Professor Ying Sun elected as a Fellow of the American Statistical Association

About

Ying Sun, professor of statistics at KAUST, has been named a 2025 Fellow of the American Statistical Association (ASA). This prestigious recognition honors her exceptional contributions to statistical science and her commitment to advancing the field.

Founded in Boston in 1839, the ASA is the world’s largest community of statisticians. The ASA Fellow designation—granted to no more than one-third of one percent of the membership annually—represents one of the highest honors in the field. The 2025 Fellows will be formally inducted during the Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM), to be held August 2–7, 2025, in Tennessee, U.S.

“I am deeply honored to be selected as a 2025 ASA Fellow,” Sun said. “Receiving such recognition from my international peers is incredibly meaningful—it acknowledges not only my individual contributions but also highlights the outstanding collaborations and mentorship I've been fortunate to experience throughout my career. This honor inspires me to continue pursuing impactful research and fostering growth in the global statistical community.”

A global leader in high-impact statistical research

Professor Sun is a leading force in spatial and environmental statistics, known for her high-impact research spanning statistical theory, methodology, software development, and real-world applications. Her methodological innovations—especially in data visualization and in modeling spatial and functional data—have set new standards and laid a strong foundation for future research in statistics.

Her current research focuses on developing advanced statistical tools for analyzing complex spatio-temporal and functional data, with applications in environmental monitoring, energy systems, and public health. Sun’s Environmental Statistics Research Group designs models that improve air quality forecasting, enable early fault detection in photovoltaic systems, and enhance monitoring of water treatment operations.

“These projects not only address critical real-world challenges but also closely align with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and KAUST’s strategic priorities,” she explained. “For example, we contribute to Health and Wellness through smart health monitoring, to Sustainable Environment via wastewater treatment analytics, to Energy and Industrial Leadership through solar energy optimization, and to Economies of the Future by integrating high-performance computing, AI, and deep learning into spatial statistics and process monitoring.”

Her groundbreaking research has led to significant advances in diverse areas, such as air quality assessment and prediction, weather forecasting, climate modeling, and process monitoring for photovoltaic systems and water treatment plants.

Sun’s notable projects include developing statistical models for air quality forecasting using real-time environmental data with KAUST’s HSE department, creating predictive tools for monitoring wastewater treatment performance in KAUST, designing fault detection algorithms for photovoltaic systems to improve energy efficiency, and contributing to climate modeling through high-resolution spatio-temporal data analysis.

In recognition of her groundbreaking work, she has received prestigious honors, including the ASA’s ENVR Early Investigator Award and the International Environmetrics Society’s Abdel El-Shaarawi Young Researcher Award. These accolades highlight her leadership in developing statistical methods that address today’s most pressing environmental challenges.

A foundational pillar of the KAUST STAT Program

After earning her Ph.D. in Statistics from Texas A&M University, U.S., in 2011, she completed her postdoctoral training at the University of Chicago, U.S. and Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute (SAMSI), U.S. Sun later served as an assistant professor at the Ohio State University, U.S. before joining the University in 2014.

Since joining KAUST 11 years ago as the second statistician faculty member, she has gone on to become a fundamental figure in building the Statistics (STAT) Program. Her mentorship has propelled many of her students to win major international awards, and she continues to foster a collaborative, high-achieving research environment in both the classroom and the research group.

An active member of the global statistical community, she serves on several editorial boards of leading journals and organizes international workshops and conferences.

At KAUST, Sun continues to lead impactful outreach efforts—including internships for Saudi students, the Winter School for Saudi students, the Statistics Open Day activities, and was instrumental in launching the Al-Kindi Distinguished Statistics Lectures—demonstrating her deep commitment to education, inclusion, and the advancement of statistical science worldwide.