While working full time and raising a child, Grace Wahba earned advanced degrees, completing her PhD at Stanford. She pioneered smoothing splines, shaping modern nonparametric regression and leaving a lasting imprint on data analysis and machine learning.
Additional Features
Jenna Krall
Jenna Krall blends art and analysis, moving from dance and mathematics to public health research. Now a tenured professor at George Mason, she brings creativity, teaching, and statistics together to train future public health professionals.
Nan Laird
Nan Laird explored languages and computer science before discovering statistics and its power to connect theory with the real world. At Harvard, she helped reshape how scientists analyze complex, imperfect data and changed modern biostatistics in the process.
Regina G. Dolgoarshinnykh
Growing up in the Soviet Union, Regina Dolgoarshinnykh navigated scarce computing resources and skepticism of statistics. Today, she shapes students at Columbia with a classroom built on rigor, clarity, and purpose.
Katherine Wallman
Katherine Wallman joined the federal statistical system in 1967 and became Chief Statistician of the United States in 1992. She championed data confidentiality and evidence-based policymaking and focused on strengthening ties with state education agencies.
Q&A with ASA Founder Rob Gould
Rob Gould has spent his career encouraging, influencing, and inspiring statistics students and educators. Learn more about the ASA Founder in this interview.
ASA GivesBack’s Year in Review
ASA Gives Back had a busy 2025. Read a recap of the year’s events and see the winners of their year-end haiku and meme contest.
Call for Papers: Statistics for Astronomical Imaging Data
The ASA journal Statistics and Data Science in Imaging is planning a special issue on statistics for astronomical imaging data.
‘Significance’ Highlights | From Santa Claus to Taylor Swift: What the Data Reveals
This issue of Significance Magazine features two global superstars: Santa Claus and Taylor Swift.
This Month in Statistics History: Black History Month
This month, we highlight the contributions of seven pioneering Black and African American statisticians.