To honor Black History Month, we highlight members of the Black/African American community who have left a significant impact on the statistics field through their roles as mentors, educators, and entrepreneurs. Explore their stories to discover how they began their journeys, achieved their milestones, and established their careers.
Kaleab Z. Abebe
Kaleab Abebe’s journey to becoming a tenured professor in biostatistics at the University of Pittsburgh began in the small town of Goshen, Indiana.
Benedict Anchang
Benedict Anchang’s trek from Cameroon to the National Institutes of Health is a testament to resilience. Growing up as an anglophone in a predominantly francophone country, he found solace in mathematics, a passion his mother encouraged until her passing when Anchang was just 18.
Adeniyi Adewale
Born in Nigeria, Niyi Adewale aspired to become a medical doctor, engineer, or lawyer—professions he equated with success. His love for mathematics initially steered him toward engineering, but setbacks led him to pursue his true passion: mathematics.
Portia Exum
Portia Exum’s path to becoming a software development manager at SAS started in Newark, New Jersey, where her love for math was sparked in the first grade as she watched her father solve algebra problems.
Musie S. Ghebremichael
Musie S. Ghebremichael’s love for mathematics and medicine started early and propelled him to earn his bachelor’s degree in mathematics in his home country of Eritrea. Eventually, he moved to the states to pursue graduate work: a PhD in statistics from Rice University and a postdoctoral fellowship at Yale University.
Ben Hansen
Growing up in Berkeley and Oakland, California, Ben Hansen was surrounded by inspiration and possibility. Drawn to the beauty of mathematics and the depth of philosophy, he enrolled in UC Berkeley’s Group in Logic and Methodology of Science.
Jacqueline Hicks
Jacqueline Hicks’s journey into biostatistics began in Livonia, Michigan, where her family of engineers instilled a deep appreciation for math and science. While excelling in college math, it was a course in mathematical biology that inspired her career path.
Monica Jackson
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Monica Christine Jackson grew up in a joyful, game-filled home where creativity and math intertwined. With siblings who coded computer games, her love for math sparked early.
Tiffany M. Kollah
Tiffany Kollah, a Pittsburgh native and daughter of Kenyan immigrants, has forged a remarkable path in public health and data science. With a passion for mental health statistics and increasing diversity in clinical trials, she combines her expertise in research to benefit public health.
Isaac Nuamah
Biostatistician, Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine Isaac Nuamah grew up in Kumasi, Ghana, and earned his Bachelor of Science degree in statistics from…
Sandra Safo
Sandra Safo’s journey from Ghana to a career in statistics is a tribute to her love of mathematics and problem-solving. Initially drawn to combining math and finance, her path shifted after she discovered data analysis during her undergraduate studies.
Carmen D. Tekwe
Carmen Tekwe’s path to biostatistics was inspired by her grandfather’s dedication as a medical doctor and her parents’ academic pursuits in Nigeria. Initially aiming to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps, Carmen discovered her passion for statistics and its applications in medicine and public health.
Sharifa Z. Williams
Sharifa Z. Williams, born in Jamaica, began her journey to becoming a biostatistician with a pivotal high school moment: extra math lessons from a passionate teacher, who transformed her struggles into success, igniting a lifelong love for mathematics.
Jeffrey R. Wilson
Jeffrey R. Wilson, a professor of statistics and biostatistics at Arizona State University, combines his Trinidadian roots with a passion for using data to address societal challenges.
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