Assistant Professor Haley Grant, PhD, has been a faculty member in the Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science since 2023. She completed a PhD in biostatistics at Johns Hopkins University in 2023 and earned a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics from Cornell University.
The project emphasized the importance of sensitivity and specificity, overfitting and logistic regression, all of which are fundamental concepts in biostatistics.
Grant’s methodological work in meta-analysis, especially its applications in cancer research, displays her commitment to advancing the field and improving public health outcomes.. Her ability to bridge complex statistical methods with practical applications in public health showcases her exceptional skills and innovative approach.
Grant has been an asset to the department, where she teaches a variety of courses that align with her research interests. In the fall, she teaches introductory biostatistical methods courses that cover statistical inference, T-tests and simple regression. In the spring, she delves deeper into regression methods, teaching students how to model different types of data and account for confounding variables and interaction terms. Grant emphasizes the basics.
“Teaching is not just about presenting concepts but also about showing how these concepts apply in real-world scenarios,” she says. “Everything is founded on the basics anyway, and I believe a strong foundation is essential for understanding more advanced concepts.”
Grant’s teaching is enriched by her research experiences, allowing her to bring real-world examples into the classroom. She often shares her dissertation project with students, discussing the practical applications of sensitivity, specificity and logistic regression in early cancer detection.
"I think students like it and it helps to bring a concrete example of when these concepts have been used and the decisions that we've had to make in research and why it's important that they learn this stuff," Grant explains.
In addition to her own research, Grant collaborates with other departments and faculty members, further enhancing her teaching and research experience. She works with the Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI), engaging in short-term projects that involve formulating statistical questions, running analyses and helping collaborators understand the appropriate methods for their data. These collaborations provide valuable lessons for Grant to share with her students, demonstrating the practical applications of biostatistics in diverse research contexts.
Grant also collaborates with the PaTH network, a multicenter clinical research network with access to extensive data. This partnership allows her to work on projects focused on health disparities and community health in Pittsburgh. "I think it's nice to also have research that's based on the community that you are in," Grant says, emphasizing the importance of local data in public health research.
One of the most rewarding aspects of teaching at Pitt for Grant has been the opportunity to work with highly motivated and inquisitive students. She praises their insightful questions, which often go beyond basic concepts to explore the larger, real-world implications of statistical methods. In her regression class, Grant encourages students to critically analyze statistical methods used in published papers and discuss their results. This exercise deepens student understanding and fosters a collaborative learning environment, she believes.
Grant’s commitment to inclusive and ethical teaching is evident in her efforts to address the historical context of biostatistics. She dedicates a lecture to discussing the field’s problematic history, including eugenicist views held by its founding figures. "I decided to just give a lecture. The students said thank you for acknowledging that and telling us about it," she says, adding that she aims to equip her students with the ability to identify and critique flawed logic in statistical research and promote ethical and responsible use of biostatistics.