It is a genuine joy to work with many dedicated and lovely students, witnessing their growth and transformation into independent and productive researchers.
My primary objective as a mentor is to support trainees in developing their own enthusiasm for research, while helping them build essential skills in critical thinking, literature evaluation, statistical modeling, and methodological innovation, as well as effective communication with collaborators from diverse educational backgrounds and disciplines.
The acronym of our research group, BAMBOO (Bayesian and Machine-Boosted Optimal Learning and Optimization), embodies my aspirations for trainees — to flourish, adapt, and excel in the ever-evolving landscape of statistical and biomedical research. Much like the bamboo plant, which symbolizes resilience and flexibility, I hope mentees cultivate tenacity in their scientific pursuits, embrace challenges with openness and adaptability, innovate boldly to drive meaningful advances in healthcare, and ultimately, contribute positively to the broader community.
Wanni Lei, Ph.D. student in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2024-present.
Zihan Zhou, Ph.D. student in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2024-present.
Zizhong Tian, Ph.D. candidate in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2022-present. Co-supervised with Vernon Chinchilli.
2024, Penn State Cancer Institute Hinkel Graduate Student Research Award
2024, Penn State Graduate Alumni Society Award
2024, Vernon M. Chinchilli Award for Excellence in Biostatistics
2024, Pennsylvania Academy of Science Student Research Grant Award
2023, Sigma Xi Society Grants-in-Aid Research Award
2023, Pennsylvania Academy of Science Student Travel Award
Xinying Fang, Ph.D. candidate in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2021-present.
2025, Honorable Mention, American Statistical Association Biopharmaceutical Section Student Paper Award
2023, Karl H. Beyer, Jr., M.D., Ph.D. Scholarship
2023, Pennsylvania Academy of Science Student Research Grant Award
2022, Penn State Graduate Alumni Society Award
2022, ASA Biopharmaceutical Section Regulatory-Industry Statistics Workshop Student Poster Recognition Award
2022, FDA Biostatistical Research Fellowship
2022, Pennsylvania Academy of Science Student Travel Award
Chenqi (Stacey) Fu, Ph.D. in Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Penn State University. 2019-2023. Now Data Scientist at Genentech.
2022, Penn State Graduate Alumni Society Award
2022, ASA Biopharmaceutical Section Scholarship Award
2022, American Statistical Association Health Policy Statistics Section Student Paper Award
2022, ENAR Distinguished Student Paper Award
2022, Honorable Mention, AAAS Annual Meeting E-Poster Award
Xinyue (Nancy) Qi, Ph.D. in Biostatistics, University of Texas School of Public Health, 2017-2020. Co-supervised with Christine Peterson. Now Manager at Gilead.
2020, Doctoral Dissertation Research Award
2020, International Chinese Statistical Association Student Paper Award
2019, Julius & Suzan Glickman Endowed Scholarship in Innovation
Yanxi Hu, Ph.D. candidate in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2023-present.
Qiuxin Gao, Ph.D. student in Applied Statistics, Johns Hopkins University. 2023-present. Co-supervised with Yanxun Xu.
Yanbing Chen, Ph.D. student in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2025.
Yimeng Shang, Ph.D. candidate in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2021-2025.
2025, Honorable Mention, American Statistical Association Risk Analysis Section Student Paper Award - Non-Parametric Survival Analysis of Transient Data: a Pseudo-Competing Risk Approach
Pritika Singh, M.D. candidate, PSU College of Medicine. 2022-2024.
Jill Stachowski, M.D. candidate, PSU College of Medicine. 2022-2024.
Rong (Jeffery) Zhao, Ph.D. student in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2022-2023.
Xinyi Liu, Ph.D. student in Biostatistics, Penn State University. 2020.
Bo Zhao, MD, UTHealth School of Public Health. 2015-2016.