Kellie Archer, professor and chair of the Division of Biostatistics, College of Public Health, has been awarded a 2026-2027 Fulbright U.S. Scholar award to Belgium to research “Implementation and application of novel mixture cure modeling methodologies.”
From September – December 2026, Archer will work alongside Ingrid Van Keilegom, an internationally-recognized expert in cure modeling methods at KU Leuven in Belgium, on mixture cure modeling methods and applications. Archer will also be collaborating with faculty in the Leuven Biostatistics and Statistical Bioinformatics Centre.
“As a biostatistician, my research has focused on developing statistical methods for modeling outcomes when there are more predictors than number of observations. Therefore, my methods must be implemented in a statistical programming language such as R,” Archer explained.
Due to her expertise in developing R packages, Université Catholique de Louvain Professor Niko Speybroeck reached out to Archer to implement methods he wanted to use to analyze his data. The academic collaboration with Speybroeck and the peer-review work for the Fond Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (FWO), or Fund for Scientific Research, in Flanders Archer performed laid the groundwork for a Fulbright project in Belgium.
“My collaborations with researchers at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center have shifted my research interest towards a specialized class of time-to-event models. While survival analysis methods are well established, recent medical advances have led to more long-term, relapse-free cancer survivors. Traditional survival methods may not be ideal for such cases, making cure models a better analytical approach,” Archer explained.
“I hope to bring my expertise developing R software packages to Belgium, to develop statistical software implementing cure modeling methods. The Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award at this stage of my professional career will thus allow me to expand the reach of my research contributions to the international level and reinvigorate my research efforts as I transition from a leadership role back to faculty,” Archer noted.
Archer is attentive to the importance of engaging with scholars from diverse backgrounds with a high degree of adaptability and cultural sensitivity. She plans to live in housing for international scholars, learn a new language and serve as a cultural ambassador.
“As a faculty member and chair, I have worked with and supervised faculty, staff and students hailing from countries outside the U.S. Thus, I have learned to actively listen and am sensitive to and appreciative of those having different linguistic backgrounds and cultural experiences. To make the most of my Fulbright experience and meaningful engagement with my host community, I am very committed to learning Dutch. I am very excited to represent my country with respect and bring a mindset of reciprocal learning.”
Fulbright
The Fulbright Scholar Program is administered by the Institute of International Education and is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State.
For more information about the Fulbright Scholar Program contact Joanna Kukielka-Blaser. View a complete list of Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program recipients.