John Kantner

John Kantner, Ph.D., joined the University of North Florida in August 2013 as the Assistant Vice President for Research. Prior to that, he was Vice President for Academic & Institutional Advancement at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, NM, an independent center for research in the social sciences and humanities. From 1999 to 2006, Dr. Kantner was a faculty member in the Department of Anthropology & Geography at Georgia State University in Atlanta, where he achieved the rank of associate professor with tenure prior to his departure.

Dr. Kantner received his doctorate from the University of California–Santa Barbara, where he studied archaeology, anthropology, geography, geochemistry, and evolutionary theory. His research focuses on the archaeology of ancient societies, with a particular interest in the processes by which complex social and political regional institutions emerged from communities of comparatively simple horticulturists. His research is explicitly comparative, and he has collaborated on projects throughout the United States, as well as in Costa Rica and Peru. In addition to several books, Dr. Kantner’s research appears in journals such as Human Nature, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Journal of Anthropological Research, Journal of Archaeological Research, Journal of Archaeological Science, and Historical Archaeology.