This page tells a little more about me and my journey into biostatistics.

The role of a biostatistician is largely the role of the storyteller, in that the biostatistician has the opportunity to communicate and interpret the stories represented by data. And I have been steeped in storytelling since I was a little girl – I am from the rolling hills of middle Tennessee, around the Nashville metro area. I grew up listening to country music and having family meals every Sunday with my parents & grandparents after church. Good country music and good family conversations are all centered on stories - stories that bring people together and communicate a message.

When I was in high school, the stories began to include numbers. I had two really great math teachers in high school who inspired me to see the beauty of math. With this motivation, I majored in math at Wheaton College, a liberal arts school in the Chicago area. During my junior year at Wheaton, a professor who knew I loved applying math to solve real-world problems recommended that I apply for a Summer in Biostatistics (SIB) program. I had never heard of biostatistics, but I applied and was accepted to the SIB program hosted by the University of Iowa. I spent the summer of 2018 in Iowa doing a research project that involved using machine learning methods to analyze image data from lung cancer screening. I absolutely loved it – the work was both challenging and purposeful. I returned to U. Iowa Biostatistics to start a Master’s program in the fall of 2019, and in May of 2025 I graduated with my Ph.D.

Both of my parents really encouraged me to go all the way for the Ph.D., and I mention them here to honor the incredible presence they’ve had in my life. I especially want to mention my dad - he was my biggest cheerleader in life, and the one who really encouraged me to pursue a career in the mathematical sciences. He passed away in 2022 from glioblastoma - a rare brain cancer. Journeying with him through the patient experience of new treatments and hospital encounters made my work in biostatistics get real, and affirmed that I want to apply my degree toward health/medical research for the benefit of patient care.