In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating remarkable women in statistics, biostatistics, and data science. As mentors, educators, and influencers, they’ve shaped the field in countless ways. Read their journeys and learn about their incredible achievements.
Celebrating Women in Statistics
Donna Brogan
Denied technical roles early in her career, Donna Brogan went on to earn a PhD and became a pioneer in biostatistics and women’s health. As a founder of the Caucus for Women in Statistics and Data Science, her legacy reaches far beyond her research.
Grace Wahba
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.
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.
Peggy Carr
Peggy Carr’s family moved to Cleveland, Ohio, in the 1950s—during The Great Migration—and that is where Carr was born and attended grade school.
Qixuan Chen
Qixuan Chen’s journey into statistics was deeply inspired by her father, who pursued a self-taught degree in statistics while managing more than 100 employees, achieving the highest GPA in his class.
Elizabeth Colantuoni
Elizabeth Colantuoni grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and returned there after college to pursue her professional career and start a family.