Susu Zhang

Susu Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Statistics and Department of Psychology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Her research focuses on advancing statistical and psychometric methods for educational and psychological assessments, particularly addressing complex behavioral data analysis. She holds a Ph.D. in Quantitative Psychology and MS in Applied Mathematics from UIUC, alongside BAs in Psychology and Mathematics from Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges.

Key research areas include latent variable modeling, response time analysis, diagnostic classification models, and longitudinal learning models. She has received prestigious awards such as the Alicia Cascallar Award (NCME 2022) and multiple Excellent Reviewer recognitions. Her work emphasizes practical applications in large-scale assessments like NAEP, with a focus on students with disabilities and learning differences.

Teaching responsibilities include courses like STAT 428 (Statistical Computing) and PSYC 490 (Measurement and Test Development Lab). She actively collaborates on grants, including an IES-funded project analyzing NAEP mathematics data to understand test-taking behavior. Her lab develops tools like the Item Response Warehouse, an open repository for educational measurement datasets.

Recent publications highlight methodological advancements in compromised item detection, MCMC convergence diagnostics, and digital tool impacts on mathematics performance. She emphasizes bridging measurement theory with machine learning through initiatives like MxML surveys.