Elizabeth Jennings McGuffey
Associate Teaching Professor of Statistics
Undergraduate Program Director
Elizabeth McGuffey joined the Statistics Department in July 2020. She currently serves as an Associate Teaching Professor of Statistics, teaching a calculus-based mathematical statistics course (STAT 310: Introduction to Probability and Statistics) and a senior capstone course for statistics majors (STAT 450: Senior Capstone Project). Elizabeth is also the director of Rice’s undergraduate program in statistics and serves as an academic advisor to statistics majors and minors.
Prior to Rice, she was an Assistant Professor in the United States Naval Academy where she taught a variety of undergraduate statistics courses of which two of them - biostatistics and a project-based capstone course - she developed at USNA. She earned her Ph.D. and M.S. in Statistics and B.S. in Applied Mathematical Sciences from Texas A&M University.
Research Areas
Applications in sleep medicine; genomics; Bayesian statistics.
Education
Ph.D. Statistics, Texas A&M University
M.A. Statistics, Texas A&M University
B.S. Applied Mathematical Sciences, Texas A&M University
Advisory Role
2019-2020 Advised MIDN Ani Murali, USNA Bowman Scholar and Honors Applied Math Major: "Pathway-based Integrative Modeling of Genomics Data: Accommodating Genes with Multiple Pathway Memberships."
2017-2018 Advised MIDN Joe Brough, USNA Trident Scholar: "Assessment of Genetic Screening in Large, Asymptomatic Populations with Applications to Military Cohorts."
Teaching Areas
Biostatistics
Probability and Statistics
Applied Statistics
Societies & Organizations
American Statistical Association (ASA)
Honors & Awards
2025 George R. Brown Teaching Grant Recipient
2025 George R. Brown Award for Superior Teaching
2023-24 School of Engineering Divisional Advisor Excellence in Academic Advising Award
2023 School of Engineering Award for Excellence in Teaching, Rice University
2018 Apgar Award Nominee for Teaching Excellence, Unites States Naval Academy
2014-15 Philanthropic Education Organization Scholar Award, Texas A&M University
2013 Margaret Sheather Memorial Award, Texas A&M University
2010-12 Graduate Merit Fellowship, Texas A&M University
