Javier E. Flores is a PhD candidate in the Department of Biostatistics at the University of Iowa. His dissertation work involves the development of a new class of discrepancy-based information criteria for the selection of predictive models. Existing criteria most widely used for this purpose are the Aikaike Information Criterion (AIC) and its variants. However, these criteria presume a panel of validation data generated independently but identically to the training data used to fit candidate models. Javier’s work offers criteria free of this assumption, allowing for improvements in prediction. Additionally, practical implementation of these criteria allow for “personalized prediction” via the selection of models specific to individual validation observations.

Notable Honors

• Recipient of the 2020 Hancher-Finkbine Distinguished Student Leadership Award, one of the university’s most prestigious awards.
• Mentored two winning submissions (1st and 3rd place) to the Spring 2019 Introductory Statistics Division of the Undergraduate Class Project COmpetition sponsored by the ASA and CAUSE.
• Recipient of the 2019 William R. Clarke Graduate Research Assistant Award for excellence in service as a collaborating member of research team(s).
• Recipient of the 2017 Leon F. Burmeister Graduate Student Service Award for outstanding departmental citizenship and service.
• Recipient of the 2016 Kathryn M. Chaloner Memorial Scholarship for exemplary academic performance and efforts towards inclusion.
• Recipient of several recruitment fellowships including the Alfred P. Sloan Scholar and Iowa Recruitment Fellowships

Service: College of Public Health Graduate Student Association (Officer: 2016-18; President: 2018-19) · Biostatistics Student Organization (Vice President: 2016-18; President: 2018-19) · Biostatistics Student Advisory Committee · College of Public Health Dean Search Committee (2017-18) · Graduate Student Senate (2015-16) · College of Public Health Committe on Diversity and Inclusion (2015-16)