says. “He started a research program in animal welfare which was one of the first in the USA. I was his first Ph.D student to graduate in this new field.
“Dr. Curtis was a sought-after speaker in animal agriculture, but especially in the swine industry. He traveled and spoke at meetings more than 50 times per year during my time there. He shaped modern pork production’s philosophy and management of animal welfare issues.
“And he trained several Ph.D. students who themselves are making a difference in animal agriculture.”
That includes McGlone, a professor of animal and food sciences at Texas Tech for the past three-and-a-half decades.
Among his titles during that time in Lubbock: director of the Pork Industry Institute, director of the Institute of Comparative and Experimental Medicine, director of animal care services and institutional official for the campus animal care program.
