John Hughes

John Hughes, PhD, is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Biostatistics and Health Data Science at Lehigh University's College of Health. With nearly 30 years of experience in higher education, he has held positions at institutions including Frostburg State University, the University of Minnesota, and Pennsylvania State University. His methodological research focuses on statistical models for dependent data, Bayesian methods, and spatial and spatiotemporal analysis. He has developed numerous software packages for R and Perl, including copCAR, ngspatial, and krippendorffsalpha.

Dr. Hughes' interdisciplinary work spans environmental health, bioimaging, vaccine hesitancy, and spatial epidemiology of HPV-related cancers. He has consulted for organizations such as the Courage Kenny Research Center and Temple University. His education includes a PhD in Statistics from Penn State University and an MS in Applied Computer Science from Frostburg State University.

His research emphasizes statistical computing and the application of advanced models to health data. Recent work includes methodologies for agreement coefficients, environmental noise measurement, and spatial analysis of vaccination refusal patterns. Dr. Hughes teaches courses in biostatistics, data science, and programming, reflecting his dual role as a teacher-scholar.

Professional contributions include software development, collaborative research projects, and academic leadership. His work bridges computational innovation and real-world health challenges, positioning him as a key figure in modern biostatistical research.