Monica Jackson

Deputy Provost and Dean of Faculty Academic Affairs, American University

Monica Christine Jackson was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, with her two brothers, one of which is her twin. They grew up in a household filled with games, laughter, and fun times, and her interest in math and statistics stems from that environment. Her siblings and she would make up games and even write their own code to make computer games, so she knew at an incredibly early age she wanted to study math. It was her love of math that led her to a career in statistics.

In middle school, Jackson was learning math so quickly she became bored and stopped excelling, so she transferred to Notre Dame De Sion—a private college preparatory school for girls—and her zest for math returned and grew. “I enjoyed studying with girls who loved math as much as I did,” said Jackson.

Attending Clark Atlanta University as an undergraduate student solidified Jackson’s desire to pursue an advanced degree in math. “It was my postdoc at Emory University that led me to a career in statistics that focused on studying spatial statistics and disease surveillance with applications to developing, investigating methods for detecting cancer clusters, global clustering patterns, and developing simulation algorithms for spatially correlated data,” said Jackson.

She has had many proud moments throughout her life, including writing her first statistics book, Elementary Statistics: A Guide to Data Analysis Using R; leading a summer research experience program titled SPIRAL that aims to train students to conduct mathematical and statistical research; switching to an administrative career in which she has been able to mentor and support faculty in their academic endeavors; and mentoring students navigating their career and school choices, celebrating with them when they succeeded. But Jackson’s proudest moments are those she spends with her family and friends, especially during holidays. They have been the best support system for her and guided her throughout her career. They celebrated the good times and lifted her up through the tough times. “I am truly grateful for them,” she said.