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Dr. Laura Hildreth is an associate professor of statistics in the Department of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Statistics. Her teaching at Gustavus spans the entire statistics curriculum from introductory statistics to advanced statistical modeling. Along with her statistics colleagues, Dr. Hildreth has redesigned and modernized the statistics major and minor by incorporating recommendations from the American Statistical Association. This has included developing and teaching several new courses including MCS-243: Design and Analysis of Experiments, MCS-348: Advanced Statistical Modeling, and MCS-349: Statistical Consulting.

Dr. Hildreth's scholarship encompasses various areas. Her research interests include statistics education with a focus on writing in the statistics curriculum, multivariate statistics, and statistical consulting. This work has led to multiple interdisciplinary collaborations and resulted in publications in journals such as the Journal of Statistics and Data Science Education, Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, and Statistics and Public Policy.

Outside of the classroom, Dr. Hildreth has held several service roles. This has included serving as the actuarial science adviser at Gustavus, being an AP Statistics reader since 2021, serving as the Program Chair for the Section on Statistics and Data Science Education at the 2024 Joint Statistical Meetings, and serving as the 2014-2015 President of the Montana Chapter of the American Statistical Association.

Dr. Laura D. Triplett began her Gustavus career in 2008 with a faculty appointment in geology. Now established in the department of Environment, Geography and Earth Sciences, she teaches courses related to earth surface processes, environmental geochemistry, hydrogeology and climate change. She has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications on topics as varied as reconstructing past water quality conditions in lakes and rivers, quantifying impacts of invasive species on freshwater geochemical cycling, and creating state-wide landslide susceptibility maps. In all her research, Dr. Triplett seeks out collaborations with community stakeholders. And, Dr. Triplett has involved Gustavus students in almost all aspects of her research program from designing preliminary studies, to executing major multi-year projects funded by external foundations and government agencies, to presenting findings at national scientific conferences.

Dr. Lauren Hecht is the Richard Martin, Timothy Robinson, and Barbara Simpson Endowed Professor of Psychological Science. She joined the faculty in 2010 and was the 2022 recipient of Gustavus’ Edgar M. Carlson Award for Distinguished Teaching. She is a cognitive psychologist whose primary research focuses on perception and attention, how they interact, and their influence on other cognitive processes. Her student-faculty collaborations have secured grant funding and resulted in presentations at regional and international conferences. As a First-Generation faculty who directed the First Term Seminar (FTS) Program and co-founded the Peer Mentor, Academic Leader, and Teacher (Peer MALT) Program, she regularly offers an FTS and supports students through their transition to college.