Helen Bozivich

Helen Bozivich (May 6, 1916 – August 5, 2008)^[2] was an American statistician known for her contributions to the theory of Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests in incompletely specified random and mixed models.^[3] She was the first recipient of the George W. Snedecor Award in statistics^[1] and, in 1955, became the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in Statistics from Iowa State University.^[4]

Helen Bozivich was born on May 6, 1916 in St. Paul, Minnesota.^[2] She grew up with an interest in music and played the piano throughout her life.^[2] Bozivich earned bachelor's degrees in both science and music from the University of Minnesota, where she was elected to the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.^[2] After her undergraduate studies, she enrolled in a graduate program at Iowa State University, then known as Iowa State College. She graduated with a Ph.D. in Statistics in 1955.^[5]

Bozivich's earliest published research was in 1946, when she coauthored a study on inheritance patterns in poultry with geneticist Frederick Hutt at Cornell University. The paper examined egg size inheritance in chickens and demonstrated that differences among male parents were statistically significant, challenging earlier assumptions within the field.^[6]

While completing her Ph.D., Bozivich served as a research associate in the Statistical Laboratory at Iowa State University, where she worked on an Air Force-funded statistical research project under Statistician Theodore Bancroft.^[7] During this time, statistician Walter T. Federer recognized Bozivich as part of the graduate community that made his research at Iowa State University particularly engaging.^[8]

In 1955, Bozivich became the first woman to earn her Ph.D. in Statistics from Iowa State University.^[9] Her doctoral dissertation, Power of Test Procedures for Certain Incompletely Specified Random and Mixed Models, developed methods for evaluating the power of analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests when components are unknown, contributing to the theoretical development of statistical testing.^[10]

Bozivich's thesis research was extended in a 1956 paper coauthored with statisticians Theodore Bancroft and Herman Hartley. The article refined her original derivations and generalized her frameworks to cover a larger range of ANOVA tests.^[3]

She was appointed assistant professor at Purdue University in 1955^[11] and later served as a doctoral advisor there, advising doctoral student Siya Ram Srivastava in 1960.^[12]

Throughout the 1960s, Bozivich collaborated on additional statistical research in veterinary science. Her work during this period included studies on cardiovascular responses to drugs in dogs^[13] and the effect of histamine on the blood composition of sheep.^[14] These studies applied regression analysis and experimental design methods to examine drug-induced responses in animals.

In addition to her research, Bozivich served as Secretary-Treasurer of the Central Indiana Chapter of the American Statistical Association^[15] and was an invited speaker at an event held in conjunction with the American Society for Quality Control.^[16] She later served as a referee for Sankhyā: The Indian Journal of Statistics in the late 1970s.^[17]

After leaving Purdue University, Bozivich joined the faculty of Northern Illinois University, where she taught statistics within the Department of Finance for several decades before retiring in 1986.^[2]

• Hutt, F. B., & Bozivich, H. (1946). On the supposed matroclinous inheritance of egg size in the fowl. Poultry Science, 25(6), 554–561. https://doi.org/10.3382/ps.0250554

• Bozivich, H. (1955). Power of test procedures for certain incompletely specified random and mixed models. Iowa State College. https://doi.org/10.31274/rtd-180813-14132

• Bozivich, H., Bancroft, T. A., & Hartley, H. O. (1956). Power of analysis of variance test procedures for certain incompletely specified models, I. The Annals of Mathematical Statistics, 27(4), 1017–1043. https://doi.org/10.1214/aoms/1177728071

• Hatch, R., Hughes, R., & Bozivich, H. (1967). Effect of resting blood pressure on pressure responses to drugs and carotid occlusion. American Journal of Physiology, 213(6), 1515–1519. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajplegacy.1967.213.6.1515

• Matchette, P., Hughes, R., & Bozivich, H. (1967). Effect of Intravenous Administration of Histamine on Packed Cell Volume and Plasma Levels of Calcium and Potassium in Sheep. American Journal of Veterinary Research, 28(127), 1897-+. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6076575/

In 1954, Bozivich became the first recipient of the George W. Snedecor Award, presented by Iowa State University for outstanding doctoral research in statistics.^[1]

Bozivich is also commemorated in the Iowa State University Plaza of Heroines, recognizing her as the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in statistics from the university.^[4]

Bozivich moved to DeKalb County, Illinois in the 1970s where she was an active member of the DeKalb St. Mary Catholic Church. She died there on August 5, 2008 at the age of 92.^[2]

Following her death in 2008, Bozivich left a portion of her estate to the DeKalb County Community Foundation to establish the Youth Engaged in Philanthropy Program. The program's Youth Grantmakers Fund provides annual grants to local nonprofits selected by high school students. Since its founding, the program has awarded more than $75,000 to over twenty local nonprofit organizations.^[18]