Barry Mehler is a professor of humanities at Ferris State University in Michigan and the founder and executive director of the Institute for the Study of Academic Racism. The Institute monitors campus racism and serves as a resource center for legislators, civil rights groups, and journalists. Mehler is an expert on eugenics and the use of race science to support racist views and policies. A member of the Behavior-Genetics Association, NAACP, Society for the Study of Social Biology, B'nai B'rith, and the Coalition for Human Dignity, Mehler has a B.A. from Yeshiva University, an M.A. from CCNY, and a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois.