Jerome Penn Keuper was born in 1921 to Clarence and Aileen Keuper and grew up in Ft. Thomas, Kentucky. He attended Highlands High School, graduating in 1938. Keuper attended Eastern Kentucky State College until 1941 when he joined the Army to serve in WWII. Initially Keuper was in Field Artillery, Motor Transport, and Communications, but was transferred to the newly created intelligence agency called the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). His service in the OSS took him through the “China-Burma-India” theater of the war , sparking a life-long interest in East Asian culture. Post-war, Keuper used the GI bill to further his education. He was awarded his B.S. in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1948, his M.S. in Physics from Stanford in 1949, and his Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Virginia in 1952. Keuper married Natalie Packard Snow in 1948, and the couple had two children: Melanie and Philip Keuper. After graduating, Keuper’s early career (1952-1957) consisted of both research and teaching positions in Bridgeport, Connecticut. He was a senior research physicist at the Remington Arms Company and chairman of the mathematics department at the Bridgeport Engineering Institute. In 1957, Keuper received an invitation for a job interview with the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) Missile Test Project in Cape Canaveral, Florida. He accepted a position as a senior engineer at RCA , one of many young scientists to relocate to Florida’s Space Coast during the height of the space race.

Keuper had enjoyed his teaching position at the Bridgeport Engineering Institute, so when he noticed the lack of higher educational institutions in the Melbourne area he was inspired to create one. With the help of several other RCA scientists, namely George Peters, Donya Dixon, Robert Kelly and Harold Dibble, Keuper founded the Brevard Engineering College (BEC) in 1958. BEC (later Florida Institute of Technology) was initially designed with the educational needs of the area’s “missile men” in mind , and grew from there. Keuper served as president until 1986, working to expand and develop Florida Tech into the academic institution that it is today.

Keuper was involved in numerous professional and personal activities throughout his career, aside from serving as president of Florida Tech. He was a major proponent of the Florida-Columbia partnership, an alliance designed, “to promote goodwill, develop mutual educational programs, stimulate trade and agriculture, and generally build an economic and cultural bridge between the southern and northern hemispheres, and more particularly the state of Florida and northern coast of South America.” He served as president of the International Palm Society , and his interest in palms on campus contributed to what is now the Joy and Gordon Patterson Botanical Garden at Florida Tech. Keuper served as Chair of the Council of Presidents for the State Board of Colleges and Universities, Director of the Federal Reserve of Independent Colleges and Universities, and Director of Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. He was a Mystic Shriner, dedicating time to community service. Keuper was a member of the Florida Council of 100, collector of antique MG cars, and world traveler.

Jerome P. Keuper received numerous accolades and honorary degrees. A few of these include Florida Tech’s President's Medal, Daughters of the American Revolution Medal of Honor, Honorary Doctorate of Science from the Bridgeport Institute, Honorary Doctor of Science from Eastern Kentucky University, and an Honorary Doctor of Civil Law from Jacksonville University. After battling with illness, Keuper passed away in March 2002.

The eclectic life of Jerome Keuper is highlighted throughout his collection. In it, the personal and professional worlds of Keuper are intertwined. Jerome Keuper responded to the educational needs of a growing community on the space coast and left an impact on that community beyond the classroom.