Gayla Olbricht

Dr. Gayla Olbricht is a Professor of Statistics and Associate Chair in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Missouri University of Science and Technology. She holds a Ph.D. in Statistics from Purdue University (2010), an M.S. in Applied Statistics (2004), and a B.S. in Mathematics (2001) from Missouri State University. Her research focuses on statistical modeling of genomic, epigenomic, and biomedical data, with emphasis on explainable unsupervised learning methods. Key projects include lifespan modeling in Drosophila, traumatic brain injury biomarker analysis, and educational data science.

Dr. Olbricht has received multiple awards, including the 2022 Missouri S&T Woman of the Year Award and the 2021 CASB Research Award. She has been a Co-Principal Investigator for SEQL (Science Education and Quantitative Literacy), a professional development program for K-12 educators funded by the Missouri Department of Higher Education (2014-2018). Her work has been supported by NIH and the Leonard Wood Institute.

Her recent publications span statistical methodologies for genomic data, TBI biomarker analysis, and educational interventions. She has held leadership roles including Interim Director of Graduate Studies (2023) and has contributed to over 50 peer-reviewed articles. Teaching excellence is evident through her three Outstanding Teaching Awards at Missouri S&T.