Spring 2026 Newsletter

Spring 2026 Snedecor Semester Recap header graphic

Contents

Message from the Chair

Upcoming Events

Our Spring 2026 Department of Statistics recap includes news and updates from December 2025-May 2026.

ASA Alumni Awards

Students Spotlights

Student Successes

Alumni Spotlights

Faculty and Research Highlights

Past Events

Resources

Message from the Chair

Dear Students, Staff, Faculty, Alumni, and Friends of the ISU Department of Statistics,

On July 1, I will begin a new position at Iowa State University as associate dean for finance and operations in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. This change will mark the end of my time as chair of the Department of Statistics. I feel honored to have been entrusted with the responsibility of leading our outstanding department for seven years, and it has been wonderful to work with the excellent people associated with ISU Statistics. Thanks for all your past support of the Department of Statistics at Iowa State and your continued support going forward!

Professor Zhengyuan Zhu has been selected to serve as interim chair of the Department of Statistics for the coming year. Professor Zhu earned a Ph.D. in statistics from the University of Chicago in 2002. He began at Iowa State as an assistant professor in 2009 and was promoted to associate (2011) and full professor (2017). In addition to being a professor, he has served as director of the Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology at Iowa State since 2013 and is an elected member of the International Statistical Institute (2014) and a Fellow of the American Statistical Association (2020). He won the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Mid-Career Achievement in Research Award (2017) and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Outstanding Achievement in Research Award (2025). He was named LAS Dean’s Professor in 2019 and Kingland Fellow in 2026. Professor Zhu is an excellent choice to lead the department during this time of transition, and I look forward to working with him in our new roles.

Thanks to our communications specialist Abby Stanek for preparing our Spring 2026 Newsletter. I hope you enjoy reading some of our stories from the past six months.

With thanks and best regards,

Dan

Upcoming EventsTwo individuals stand side by side indoors on a wooden floor in a large, busy dining space. Both face the camera and pose in front of long communal tables filled with seated groups of people eating and talking.

Statistics alumni celebrated by American Statistical Association

  • 2026 ASA Founder: Cyndy Long, M.S., 1989
  • 2026 ASA Fellows
    • Sixia Chen, Ph.D., 2012
    • Jingyi Liu, Ph.D., 1992, M.S., 1988
    • Pushpal Mukhopadhyay, Ph.D., 2006, M.S., 2003
    • Jeffrey Wilson, Ph.D., 1984, M.S., 1980
    • Shu Yang, Applied Mathematics and Statistics Ph.D., 2014
  • Bob Riffenburgh Award: Dave Osthus, Ph.D., 2015, M.S., 2011
  • Deming Lecturer Award: Sallie Keller, Ph.D., 1983

Student Spotlights

  1. Evelyn Aron (statistics and economics; data science and mathematics minors)
  2. Sarah Bass (statistics; data science and applied artificial intelligence minors)
  3. Ashlyn Croft (statistics and philosophy; biology minor)
  4. Thenuki De Mel (statistics and mathematics; psychology minor)
  5. Nicole Dembny (statistics; data science minor; healthcare management certificate)
  6. Sam Fox (statistics Ph.D. student)
  7. Gwen Hammond (statistics; data science and communication studies minors)
  8. Ryan Jensen (data science; statistics and computer science minors)
  9. Carter Kephart (statistics and biology)
  10. Megan Mason (statistics; data science minor)
  11. Sydney McIntosh (psychology; statistics and biology minors)
  12. Izzy Nau (statistics; computer science minor; actuarial science certificate)
  13. Mariah Ogunsola (psychology; statistics minor)
  14. Lilly Otter (animal ecology and statistics)
  15. Matt Pischke (statistics; biology minor)
  16. Gabe Sevde (psychology; statistics and Spanish minors)
A collage of multiple individual portrait photos arranged in a grid layout with red borders separating each image.

Student Successesour people stand together indoors in front of a cinderblock wall marked with blue tape and the word “STATS!” written on the wall. One person in the foreground holds the camera for a group selfie. Colorful sticky notes are arranged on the wall behind them, and all four wear casual clothing with Iowa State University logos visible.

Alumni Spotlights

  1. Marissa Baietto (B.S., statistics and data science, Fall 2025)
  2. Emma Engelbert (B.S., statistics, Fall 2021)
  3. Srilikitheswari Korrapati (B.S., statistics, Fall 2025)
  4. Emily Green (B.S., statistics, Spring 2024)
  5. Jenna Quigley (B.S., mathematics and statistics, Spring 2025)
  6. Srika Raja (B.S., statistics and data science, Fall 2025)
  7. Zack Swayne (B.S., statistics and data science, Spring 2025)
  8. Derek Thada (B.S., statistics and applied mathematics, Spring 2020)
  9. Jordan Turnbull (B.S., statistics and finance, Spring 2017)
A collage of multiple individual portrait photos arranged in a grid layout with red borders separating each image.

Faculty and Research Highlights

Past Event Highlights

Resources