Hellooo!

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I’m Heather. I love data, design, and relationships. I’m a researcher, engineer, trail runner, and community woman.

I’m a recovering academic researcher with a background in mathematical modeling. In industry, I worked on the commercial side of QSP modeling services, orchestrating contract deals with biotechs developing drugs. Currently, I’m pivoting my career toward something more community-focused & creatively-driven.

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I am a goofy human, fierce hypewoman, and nature simp. I’m enamored by the intersection of science and art. I think the two most beautiful things in this world are 1) Mathematics and 2) The complexity of human behavior.

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You’ll find me trail running, performing improv comedy, finding things to optimize, and eating sugar.

I grew up in Maryland with freshly-immigrated Chinese parents. I played violin (with great discipline), which inspired my love for music. I went to college at Duke, where I studied Biomedical Engineering. I did my PhD at Yale, where I built mathematical models for PET neuroimaging data. Here I fell in love with optimization, large data sets, and the scientific process. I did not fall in love with New England winters.

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I moved to Denver in 2020 and picked up a passion for improv comedy and trail running. I started my improv journey at Chaos Bloom Theater in Denver. My first trail running foray was a women’s couch-to-trail program. Having a strong community of female friendships and celebrating movement in nature became some of my core values.

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I started my first “real job” at Applied BioMath in Jan 2021, where I was responsible for orchestrating drug modeling services deals for the company. The goal was to structure collaborations to maximize the ROI of modeling & simulation for clients, while also maximizing the revenue margins for our small company. I learned a ton about business, project management, and the drug R&D world.

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I moved to the SF Bay in Oct 2021. I continued my improv journey at Leela Theater and Endgames Improv, and joined 2 performing troupes, Dr. Mindbender and The Confessional. I became deeply ingrained in local running communities. I met my partner, Keegan, with whom I share many miles on the trails. He is my most consistent and all-encompassing source of inspiration.

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I took a leap of faith in Jun 2023, leaving my corporate job for an unstructured sabbatical to explore more personally meaningful pursuits… in elegant terms, “fuck around and find out”! I found fulfillment in nurturing my trail running/pilates communities, and experimenting on how to apply my various skills in a non-professional setting. It’s been particularly invigorating to contribute my technical, business, and sales know-how to help Keegan grow his business. Notably, I've immersed myself in creative projects, and data visualization.