Dr. Joan Finkle de Peña was a longtime serving faculty member with the Department of Anthropology, University of Manitoba. She was born in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1923. She later attended the University of Nebraska (1945) and Columbia University, where she received her Bachelor of Arts, and Master of Arts (1948), respectively. In 1959 she attained a PhD in Anthropology from Indiana University, and she was subsequently employed at St. Louis University (Missouri) as a professor in anthropology and anatomy. During this period in St Louis she was a pioneer in extended education, hosting a local television program geared to adults wanting to further their education. In 1966 she moved to Winnipeg, where she was hired to help build and promote the newly established Department of Anthropology, University of Manitoba. At the University of Manitoba, Dr. de Peña taught countless undergraduate and graduate courses, as well as mentoring many graduate students, who themselves would later become anthropologists. She also served 6 years as head of the department, retiring from teaching in 1987.

During her years as a graduate student, she conducted research in Puerto Rico, and later as a faculty member at the University of Manitoba, she continued her academic research work with her studies of the Inuit of the North. Dr. de Peña was internationally respected by her colleagues in the field of anthropology, often attending and contributing papers to national and international conferences. She held memberships in several Professional Societies including The American Anthropology Association, The American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, The Canadian Association of Physical Anthropologists, The New York Academy of Sciences and Sigma Xi (honours) Scientific Research Society, to name a few. Dr. de Peña passed away on August 31, 2009. She had two children, Katia and Morgan.