The department has welcomed tenure-track assistant professors in recent years. Learn more about their research and teaching.
Lynna Chu
Lynna Chu joined the Department of Statistics as an assistant professor in 2019, drawn by the opportunity to grow as a statistician in both research and teaching. She was attracted to the department's mix of faculty working on diverse topics, from theory to real-world applications.
Chu's research focuses on developing statistical methods to address the challenges posed by the growing volume and complexity of modern data. Her work aims to uncover meaningful patterns in increasingly complex datasets through innovative methodological approaches.
"My favorite thing is the collaborative environment and community," Chu said. "I enjoy teaching students who ask great questions and keep me on my toes, and interacting with colleagues who are supportive, smart, and fun to work with."
Chu takes pride in developing research that is both methodologically interesting and useful in practice. She is equally proud of the students she has mentored, including her first Ph.D. student who graduated and is now a postdoctoral researcher.
Pulong Ma
Pulong Ma joined the Department of Statistics as an assistant professor in June 2023 and was previously at Clemson University. He was attracted to Iowa State by the department's resources and support that could better advance his professional career and his commitment to developing new statistical methods.
Ma's research is stimulated by real-world challenges and aims to address problems in physical sciences including remote sensing science and climate science, agriculture, engineering, and medical research. The department provides a platform for him to develop new statistical methods and theory for solving real-world problems in areas such as agriculture and engineering that are unique to Iowa State University.
Ma's proudest professional accomplishment was securing two National Science Foundation grants on two of his research topics. The first grant focuses on developing a new Gaussian process modeling framework based on random recursive partitioning. He acknowledges his Ph.D. advisors Emily Kang and Bledar Konomi, postdoctoral mentors Jim Berger and Li Ma, and his research collaborators for their guidance and support.
Kosuke Morikawa
Kosuke Morikawa joined the department as an assistant professor in August 2024, attracted by Iowa State's historic and continuing impact on the development of statistics as a discipline. He appreciates the department's central role in advancing the field and its combination of strong theoretical and applied statisticians working alongside closely connected research units such as the Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology.
Morikawa's research focuses on the analysis of missing data, data integration, semiparametric inference, point process data analysis, and statistical seismology. His work addresses practical challenges in data collection, particularly in situations where data cannot be collected exactly as originally planned.
"After a large earthquake, seismic activity increases dramatically, and it becomes very difficult to detect all events accurately in real time," Morikawa explained. "At the same time, there is an urgent need to predict aftershock activity as quickly as possible."
Kyle Schindl
Kyle Schindl joined the department as an assistant professor in fall 2025, attracted by the faculty's work in many interesting research areas and involvement in collaborative applied projects. He saw the Department of Statistics as the perfect place to start his research career and appreciated being part of such a well-established program.
"I really like Snedecor Hall," Schindl said. "Having our own building is a luxury and there are always students and faculty walking around and working together—the building feels like a living hub of statistics."
Broadly speaking, Schindl works in causal inference and experimental design. More specifically, he has been exploring ways to apply optimal transport methods to statistical problems, reframing traditional approaches through this mathematical framework. Schindl's proudest professional accomplishment is earning his Ph.D.