Jay W. Gray, RPA

Arkansas Director of Operations

RPA Registration No. 989602

Jay Gray has been a Principal Investigator at CRA since 2012 and has served as the Director of Operations in the Arkansas Office since its founding. Prior to establishing the Arkansas Office, Jay oversaw the regional operations of CRA from the Shreveport, Louisiana office. He holds a master’s degree in anthropology from the University of Memphis and a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Northwestern State University of Louisiana, and Jay is a Registered Professional Archaeologist.

From an early age, Jay had an interest in the complex history and diverse communities that characterized western Louisiana in and around his hometown of Natchitoches. He was compelled to enroll in anthropology classes while attending undergraduate studies at Northwestern State University, and in 1996 Jay was hired by the National Park Service as an archaeological assistant during the development of the Cane River National Heritage Area. These investigations were on plantations in southern Natchitoches Parish along his rural childhood bus route, and digging into the past of these familiar places solidified Jay’s interest in archaeology. After graduating, Jay went on to work as a field and laboratory technician on cultural resource management projects, and he was drawn to the hands-on and fast paced nature of the work and he found value in the documentation of archaeological data and the preservation of places of significance that were otherwise endangered. With the intention of continuing his career in cultural resource management, Jay enrolled in graduate studies in the public archaeology program at the University of Memphis and he completed a graduate assistantship at the Chucalissa archaeological site and C.H. Nash Museum.

During his career, Jay has participated in a large number of Phase I, II and III projects throughout the South Central and Southeastern US for a wide range of local, state, federal, and private sector clients. His primary areas of interest have included pre-contact land use and archaeological site structure, hunter-gatherer settlement systems, late precontact societies, and Spanish colonial archaeology. Jay has also remained active in archaeological societies and organizations, with the goals of providing the public with opportunities to participate in and learn about archaeology, and in fostering interest among students that may choose a career in archaeology for themselves. Outside of archaeology, Jay’s favorite activities include mountain biking, gardening, cooking, brewing beer, and traveling and exploring with his wife, children, and dogs.