Jeffrey K McKee

Jeffrey Kevin McKee is an American biological anthropologist, academic, and author. He is a professor in the Departments of Anthropology and Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at The Ohio State University.

McKee's publications comprise books and research articles focusing on biological anthropology, paleoanthropology, and paleoecology. He received an Emmy Award in 2016 and is a Fellow of the Ohio Academy of Science and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Additionally, he has been the Co-editor and Editor-in-Chief of the Ohio Journal of Science.

Education McKee earned a BA in anthropology from Miami University in 1980, followed by an AM in 1982 and a PhD in 1985 from Washington University, where he also worked as a Computing Consultant and Teaching Assistant.

Career McKee began his academic career as a senior lecturer in the Department of Anatomy and Human Biology at the University of Witwatersrand Medical School from 1986 to 1996. He joined The Ohio State University in 1996 as an adjunct assistant professor and lecturer in the Department of Anthropology, later becoming a lecturer in the Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology in 1999. He was appointed associate professor in both departments in 2000 and has been serving as professor since 2004.

McKee has also worked in the field, having conducted archaeological surveys in Ohio in 1979 and 1980, followed by Missouri in 1981. In 1982, he excavated human skeletal material at Mammoth Cave, Kentucky. From 1988 to 1996, he served as Field Director and Co-principal Investigator for excavations at Buxton Limeworks, also known as Taung, in South Africa. He directed excavations at Makapansgat Limeworks from 1993 to 1996, was Co-principal Investigator from 1999 to 2001, and Principal Investigator from 2002 to 2006.

Works McKee has written four books on the topics of human evolution and biodiversity. He published the 4th and 5th editions of Understanding Human Evolution with Frank E. Poirier and W. Scott Mcgraw (1999 and 2005), providing an overview of paleoanthropology focusing on human evolution through fossil analysis, incorporating the latest discoveries, and addressing key debates in the field. Later, he authored The Riddled Chain: Chance, Coincidence and Chaos in Human Evolution exploring how chance and chaos, rather than natural selection alone, shaped human evolution and could have led to entirely different outcomes. In a review for the Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, Goran Strkalj remarked, "Although the subjects McKee discusses are complex and difficult to understand, his easy-going style, rich in interesting and humorous examples and metaphors, makes the book easy to follow for anyone with a grain of intellectual curiosity."

In 2003, McKee published Sparing Nature: The Conflict Between Human Population Growth and Earth's Biodiversity which argued that human population growth drives biodiversity loss, pushing species toward extinction while calling for population control to protect ecosystems. J. Roberts stated that the book "should be mandatory reading for anyone who is concerned about the quality of life on this planet."

Research McKee's research has spanned paleoanthropology, mammalian paleontology, evolutionary theory, and population genetics, with a focus on paleoecological modeling, mammalian ecology, craniofacial biology, primatology, biodiversity threats, and the intersection of faith and science. He also analyzed fossil assemblages from southern Africa's Pliocene and Pleistocene epochs to establish a relative chronology, identifying a sequence of sites based on the Faunal Resemblance Index calculated from time-sensitive mammals.

Awards and honors 2009 – Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science 2016 – Emmy Award, National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences 2018 – Fellow, Ohio Academy of Science