Image: The Department of Statistics hosted an Alumni Reunion Event at the recent 2026 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM) in Boston, Massachusetts. The event took place on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026 during the lunch hour at the Westin Boston Seaport District hotel, adjacent to the JSM venue. Over food and drinks, alumni of the department, former faculty members, current students, and a few guests mingled, reminisced about the department, shared news of former colleagues, and provided professional and personal updates. Among the attendees were graduates from as far back as the 1980s and as recent as 2026. Alumni attendees included Machell Town (MS, 1990), John Shen (MS, 2000), Theresa Devasia (BS, 2015; MS, 2016), Jianrong Li (MS, 1999), Aili Cheng (MS, 2000), Jordan Eckert (BS, 2017), Jiazhang Cai (PhD, 2026), Yongkai Chen (PhD, 2024), Samadi Yaser (PhD, 2014), and Xianyan Chen (PhD, 2016). It was also great to see former faculty colleagues, including John Stufken, Xianyan Chen, and Qian Xiao. The UGA Department of Statistics has been an academic, physical, and emotional home for so many people. For those who hold it dear, the JSM reunion event was a great opportunity to reconnect. The department really wants to stay in touch with former students and colleagues. Whether you attended the JSM event or not, we hope you will reach out and share your thoughts and news. A good way to do that is with the alumni update survey on the departmental website, which you can find on our Support the Department page. We wish to thank all those who attended the Alumni Reunion Event in Boston. It was great to see you! Huge thanks also go to Dr. Prince Allotey, who suggested that we host such an event in 2026 for the first time in several years. Prince was also the main organizer; without his enthusiasm and hard work, the event would not have taken place. Type of News/Audience: Alumni Departmental
