It is with great sadness that we write that our colleague, Rick White, passed away some time during the night of September 1 – 2.
The BC Flag (at Main Mall and Agronomy Road) will be lowered on Thursday, September 15th, in memory of Rick. Members of the Department of Statistics will gather at the flag pole at 1:00pm to share our stories of Rick. Everyone is welcome to join in.
Rick was a UBC alumnus, receiving his BSc in Mathematics in 1990 and his MSc in Statistics in 1992. Upon graduation, Rick began his career with the Statistics Department's Statistical Consulting and Research Laboratory (currently called the Applied Statistics and Data Science Group—ASDa) as a consultant, moving up to the position of Managing Director. Through his leadership, Rick brought to ASDa a legacy of collaborative research and high level consulting contributions. Rick was a “data scientist” long before that phrase came into common use, providing statistical support and training to many, furthering the goals of researchers and administrators within the Statistics Department and elsewhere at UBC, as well as off-campus.
Further information about Rick, including details of the October 1st celebration of his life, can be found at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/vancouversun/obituary.aspx?n=richard-alan-white-rick&pid=181357227.
Condolences can also be expressed at that site.