Rate My Professor Ian Harris

Ian Richard Harris, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Mathematical Statistics in the Department of Statistics and Data Science at Southern Methodist University, a position he has held since 2001. He serves as Director of Undergraduate Studies in the department. Harris received his B.Sc. in Mathematics from the University of Birmingham, England, in 1984, and his Ph.D. in Statistics from the same institution in 1989. Prior to joining SMU, his career included serving as Lecturer at Mander Portman Woodward College from 1985 to 1987, Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the University of Texas from 1987 to 1995, Visiting Assistant Professor of Statistics at Pennsylvania State University from 1991 to 1992, Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Northern Arizona University from 1995 to 1997, and Associate Professor of Statistics at Northern Arizona University from 1997 to 2001. With over 35 years of university-level teaching experience in statistics, Harris has been recognized for his instructional excellence.

Harris's research specializations include hierarchical linear models and sampling issues, variance components with a focus on intraclass correlation, mixture models, approximation of special functions, and saddlepoint methods. He has authored or co-authored numerous publications in leading journals. Notable works include "Predictive fit for natural exponential families" (Biometrika, 1989), "Robust predictive distributions for exponential families" with A. Basu (Biometrika, 1994), "Tests of hypotheses in discrete models based on the penalized Hellinger distance" with A. Basu and S. Basu (Statistics and Probability Letters, 1996), and book chapters such as "Minimum Distance Estimation: The Approach using Density-Based distances" in the Handbook of Statistics (1997). His scholarship has received over 1,700 citations. Harris has advised multiple Ph.D. dissertations, including those of L. Vazquez (2023) on influence diagnostics for generalized estimating equations and R.P.A. McShane (2019) on modeling stochastically intransitive relationships. Among his honors are the Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor Award in 2008, membership in the Academy of Distinguished Teachers, and the Extra Mile teaching award in 2015. He has contributed to university governance through roles on Faculty Senate committees, including chairing the Academic Calendar Committee.