Jennifer Anne Raff (born 1979, née Kedzie) is an American geneticist and an assistant professor of Anthropology at the
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...
. She specializes in anthropological genetics relating to the initial peopling of the Americas and subsequent prehistory of Indigenous populations throughout North America. She is the President of the
American Association of Anthropological Genetics. Alongside her research, Raff is a science communicator who writes and gives public talks about topics in science literacy.
Early life and education
Raff was born in
Carbondale, Illinois. She moved from
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
to
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
when she started high school.
While she was a child, her mother started a doctoral degree in neuroscience, which inspired Raff to follow a career in scientific research. During her last year of high school, Raff asked a professor in a nearby university if she could join his laboratory and started to work on molecular biology.
She received a B.A. in biology and anthropology from
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
*Indiana Universi ...
in 2001,
after which she worked for a year in a yeast molecular genetics lab. She received a master's degree in
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...
in 2008, and a doctoral degree in genetics and
biological anthropology
Biological anthropology, also known as physical anthropology, is a scientific discipline concerned with the biological and behavioral aspects of human beings, their extinct hominin ancestors, and related non-human primates, particularly from an e ...
in 2008, also from Indiana University.
Research and career
As a postdoctoral scholar, Raff worked with Dennis O’Rourke at the
University of Utah
The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...
, with M. Geoffrey Hayes at
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine is the medical school of Northwestern University and is located in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1859, Feinberg offers a full-time Doctor of Medicine degree p ...
in Chicago Illinois, and with
Deborah Bolnick at the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...
.
In 2015, Raaff was appointed Assistant Professor of Biological Anthropology at the
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...
where she conducts population genetics research on ancient and contemporary North American populations from the North American Arctic, the Midwest, and Texas.
Her research involves the analysis of genomes in
ancient
Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cov ...
and contemporary
DNA, which she uses to understand the histories of human populations. In particular, Raff has focused on the development of new approaches to extract ancient DNA.
In 2019, Raff was awarded a $450,000, three-year
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National ...
Search Grant to investigate the genetic history of the
Aleut
The Aleuts ( ; russian: Алеуты, Aleuty) are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands, which are located between the North Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea. Both the Aleut people and the islands are politically divided between the ...
people.
The project will see Raff investigating genomic information from ancient people for the
Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a chain of 14 large v ...
.
As of that same year, Raff was recognized as a Docking Faculty Scholar.
Raff teaches courses on Fundamentals of Physical Anthropology, on Human Evolution, and on Critical Analysis of Scientific Literature.
She is a faculty member with the Summer Internship for Indigenous Peoples in Genomics, a program designed to increase representation of Indigenous peoples in the field of genetics. In 2018, Raff was made Vice President of the
American Association of Anthropological Genetics and promoted to President in 2019.
Her first book, ''Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas'', was published in February 2022. The book is a genetic history of humans in North and South America and looks to teach people about the fundamental science of genetics. Raff is represented by agents
Janklow & Nesbit and publishers
Twelve Books.
Public engagement
Raff has written for public audiences on her blog "Violent Metaphors", in the ''Huffington Post'', for ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...
'' and for ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''. She has written about the importance of vaccination – in particular, her article ''"Dear parents, you are being lied to"'' has been translated into several languages, including German, Italian, Norwegian, Vietnamese, Croatian. She has spoken about the dangers of
scientific racism
Scientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscience, pseudoscientific belief that empirical evidence exists to support or justify racism (racial discrimination), racial inferiority, or racial superiority.. "Few tragedies ...
and, in particular,
Nicholas Wade
Nicholas Michael Landon Wade (born 17 May 1942) is a British author and journalist. He is the author of numerous books, and has served as staff writer and editor for ''Nature'', ''Science'', and the science section of ''The New York Times''.
...
's book ''
A Troublesome Inheritance''. Raff was included in
Angela Saini's ''Superior: The Return of Race Science''.
Raff provided testimony to the
Texas Board of Education concerning the teaching of evolution in schools. She also provided a commentary about the information that could be learned from
Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth Ann Warren ( née Herring; born June 22, 1949) is an American politician and former law professor who is the senior United States senator from Massachusetts, serving since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party and regarded as a ...
's
DNA test
Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, o ...
.
Raff has worked to improve public understanding of the scientific process. She has appeared on several podcasts, including
Science for the People
Science for the People (SftP) is an organization that emerged from the antiwar culture of the United States in the late 1960s. Since 2014 it has experienced a revival focusing primarily on the dual nature of science. The organization advocates ...
,
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
Science Friday
''Science Friday'' (known as ''SciFri'' for short) is a weekly call-in talk show that broadcasts each Friday on public radio stations, distributed by WNYC Studios, and carried on over 400 public radio stations. ''SciFri'' is hosted by award-wi ...
,
Inside Science
''Inside Science'' is a science programme broadcast on BBC Radio Four. It is normally broadcast from 4:30 to 5 p.m. on Thursday, and is repeated 9 to 9:30 p.m. on Thursday. It is normally presented by Adam Rutherford, but may occasionally be ...
and on the
BBC World Service. She was part of ''
The Nature of Things
''The Nature of Things'' (also, ''The Nature of Things with David Suzuki'') is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on CBC Television on 6 November 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that hu ...
with
David Suzuki'' episode on the
Ice bridge
An ice bridge is a frozen natural structure formed over seas, bays, rivers or lake surfaces. They facilitate migration of animals or people over a water body that was previously uncrossable by terrestrial animals, including humans. The most sig ...
. She frequently gives public talks on science literacy issues, and was an invited speaker at
Skepticon
Skepticon is a skeptic and secular convention held in the United States. Guest speakers are invited to discuss skepticism, science, education, activism, and other related topics. This free event is sponsored by American Atheists and the Amer ...
.
Selected publications
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*
*
*
Personal life
Raff has trained in various martial arts alongside her sister, retired mixed martial artist
Julie Kedzie
Julie Kedzie (born March 18, 1981) is a retired American mixed martial artist. She is a third degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and specializes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Kedzie was Greg Jackson's personal assistant at Jackson's Mixed Martial Arts. K ...
. She holds a third dan black belt in Tae Kwon Do. She has also trained in MMA. She reached the semifinals in the Chicago Golden Gloves Women's 156 pound Senior Novice division in 2012, but lost the title bout to Allie Ayers.
Raff is married to Kenneth Colin McRoberts, and lives in
Lawrence, Kansas. They have one son.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raff, Jennifer
1979 births
Living people
University of Kansas faculty
Indiana University alumni
People from Carbondale, Illinois
American geneticists
American women bloggers
American bloggers
American anthropologists