Cassandra Pattanayak

Cassandra Pattanayak serves as the Jack and Sandra Polk Guthman '65 Director of the Quantitative Analysis Institute and Senior Lecturer in Quantitative Reasoning and Mathematics at Wellesley College, affiliated with the Department of Quantitative Reasoning Data Science Mathematics & Statistics where she spearheads campus-wide statistical literacy initiatives.

Her academic foundation includes:

• B.A. from Harvard University
• M.A. from Harvard University
• Ph.D. from Harvard University

A leading methodologist in causal inference, Dr. Pattanayak develops rigorous tools for non-randomized studies and randomized experiments—including covariate balance diagnostics, chance imbalance corrections, and Bayesian propensity score analysis—with impactful applications in legal aid evaluation and in vitro fertilization protocols. Her dual commitment to advancing statistical methodology and pedagogy drives her mission to equip students with interdisciplinary quantitative skills through foundational concept mastery and practical research application.

As Institute Director, she provides statistical consulting to cross-disciplinary researchers, coordinates faculty/student workshops, and teaches the Quantitative Analysis Institute Summer Course and a First Year Seminar on causal inference. Her STAT221 Statistical Inference course covers theoretical frameworks including maximum likelihood estimation, sufficiency, Bayesian techniques, and resampling methods, directly supporting student research across Wellesley's academic spectrum.