Published

August 1, 2025

Professional Experience

# A tibble: 3 × 5
  what                                        when         with      where why  
  <chr>                                       <chr>        <chr>     <chr> <lis>
1 Assistant Professor of Mathematics          2019-present Lake For… Lake… <chr>
2 Assistant Professor of Mathematics          2014-2019    Universi… Sain… <chr>
3 Visiting Assistant Professor of Mathematics 2012-2014    Ohio Wes… Dela… <chr>

Education

# A tibble: 3 × 5
  what                  when  with                              where why      
  <chr>                 <chr> <chr>                             <chr> <list>   
1 Ohio State University ""    Doctor of Philosophy, Mathematics <NA>  <chr [0]>
2 Ohio State University ""    Bachelor of Science, Mathematics  <NA>  <chr [0]>
3 Ohio State University ""    Bachelor of Arts, Philosophy      <NA>  <chr [0]>

Software development

  • The fqar package. Tools in R for downloading and analyzing floristic quality assessment data*. Published to the Central R Archive Network (CRAN) September 2022. Major update (0.5.3) April 2024. Visit the package website and install the development version at https://github.com/equitable-equations/fqar.

Publications

  • Gard, A, & Martin, G. Practical data analysis with R: a handbook for the working professional. Under contract with No Starch Press. Expected completion: February 2025.

  • Gard, A., et. al. A new metric for measuring the conservancy of plant species*. Completed. Expected submission to the Journal of Applied Ecology: October 2024.

  • Gard, A., Myers A., & Luwabelwa, I (2024). The fqar package: R tools for analyzing floristic quality assessment data*. Journal of Open Source Software, 9(96), 6366, https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.06366

  • Gard, A., & Wilson, O. (2023). Prediction intervals for interpolants*. Rocky Mountain Journal of Mathematics. Accepted Sept. 2023, DOI pending.

  • Gard, A. (2023). Equal-speed pursuit and evasion on manifolds. International Journal of Game Theory, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00182-023-00868-x

  • Gard, A. (2018). The wild goose chase problem. The American Mathematical Monthly, 125(7), 602–611. https://doi.org/10.1080/ 00029890.2018.1465785

  • Ekici, C., & Gard, A. (2016). Inquiry-based learning of transcendental functions in calculus. PRIMUS, 27. https://doi.org/10.1080/10511970.2016.1214654

  • Gard, A. (2013). Procedings of the midstates conference of undergraduate research in mathematics and computer science (editor). Ohio Wesleyan University.

  • Gard, A. (2012). Reverse isoperimetric inequalities in \(\mathbb{R}^3\) [PhD thesis, Ohio State University]. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1330528578

*Includes undergraduate co-authors

Undergraduate Research

Projects completed in the last five years include:

  • Enhancing accessibility in Lake Forest College’s data science major, with Tobias Ellis. Summer 2024.

  • Hypoxia reversal improves antimalarial immune response, with Kateryna Malkina. Academic year 2023-2024.

  • Investigating co-occurrence in Chicagoland floristic quality assessments, with Irene Lulabelwa and Ryan Sorrells. Summer 2023 James Rocco fellowship.

  • Measuring success in Formula 1 racing, with Lethu Mncube. Spring 2023.

  • Using machine learning to detect the presence of the onchocerca parasite, with Jovana Jovanovska. Academic year 2022-2023.

  • Developing quantitative tools for floristic quality assessment, with Alexia Myers. Summer 2022

  • Uncertainty in SIR epidemiological models, with Kateryna Malkina. Summer 2022

  • Exploring the broader impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, with Veronika Chernikov, Christopher Arzate-Benitez, and Kenza Kantour. Summer 2021

  • The lion-and-man problem in the hyperbolic disk, with Dipika Subramaniam. Academic year 2020-2021.

  • Prediction intervals for interpolants, with Ethan Wilson. Summer 2020 Richter scholars program.

Teaching

Over twelve years of experience as a college professor. Exceptionally high reviews from students, peers, and supervisors. Specialization: statistics in the R programming environment. Selected recent courses:

  • Introduction to Statistical Programming. A project-based introduction to data science using R. Topics include data cleaning and visualization, multiple linear regression, analysis of variance, and bootstrapping.
  • Mathematical Probability. Discrete and continuous probability distributions, the law of large numbers, the central limit theorem, random variables, and moment-generating functions.
  • Introduction to Probability and Statistics. Comprehensive coverage of standard statistical techniques utilizing R as the primary technological tool.

I am also qualified to teach a wide range of courses in advanced statistics and machine learning, including using Python.

YouTube

My YouTube channel, Equitable Equations (https://www.youtube.com/c/EquitableEquations), includes over 400 tutorials in statistics, R programming, and mathematics. It currently has over 32,000 subscribers and attracts more than 1,000,000 views annually. Some highlights:

  • Logistic regression in R (https://youtu.be/E7J3M1oYVlc), which showcases my statistical and R programming skills.

  • Ethical AI in Healthcare (https://youtu.be/jazrwe08BXk), a conversation with Dr. Heather Mattie of Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

  • Learn R in 39 minutes (https://youtu.be/yZ0bV2Afkjc), my most popular video to date with over 600,000 views since publication in February, 2023.

Private consulting

  • Domain expert in statistics and R programming at EnterpriseDNA (https://enterprisedna.co). Courses available: Inferential statistics I, Inferential statistics II.

Service

Recent service to the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and the Lake Forest College community:

  • Panelist for the Humanities Day 2024 discussion of W.E.B. Du Bois with Drs. Tracey Taylor (Art) and Courtney Pierre Joseph (History and African American Studies).

  • Mentor for the 2023 Public Policy Research Challenge, where my team reached the finals.

  • Data analyst for the Applied Data Center, spring 2023. Assisted Dr. Sean Menke (Biology) and his student researcher with statistical methods for their green rooftops project.

  • Organizer and host of the 2023 S.M.A.R.T. Colloquium. Planned, publicized, and hosted a 150-person event featuring student speakers in Statistics, Mathematics, Algorithms, and Related Things.

  • Member, 2023 Computer Science Search Committee.

Recent roles within the Lake Forest College shared governance structure:

  • Office of Faculty Development Junior Fellow (2022-present). Supports incoming tenure-track faculty members through training and mentorship. Advances the mission of the OFD through planning & attendance at events.

  • Pre-Health Advising Committee (2021-present). Provides support and guidance for students intending to go to graduate school in health-related fields.

  • Educational Advisory Committee (2023-present). Coordinates with LFC’s education department to support and mentor aspiring math teachers, particularly at the high school level.

  • LFC-RFU Steering Committee (2020-2022). Supports Lake Forest College’s partnership programs with Rosalind-Franklin University, particularly the Health Professionals Program.

  • Academic Honesty Judicial Board (2020-2022). Adjudicates claims of student misconduct in classes, including accusations of cheating on exams and plagarism of papers