Joe Guinness

Joe Guinness serves as Associate Professor of Statistics and Data Science at Washington University in St. Louis, where he returned in August 2024 to help establish the newly created Department of Statistics and Data Science. A proud alumnus (AB '07 in Mathematics and Physics), Guinness brings expertise from his previous position as director of undergraduate studies for statistical science at Cornell University.

His research focuses on spatial-temporal data analysis, particularly from Earth Sciences applications. Guinness has made fundamental contributions to spectral methods and Vecchia's Gaussian process approximation, developing the widely-used GpGp R package for efficient Gaussian process modeling. His work spans diverse applications including algal bloom tracking in the Gulf of Mexico, corn harvest prediction in New York, climate modeling using multi-station weather data, and satellite-based atmospheric wind field modeling.

As Director of Undergraduate Studies in SDS, Guinness actively shapes curriculum development to prepare students for careers in finance, business, and academia. His teaching includes statistical computation and linear models courses at various levels. A dedicated runner and former WashU cross country team member, Guinness has also applied his statistical expertise to sports analytics, notably analyzing the performance impact of Nike's Vaporfly running shoes through marathon runner photo databases.