Biography
Abigail (Abbie) Houkes is a PhD candidate in Anthropology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, specializing in forensic anthropology and missing persons investigations. Working under the advisement of Dr. Cris Hughes (D-ABFA), her dissertation, Exploring the Current State and Perspectives on DNA Reference Samples in Missing Persons Investigations, traces the pipeline of DNA reference samples through the medicolegal system, examining how they are documented, identifying the hurdles that slow their collection and use, and building solutions alongside stakeholders. Her research is interdisciplinary, bridging forensic anthropology with criminology and sociology to examine how institutions, policies, and investigative practices shape which missing persons cases move forward. She combines quantitative analysis, qualitative interviewing, institutional ethnography, and disposability theory to evaluate DNA reference samples in the medicolegal system in Chicago, Illinois. Abigail works closely with law enforcement, medical examiner and coroner offices, and community organizations to identify barriers and build practical solutions for families of the missing.
Ethics is central to Abigail's work. She has collaborated with UIUC’s NAGPRA office and American Indian Studies on the ethical stewardship of osteological collections, served on the department’s Human Remains & Ethics Committee, and is currently working on evaluating the coloniality of forensic anthropological research and the bioethics of DNA in missing person and unidentified person cases.
Her applied work includes serving as a Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy (FIGG) intern with the Illinois State Police Cold Case Unit, where she developed a statewide cold case tracking system and an automated triaging pipeline for case prioritization. She also manages UIUC’s Forensic Anthropology Laboratory, is a forensic anthropology trainee, and develops the lab’s standards of practice and safety protocols. Her research has been published in Forensic Science International, the American Journal of Biological Anthropology, and Forensic Imaging, and has been supported by the Forensic Sciences Foundation, internal university grants, and the Mellon Foundation’s Humanities Without Walls program.
Additionally, Abigail has served as Instructor of Record for ANTH 246 Forensic Sciences and for ANTH 180 Archaeology of Death. She co-created ANTH 499, the Forensic Cold Case Practicum, in partnership with the Illinois State Police and Southern Illinois University, where students review real cases and recommend investigative leads using trauma-informed approaches. She also served on the Executive Committee of the American Association of Biological Anthropologists as Student Liaison from 2025-2026.
Abigail holds an M.A. in Anthropology from Louisiana State University (2022) and a B.S. in Anthropology from Florida State University (2020)