Alice Keith was born in Galesville, Wisconsin, in 1890. She attended the local schools, graduating from Galesville High School as class valedictorian in 1906.
For a year after she graduated from high school, Miss Keith taught in a rural school, but then she decided to go on to Valparaiso University in Indiana, from which she received her music teacher's certificate in piano and public school music in 1909. She went directly to a job at Gale College in Galesville, shere she taught piano and voice harmony until 1911. From 1911 to 1913, she taught public school music in DeForest, Wisconsin.
In 1913, Miss Keith went to the University of Wisconsin, where she majored in English and speech. While a student, she served as Assistant Supervisor of Music for the Madison, Wisconsin, city schools, and during the summers of 1914, 1915, and 1916, she conducted community singing, playground work, and story telling for the University of Wisconsin Extension Division Chautauguas.
From 1916 to 1918, Miss Keith supervised music in the city schools of La Crosse, Wisconsin, and in 1919, she became Dramatic Director of the New England Division of the War Camp Community Service where she produced plays, festivals, pageants, and operettas. In 1920-1921, she was on the professional stage in the East. From this, she returned to the W.C.C.S., producing plays and pageants. The largest production with which she was connected was the Chicago Fire Semi-Centennial Pageant for which she was assistant to the director.
During the years 1922 to 1925, Miss Keith was a lecturer on the educational staff of the Victor Talking Machine Company, and from 1926 to 1928, she was supervisor of music appreciation for the Cleveland, Ohio, city schools. In 1928, she returned to RCA as Director of Educational Activities, working with Walter Damrosch.
Miss Keith went to the Columbia Broadcasting System in 1929 as Broadcasting Director of the American School of the Air, a series of programs for schools.
After leaving CBS in 1932, Miss Keith traveled in Europe and worked for a master's degree in comparative education, which she obtained from Columbia University in 1934.
From 1934 until her death, Miss Keith taught radio and television techniques at the National Academy of Broadcasting, of which she was the founder. Also during this period, she produced programs, did publicity and promotional work for various civic and religious organizations, did special promotional work for the National Symphony Orchestra, taught classes at American, Catholic, and Maryland Universities and other places, lectured, and conducted summer camp workshops.
