[{"id":458,"date":"2026-10-28T14:12:01","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T18:12:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/?p=458"},"modified":"2026-10-28T14:12:04","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T18:12:04","slug":"dipankar-bandyopadhyay-2026-nira-honoree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/2026\/10\/28\/dipankar-bandyopadhyay-2026-nira-honoree\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A with Dipankar Bandyopadhyay, Ph.D., 2026 NIRA honoree"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

VCU\u2019s<\/em> National\/International Recognition Award<\/em><\/a> (NIRA) is an annual recognition for VCU faculty who are nationally or internationally recognized for exceptional accomplishments and performing at the top of their academic field. Recipients were honored at the Faculty Recognition Gala on Tuesday, October 27, 2026. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dipankar Bandyopadhyay, Ph.D.<\/a>, is a professor in the Department of Biostatistics<\/a> and has contributed significantly to modern statistical and artificial intelligence (AI) methods that address complex biomedical questions, particularly in oral health and cancer. His work ranges from new statistical methods for spatial and time-to-event data published in leading biostatistics journals to NIH-funded research using national data to rethink how dental caries and periodontal disease are studied at the population level. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, his methodological work on survival analysis was published in Statistics in Biosciences<\/em><\/a>, the official journal of the International Chinese Statistical Association<\/a>, and received the journal\u2019s 2025 Best Paper Award. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an affirmation of the importance of developing rigorous statistical tools for increasingly complex biomedical data,\u201d said Bandypadhyay. \u201cAs a health data scientist, what is most gratifying to me is seeing methodological innovation translate into questions that can ultimately improve precision prevention and patient care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biostatistics often serves as the invisible backbone of major scientific breakthroughs. How does it feel to have your quantitative contributions brought into the spotlight through this recognition? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Biostatistics \u2014 and more broadly, health data science \u2014 is often the quiet force behind scientific discoveries, providing the rigor and evidence that transform promising ideas into meaningful advances in human health. Being elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science<\/a> (AAAS) and receiving the prestigious Lowell Reed Lectureship<\/a> from the American Public Health Association in 2024 were deeply gratifying milestones, as they brought greater visibility to the role of statistical science in advancing public health. I see the NIRA recognition as a further celebration of this contribution, and of the extraordinary interdisciplinary collaborations that make our work possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How is your recent research moving the needle in addressing real-world public health challenges?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My research is driven by a simple goal: using innovative statistical methods to turn complex biomedical data into evidence that can improve public health. In oral health, our NIH-funded research combines Bayesian statistics, artificial intelligence, and nationwide health data to better understand periodontal disease, its relationship with Type-2 diabetes, and the burden of dental caries, with an emphasis on personalized prevention and identifying vulnerable populations. In cancer research, our work spans mapping geographic patterns of lung cancer across Virginia, identifying prognostic markers in head and neck cancer, and investigating resistance to targeted cancer therapies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ultimately, I believe the greatest impact of biostatistics lies in bridging methodological discoveries with real clinical challenges, helping us move toward earlier detection, more informed treatment decisions, and more equitable health outcomes.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

How do you see your current work shaping VCU\u2019s standing in the broader biostatistics and public health communities?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I see biostatistics not merely as a supporting discipline, but as a driving force for scientific discovery, with tremendous potential to elevate VCU\u2019s national and international reputation. Through NIH-funded research, methodological innovations published in leading statistical journals, and interdisciplinary collaborations spanning oral health, cancer, and organ transplantation, I am helping position VCU at the forefront of modern biostatistics and precision public health. My leadership roles within the American Statistical Association and the AAAS have also provided opportunities to represent VCU on national and international platforms, strengthening our visibility and helping build connections across the statistical and broader scientific communities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equally important to me is mentoring the next generation of statistical scientists and fostering collaborations across institutions and international borders, ensuring that VCU\u2019s influence extends far beyond our campus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biostatistics is a rapidly evolving discipline with the rise of big data and complex health metrics. Where does your award-winning work sit on the cutting edge of where the field is heading next?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe the next frontier of biostatistics and health data science lies at the intersection of rigorous statistical theory and artificial intelligence, where the goal is not simply to make better predictions, but to make them reliable, interpretable, and clinically meaningful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our recent research reflects this direction, from award-winning statistical methods for analyzing complex, partially observed health outcomes to AI-powered models for periodontal disease and innovative approaches for identifying prognostic biomarkers in cancer. Ultimately, I envision a future where sophisticated statistical learning transforms increasingly complex biomedical data into trustworthy, personalized evidence that guides disease prevention, treatment decisions, and public health policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you plan to build on this momentum to advance your future research goals, and those of your department and school?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I see this recognition not as a culmination, but as an opportunity to pursue even more ambitious research at the intersection of statistical innovation, artificial intelligence, and precision public health. Building on our NIH-funded programs, I hope to expand interdisciplinary collaborations across oral health, cancer, and other critical biomedical areas, while fostering new research partnerships and funding opportunities that strengthen our department and School of Public Health. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remain committed to mentoring statistical scientists, empowering junior faculty to pursue bold ideas, and thus helping position VCU as a nationally and internationally recognized leader in innovative biostatistics and impactful public health research. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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From left: Robert Perera, Ph.D.; Dipankar Bandyopadhyay, Ph.D.; Monica Swahn, Ph.D.; Samar El Khoudary, Ph.D.; and Roy Sabo, Ph.D.; attended the VCU Faculty Recognition Gala on October 27, 2026.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bandyopadhyay is the third NIRA honoree from the School of Public Health. Anika L. Hines, Ph.D., M.P.H.<\/a>, professor of health policy, received this recognition in 2023<\/a>, and Nolan Wages, Ph.D.<\/a>, professor of biostatistics, was honored in 2024<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

See the full list of 2026 NIRA recipients from across VCU<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dipankar Bandyopadhyay, Ph.D., is named to VCU\u2019s 2026 list of National\/International Recognition Award honorees. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2040,"featured_media":459,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,10],"tags":[14,37,100,3,9],"class_list":["post-458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-awards","category-news","tag-awards","tag-biostatistics","tag-nira","tag-public-health","tag-vcu-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2040"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=458"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":463,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458\/revisions\/463"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/459"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=458"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=458"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=458"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":449,"date":"2026-10-26T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/?p=449"},"modified":"2026-10-22T09:12:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T13:12:15","slug":"public-health-faculty-celebrated-endowed-professorship-chair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.vcu.edu\/sph\/2026\/10\/26\/public-health-faculty-celebrated-endowed-professorship-chair\/","title":{"rendered":"Two VCU Public Health faculty celebrated for recent endowed professorship and chair positions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By: Amanda Kowaleski and Erin Lucero<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Oct. 15, 77 faculty members from across the university were honored at the 2026 VCU Investiture Celebration Dinner. The honorees \u2013 the university\u2019s newest appointees to endowed professorship and chair positions \u2013 included 2 faculty from the School of Public Health<\/a> who were formally invested and presented with medallions during the celebration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dean Monica Swahn, Ph.D.<\/a>, has been appointed to the Charles W. and Evelyn F. Thomas Professorship in Epidemiology. Jessica LaRose, Ph.D.<\/a>, was awarded the Theresa A. Thomas Memorial Foundation Chair in Cancer Prevention and Control<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The positions are made possible by donors who generously endowed funds that exist in perpetuity to sustain the medical school\u2019s missions of research, patient care and education. The endowments carry the names of outstanding alumni, faculty and friends who have led and benefited from the school\u2019s work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through Unlocking Potential: VCU’s Campaign for the Future<\/a>, philanthropic investment to support faculty members continues to grow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am incredibly grateful and honored to be recognized in this way,\u201d Swahn said. \u201cAfter more than three decades in public health, I remain as passionate as ever about the power of research, collaboration and education to improve lives and advance health equity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s honorees commented that the funds help them to improve care for people living with serious illnesses, create more opportunities for students to get involved in research, adopt and integrate advances in an ethical and equitable way and tackle questions about human health and resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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