Jane Heffernan | |
|---|---|
| Academic background | |
| Education | B.A., Trent University M.A., Queen's University PhD., University of Western Ontario |
| Thesis | The effects of genetic drift and mutation in experimental evolution (2002) |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | York University |
Jane Marie Heffernan is a Canadian mathematician. Her research focuses on understanding the spread and persistence of infectious diseases. She is a full professor at York University and a Tier 2 York Research Chair in Multi-Scale Quantitative Methods for Evidence-Based Health Policy. She is the director of the Centre for Disease Modelling (CDM Archived 2019-11-01 at the Wayback Machine ),and is on the board of directors of the Canadian Applied and Industrial Mathematics Society (CAIMS).
As a youth,Heffernan decided she enjoyed studying mathematics and decided to pursue a career as a math teacher. She earned her undergraduate degree in mathematics and computer science from Trent University before completing her master's degree at Queen's. [1]
Heffernan joined the York University faculty in 2007. [1] She was also named director of the Centre for Disease Modelling. [2]
In 2014,Heffernan and fellow York University professor Derek Wilson co-authored a paper titled "The Undead:A Plague on Mankind or a Powerful New Tool for Epidemiological Research." [3] In 2015,she was appointed a York Research Chair. [4] As a result of her research in the Modelling Infection &Immunity Lab,she also won the CAIMS-PIMS Early Career Award. [5] The next year,York University recognized her as a research leader. [6]
In 2018,Heffernan,Joel D. Katz,and Paul Ritvo co-analyzed a pain management app that claimed to identify and forecast changes in pain experiences of users. [7]
Heffernan has received awards including:Governor Generals Gold Medal,NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship (Warwick,UK),NSERC University Faculty Award,MRI Ontario Early Researcher Award,and the Petro-Canada Young Innovators Award. [8]