Brian Caffo, Ingo Ruczinski, and Catherine Crespi

Karen Bandeen-Roche

The Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies has named Karen Bandeen-Roche, Hurley Dorrier Professor and chair of the department of biostatistics at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the 2023 recipient of the F. N. David Award. She is a highly established biostatistician with signature leadership in research, education, and administration.

A biostatistical generalist in her methods research, Bandeen-Roche has published nearly 300 peer-reviewed manuscripts about a wide range of topics. She has contributed greatly to latent variable model methodology and led methods work in the medical and epidemiology literature. In particular, she has been a tireless leader in the promotion of biostatistical thinking in the field of aging. Her leadership roles at the Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health have guided an organization the size of a large statistics department.

As a bridge researcher who is helping to close the gap between aging research and biostatistics, Bandeen-Roche is a fellow of both the American Statistical Association and Gerontological Society of America. She has been an active participant and leader in major biostatistical and statistical organizations. Of particular relevance are her service as chair and executive committee member of the International Biometric Society Eastern North American Region, chair and executive committee member of the ASA Caucus on Academic Representatives, chair of the ASA Biometrics Section, and chair of the Biostatistical Methods and Research Design National Institutes of Health study section, which represents the primary funding outlet for methodological, theoretical, and general applied biostatistical research.

Bandeen-Roche was also elected to the International Biometric Society Executive Board, which allows her to shape the vision and activities of the society. Since 2020, she has served on the National Institute of Statistical Sciences Board of Directors.

In education, Bandeen-Roche’s leadership has expanded biostatistical instruction, including onsite, hybrid, and online teaching at all levels. The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health biostatistics department now has a large presence in online open education, including massive open online courses. At the same time, she remains a dedicated and passionate in-person educator and is regularly recognized as such.

Bandeen-Roche won the Bloomberg School’s highest teaching award, the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching. In addition, she is a three-time recipient of the Advising, Mentoring, and Teaching Recognition Award, given annually by the students of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in recognition of outstanding educational contributions.