Department of Biostatistics

RSVP today at https://bit.ly/4voItUD for the 2026 Joint UW Biostatistics/Statistics Alumni Reception at this year's JSM held in Boston, Massachusetts. The event will be held August 3 from 5-7p.m. EDT. Join us for an evening of connection and conversation!

UW's Thomas Lumley, PhD ’98, an affiliate biostatistics faculty member in the University of Washington School of Public Health, is among the recipients of the $1 million 2026 Rousseeuw Prize in Statistics, considered the Nobel Prize for statisticians. Lumley and others were recognized for their pivotal achievements in advancing R programming language.⁠
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Pictured: Professor Thomas Lumley (right), with fellow recipients Associate Professor Paul Murrell and Associate Professor Simon Urbanek, R Project scientists in the University of Aukland Department of Statistics.⁠

https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2026/06/19/scientists-working-on--r--win-global-award---.html

There’s still time to register for learning opportunities in clinical trials, two-phase studies, causal inference, biomarkers, and analyzing longitudinal and time-to-event data. Early rates end June 15! https://si.biostat.washington.edu/institutes/siscer

Check out our Statistics in Big Data courses designed to introduce biologists, quantitative scientists, and statisticians to modern statistical techniques for the analysis of biological big data. Early rates end June 15!

https://si.biostat.washington.edu/institutes/sisbid

Congratulations, Ellen Graham, recipient of the 2026 Thomas R. Fleming Excellence in Biostatistics Award! Ellen was presented the award at the department's graduation ceremony: https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/celebrating-biostatistics-students-class-2026

Congratulations, Ameer Dharamshi, recipient of the 2026 Thomas R. Fleming Excellence in Biostatistics Award, an honor given to a PhD student. Ameer was presented the award at the department's graduation ceremony: https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/celebrating-biostatistics-students-class-2026

Congrats to Breanna Brown, recipient of the Senior Student Award in the MS Capstone program! https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/celebrating-biostatistics-students-class-2026

Congratulations Congyu Hang, recipient of the 2026 Senior Student Award in the UW Biostatistics' MS Thesis program! Hang accepted the award at the department's graduation ceremony: https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/celebrating-biostatistics-students-class-2026

Congratulations to the UW Biostatistics Class of 2026! See highlights from our department graduation held Saturday, June 6! https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/celebrating-biostatistics-students-class-2026

Congratulations to Gabriela Vasconcelos, recipient of the University of Washington School of Public Health Outstanding Doctoral Student award in Biostatistics! Vasconcelos is a PhD graduate from UW whose research sits at the intersection of statistical innovation and applied genomics. Advised by Dr. Ali Shojaie, she developed methods for spatial transcriptomics with a persistent focus on usability and interpretability, building tools that are not only theoretically grounded but also accessible to a broad scientific audience. She is now a postdoctoral researcher at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, continuing to advance statistical methodology for spatial and single-cell genomics.

“Gabby is an outstanding scholar with a bright future," said Ali Shojaie, interim department chair and professor of biostatistics, and Vasconcelos' advisor.

"She thinks deeply about data analysis with a maturity that is exceptional for people at her stage. She is also a true scholar and an amazing communicator, who genuinely cares about making impactful contributions and demonstrates incredible curiosity about the scientific context of the problems she engages in. Gabby is also very independent, yet collegial and a fantastic collaborator,” said Shojaie.

Read more about her work and achievements: https://www.biostat.washington.edu/news/stories/biostatistics-students-receive-2026-school-public-health-excellence-awards