Jennifer Muller

I am a biological anthropologist, focusing on the analysis of human skeletal remains from both archaeological and forensic contexts.  More specifically, my research involves the interpretation of blunt force trauma patterning.  Skeletal remains provide a biological record of an individual's life.  It is through the interpretation of such remains that the anthropologist may provide a window into the behaviors that led to the frequency of trauma and disease in past populations. 

Rather than focusing on a specific geographical location, my historical skeletal research has concentrated on the biological health of the poor and disenfranchised in the US. In these analyses, I seek to determine the types of stressors working on a population, how they developed, and ultimately, how they lead to disparities in health. 

I earned by Ph.D. from the University at Buffalo in 2006.  My dissertation research assesses the biological health of individuals from the W. Montague Cobb Human Skeletal Collection, Howard University. This collection is highly valuable to the anthropological community since the collection extends the time period for osteological assessment of African American remains by more than 30 years.   

My research in skeletal trauma has naturally led to scientific interest within the field of forensic anthropology. In Buffalo, I managed a cadaver-based lab which included dissections of several human and nonhuman primate cadavers. Throughout my academic career, I have developed relationships with the local forensics communities. In Buffalo, I assisted on several autopsies.   

 As anthropology is a field-based discipline, I feel that it is essential that experiential learning be a major component in the courses that I teach. In my first year at Ithaca College, students had several opportunities to engage in experiential learning, including: participation in a fossil collecting fieldtrip with the Museum of the Earth; observing primates at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse and The Bronx Zoo in NYC; and conducting search and recovery of mock homicide sites.  This semester, students also joined me in attendance at the Northeast Forensic Anthropology Association annual meeting.  

Courses taught at IC:

Introduction to Biological Anthropology

Introduction to Primates

Forensic Anthropology

The Biology of Poverty

Paleopathology

Human Variation