About CENS
The Council for Emerging and New Statisticians (CENS) was formed in 2012 by ENAR’s Regional Advisory Board (RAB) in 2012 to help ENAR better address the needs of all students and recent graduates. CENS members are graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and recent graduates in the ENAR community, and they represent academia, government, and private industry. With the help of the RAB Liaison, CENS members contribute to the ENAR mission by:
- Bringing student/recent graduate concerns to the attention of RAB and ENAR
- Working to help ENAR better serve all students/recent graduates
- Suggesting and implementing ideas that enhance the benefits of an ENAR membership
- Increasing awareness of ENAR among students and early-career members
- Organizing CENS sessions at each ENAR Spring Meeting
- Planning events that support the training and professional development of students and recent graduates
- Contributing to the development of ENAR’s social media presence
CENS Mission
CENS seeks to advocate for the needs and concerns of students and recent graduates in collaboration with ENAR’s Regional Advisory Board. Through annual events at the ENAR Spring Meeting, CENS strives to promote the benefits of participation in the ENAR community, support the advancement of students and recent graduates, and facilitate stronger connections within the statistical community.
Council Members (2026-2027)
CENS Leadership:
RAB Liaison: Gary Hettinger, NYU [Former CENS Co-Chair (2025-2026), Academia]
Steering Committee and Current Members:
Co-Chair: Ashley Mullan, Vanderbilt University [CENS 3rd Year, Graduate Student]
Co-Chair: John Bassler, The University of Alabama at Birmingham [CENS 3rd Year, Academia]
Kosta Tsingas, University of Pennsylvania [CENS 2nd Year, Graduate Student]
Tommy Cheng, University of Illinois Chicago [CENS 2nd Year, Graduate Student]
Current Members:
Jamie Joseph, Henry Ford Health [CENS 2nd Year, Academia]
Amy Zhang, Boston University [CENS 2nd Year, Graduate Student]
Irving Angeles, Women and Infants Hospital [CENS 2nd Year, Industry]
Jesus Vazquez, Johns Hopkins University [CENS 1st Year, Postdoctoral Fellow]
Agnes Duah, Indiana University Bloomington [CENS 1st Year, Graduate Student]
Yiran Wang, University of Toronto [CENS 1st Year, Postdoctoral Fellow]
Cassi Hung, Johns Hopkins University [CENS 1st Year, Graduate Student]
Adeeba Tak, Stanford University School of Medicine [CENS 1st Year, Academia]
Neelakshi Chatterjee, Georgia Southern University [CENS 1st Year, Academia]
Anusha Natarajan, Elsevier [CENS 1st Year, Industry]
Yiyan Hao, University of Pennsylvania [CENS 1st Year, Graduate Student]
Upcoming Events at ENAR 2027
CENS Invited Panel Session
Title: “From Data to Decisions: Using Statistical Evidence to Drive Change”
Day: TBD | Time: TBD
Summary: One small policy decision can have a large-scale impact. How can biostatisticians contribute to these decisions? As students and recent graduates enter careers that increasingly demand engagement with external stakeholders, they must advocate for responsible, evidence-based decision-making at every level. No matter their sector, early-career statisticians require guidance on how to navigate these conversations and processes.
Given the need among students and early-career professionals for mentorship on how to translate technical knowledge into actionable intervention, ENAR’s Council for Emerging and New Statisticians (CENS) is proposing a panel session featuring four experts with diverse roles and experience with evidence-driven decision making. The panel discussion, entitled “From Data to Decisions: Using Statistical Evidence to Drive Change”, will be tailored to our CENS audience, which primarily includes both early-career statisticians and senior practitioners invested in supporting their development. Our panel discussion will cover three major themes. First, panelists will share their experience implementing best practices for evidence-based decision making. Then, they will provide advice on handling the inevitable challenges that may hinder trust in the process. Finally, they will discuss how to showcase these skills on the job market. Topics such as collecting and maintaining data responsibly, building stakeholder confidence with unfamiliar or emerging methods, and translating statistical results into actionable health and policy recommendations will be explored. Our audience may include biostatisticians with limited experience dealing with external stakeholders, but panelists will ensure that the discussion remains broadly accessible.
CENS Networking Mixer
Day: TBD | Time: TBD
ALL are invited to attend the CENS Networking Mixer. Registration is not required—so please plan to attend! This event features free food/activities and is an opportunity for early- and established-career attendees to network and socialize.
CENS Networking Lunch
Day: TBD | Time: TBD
CENS organizes small-group lunches at local restaurants near the conference venue for students, postdocs, and early-career attendees who share similar professional interests. While CENS organizes the groups and coordinates restaurant reservations, the lunch is at your own expense. You must register for this event ahead of time, and there is no up-front cost to register. This information is used closer to the conference date, and ENAR/CENS will email registered conference attendees to confirm their interest and reserve a restaurant slot.
Contact Info
Please direct any questions or comments for CENS to enar.cens@gmail.com, and find us on social media: Instagram, LinkedIn, Bluesky, or on our CENS Website!
Join CENS!
Each member is appointed to a 2-year term. Within CENS, three or four people are chosen to participate in the steering committee, which reports to the RAB chair. Members of the steering committee will serve an additional year on CENS. CENS members will meet in person at the annual ENAR Spring Meeting and participate in web meetings throughout the year to plan events and address issues as they arise.
If you are interested in joining CENS, please email enar.cens@gmail.com.