Lauren Balmert Bonner never planned to become a biostatistician. Growing up in Cranberry Twp, Pennsylvania, she didn’t know much about public health until a family friend, Beth Zamboni, introduced her to the field. “She was faculty at Carlow,” Bonner recalled. “My dad taught there too, so they knew each other. I think that’s what first sparked my interest.”
That early nudge eventually led Bonner to apply to PhD programs in biostatistics. “I applied to both master’s and PhD programs because I wasn’t really sure what I saw myself doing yet,” she said. When offers came in—from George Washington, UNC, and Pitt—it was the research opportunities and familiarity of home that drew her back to Pittsburgh.
At Pitt, Bonner found both intellectual challenge and personal support. “I didn't really know what I was getting into at first,” she laughed. “But classes like Dr. Ada Youk’s regression course and Dr. Joyce Chang’s cohort class made it click for me. They were practical, grounded in real applications. That’s when I really started to love the field.”
She credits much of her development to her dissertation advisor, Jong Jeong. “He taught survival analysis, which I really enjoyed. And he was such a supportive mentor. He let me figure things out but was always there when I needed guidance.”
Her dissertation explored a novel approach to analyzing time-to-event data, a method she says may offer more intuitive interpretations for clinicians and patients. “We called it ‘time lost’ or ‘life lost,’” she explained. “Instead of hazard ratios, we were talking about how many years of life were lost due to a condition or disease. It had advantages from a statistical standpoint too, especially when dealing with censored data.”
Bonner also spent time working with Gary Marsh and Jeanine Buchanich in the Center for Occupational Biostatistics and Epidemiology. There, she gained hands-on experience with real datasets, including studies on occupational exposures and the opioid crisis. “That experience was critical,” she said. “It helped me get my first job.”
Today, Bonner is an associate professor of biostatistics and informatics in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University. She was promoted in September 2023, and her role is largely research-focused. “I usually teach one course a year,” she said, “but most of my time is spent in collaborative research—designing studies, writing grants, overseeing data, analyzing results. Every day is different.” The flexibility of academia suits her. “There are definitely long days, but I’ve gotten pretty good at work-life balance,” she added. “The variety and intellectual freedom are worth it.”
When asked what drew her to academia over industry, Bonner pointed to her time at Pitt. “Being around such great faculty had an influence. I liked the collaborative nature of academia, and Northwestern offered a position that really aligned with that.”
Outside the classroom, she made time for volleyball and student outreach activities, including organizing events for admitted students. “Between that and research assistantships, it kept me busy,” she said. “But I loved it.”
Looking back, Bonner is grateful for the solid foundation Pitt gave her. “The faculty, the hands-on experience, the community—it all made a difference,” she said. And while she may be settled in Chicago for now, she hasn’t ruled out a return to Pittsburgh someday. “There’s something about it,” she said. “It always pulls you back.”