Randall H. McGuire is a professor in the Department of Anthropology at Binghamton University, and an archaeologist, known for his theoretical contributions to Marxist archaeology.

McGuire got his B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Texas in 1974. He continued his education at the University of Arizona where he got his M.A. in Anthropology in 1978, as well as his PhD in 1982. His PhD dissertation was on the Prehistory of SouthWestern Arizona. According to the Binghamton University faculty page, his main research interests include: archeology, social theory, historical archeology, US Southwest, and Northern Mexico. Other interests include quantitative methods, cultural resource management and archeomagnetic dating.

From 1969-2025, McGuire has conducted the majority of his research in the U.S. Southwest and is working in Altar Valley, Sonora with Elisa Villalpando. Both have been testing and excavating around Sonora in both Altar Valley and La Playa since 2014.

McGuire has taught courses at Binghamton University and at the University of Arizona. At Binghamton University he has taught introductory courses to both Anthropology and Archeology, as well as courses that focus on field research, native american culture, archeology of the Southwest, and skill-building in writing research proposals. At the University of Arizona through the department of Anthropology he taught a course about the Native peoples of the Southwest. He also taught two introductory courses in Archaeology and Physical Anthropology and in Cultural Anthropology through the Continuing Education department.

McGuire is a prodigious author, who has published many articles, books, and conference presentations. He has also edited several anthologies of archaeology essays. His major books include A Marxist Archeology, Archaeology as Political Action, and The Materiality and Heritage of Modern Forced Migration.

From 1976-2023, McGuire has held various administrative positions, especially as the chair and director of various degree programs and departments offered at Binghamton University, such as the chair for the department of Anthropology from 2005-2006 and again in 2010-2011. Most recently he was the director of the Master’s degree program in Public Archeology from 2020-2021 and then again in 2022-2023.

McGuire has won numerous awards for teaching and research between 1992-2016 such as: Binghamton Award for Excellence in Graduate Teaching (1992), Binghamton University Award for Excellence in Teaching (1997), McGraw-Hill AAA Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching of Anthropology (2002), and Patty Jo Watson Distinguished Lecturer, American Anthropological Association (2016). Between 1970-2021, McGuire has also been approved for many scholarships and grants that were able to make his research possible. Some of these grants include: Dissertation Improvement Grant for Hunter Claypatch, National Science Foundation (May 2021), Conceptualizing Cultural Contact and Transmission Across International Boundaries, National Science Foundation (August 2016), and the Cerros de Trincheras and Defense Project, National Science Foundation (August 2004).