John Wierman is a professor emeritus of applied mathematics and statistics. He previously served as chair of the Department of Mathematical Sciences (1988-2000), founder and director of Johns Hopkins’ W.P. Carey Entrepreneurship and Management Program (1996-2009), director of Johns Hopkins’ Professional Communications Program (2004-2009), and director of Johns Hopkins’ Center for Leadership Education (2004-2009).
Wierman’s research focuses on probability, stochastic processes, statistics, discrete mathematics, percolation theory, and random graphs. Current projects include a percolation theory study developing methods to determine the exact values and mathematically rigorous bonds for the percolation thresholds of infinite lattice graphs. He mentors undergraduate students on research on rendezvous search, percolation theory, domination numbers of graphs, and self-avoiding walks.
Wierman is an elected Fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics and the Institute of Combinatorics and its Applications. He has received several awards for his service and teaching, including the Southern Regional Council on Statistics’ Paul Minton Service Award, a Johns Hopkins Faculty Teaching Award, and the Golden Key Society’s Honorary Lifetime Membership. He also has served as president and now treasurer of the Southern Regional Council on Statistics.
A life member of the American Mathematical Society, the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, and the Mathematical Association of America, Wierman is listed in Who’s Who in Science and Engineering and other texts. He has been an editorial board member or reviewer for more than 40 professional journals. He also has served on numerous committees at Johns Hopkins and has been an advisor for multiple student groups, including the varsity women’s soccer team. In addition, he provides an enrollment prediction model for the Office of Admissions. As a result of joke contests held in his classes, his photo is the icon of “Mathematical Memes for Logarithmically-Scaled Teens,” which has over a third of a million followers.
Wierman received his bachelor’s degree and PhD in mathematics from the University of Washington in 1971 and 1976, respectively. He was an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota for five years before joining the Whiting School of Engineering faculty in 1981.