Jo Hardin ’95, professor of mathematics and statistics, has been named to the Reuben C. and Eleanor Winslow Memorial Mathematics Professorship at Pomona College by vote of the College’s Board of Trustees.
Hardin, a former mathematics major, holds a doctoral degree in statistics from the University of California, Davis. After completing her degree, she was a lecturer at Seattle University and a staff scientist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
She joined the College in 2002 as an assistant professor of mathematics and statistics.
“Jo Hardin has been an inspiration to students inside and outside of the classroom,” says Y. Melanie Wu, vice president for academic affairs and dean of the College. “She has been instrumental in the establishment of the Data Science Major—an interdisciplinary field that helps our students learn how to use data to understand the world around them.”
In nominating Hardin for Pomona’s highest faculty honor, the Wig Distinguished Professor Award, which she has won twice, a student described her as “out of class, in class—a star.”
Another student nominator wrote, “Prof. Hardin embodies the Pomona spirit in every possible way. She is an outstanding teacher and a wonderful mentor. She truly cares about students and does everything she can to make their Pomona experience a good one.”
A prolific researcher, Hardin has been named a Fellow of the American Statistical Association and won its Waller Education Award. She is also an elected member of the International Statistics Institute.