James Keppeler is currently a PhD Candidate in the University of Kentucky Department of Anthropology exploring debates on the early introduction of rice agriculture in the Philippines. James is excavating in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, exploring the timing and origin of rice agriculture in that region. James has also worked on applications of 3D digitization methods in archaeological research and cultural heritage preservation and education.

James completed his BA in Classics from the University of Minnesota in 2018, where he studied the effects of cultural creolization in the Roman province of Dacia. For his Master of Science degree in Archaeological Science at the University of Tübingen (2021), James conducted a geometric morphometric analysis on ancient Egyptian mummified human remains to research diachronic population changes at the site and community of Gebel Abusir.