Amanda Veile

Amanda Veile is an Associate Professor of Biological Anthropology at Purdue University's Department of Anthropology within the College of Liberal Arts. She also holds a courtesy faculty appointment in the Department of Public Health at Purdue University. Dr. Veile serves as the Director of the Laboratory for Behavior, Ontogeny and Reproduction (LABOR), a Center for Families Fellow, and Assistant Editor at Birth, a peer-reviewed obstetrics and gynecology journal. She is currently the Vice President of the Human Biology Association and previously served as Program Chair.

Dr. Veile earned her PhD in Evolutionary Anthropology from the University of New Mexico in 2011, with a dissertation titled 'The Evolutionary Ecology of Human Infancy.' She completed her Master's in Anthropology with distinction from the University of New Mexico in 2006, and her Bachelor's in Anthropology with a Biology minor (Summa cum laude) from the same institution in 2004. Prior to her PhD, she earned an Associate's degree in Recreation and Wildlife Management from Hocking College in 2000. Following her doctorate, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University and a Visiting Assistant Professor at Dartmouth College before joining Purdue University in 2015.

Dr. Veile's research program examines human evolutionary biology with a focus on birthing and breastfeeding behaviors and outcomes, and several epidemiologic factors that shape cross-cultural variation in child development. Her work primarily centers on Latin American indigenous populations, particularly the Yucatec Maya in Mexico and various indigenous communities in Peru. She investigates how modernization, urbanization, and the medicalization of birth affect maternal-child health outcomes, with specific attention to cesarean delivery rates, infant feeding practices, and child growth patterns. Her research is grounded in life history theory and evolutionary medicine frameworks, examining mechanisms of human evolutionary biology that illuminate biocultural processes underlying global health inequities.

Dr. Veile's publications reveal consistent research themes across evolutionary anthropology, human behavioral ecology, and indigenous health. Her work demonstrates how evolutionary perspectives can illuminate contemporary health challenges, particularly in epidemiologically transitioning populations. A significant portion of her research examines the rising cesarean delivery rates in Latin America and their consequences for child development, while another strand focuses on breastfeeding dynamics and infant feeding practices across different cultural contexts. Her interdisciplinary approach bridges biological anthropology, public health, and evolutionary medicine, with findings published in journals including American Anthropologist, American Journal of Biological Anthropology, and Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.

• 2016 Excellence in Teaching Award at Purdue University
• 2019 Graduate Teaching and Mentoring Award at Purdue University
• National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow
• Assistant Editor at Birth journal
• Vice President of the Human Biology Association

As a dedicated mentor, Dr. Veile advises numerous graduate and undergraduate students through her LABOR research group. Her current graduate students include Meredith Aulds and Valerie Tucker Miller, while her undergraduate researchers include Anahita Amirpour, Yu (Ivy) Chung, Sophie Mbongo, and Gracie Mae Cherye Turner. Among her alumni students are Lily Anderson (now in an MD/PhD program), Lauren Christopher, Sunny Asaf, Jill Inderstrodt (now an Assistant Professor), and Sydney Tuller. Dr. Veile has secured substantial research funding from numerous sources including The National Science Foundation, Harvard University Society of Fellows, Harvard University FAS Office of Postdoctoral Affairs, the Claire Garber Goodman Fund (Dartmouth College), the Purdue Research Foundation, and the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute.

Dr. Veile directs the Laboratory for Behavior, Ontogeny and Reproduction (LABOR), a multidisciplinary research group with a Biohazard Level 2 wet lab at Purdue University. The LABOR facility has capacity to run Enzyme Linked Immunoassays (ELISA) to measure metabolic hormones and immunoproteins in human saliva and dried blood spots. The lab supports field and laboratory research focused on maternal-child health, with particular emphasis on indigenous communities in Mexico and Peru. LABOR provides training and research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students from Anthropology, Public Health, and related disciplines. Dr. Veile currently maintains two major indigenous health projects: 'Causes and Consequences of Rising Cesarean Delivery Rates in the Yucatec Maya' and 'Urbanization, Migration and Indigenous Health in Peru.'