Profile
Biography
Zack W. Almquist is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Statistics, and a Senior Data Science Fellow in the eScience Institute at the University of Washington. Before coming to UW in 2020, Prof. Almquist held a Research Scientist position at Facebook, Inc. and was an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Statistics at the University of Minnesota. He has held visiting scholar positions at Stanford University and the University of Washington. Dr. Almquist received his PhD from the Department of Sociology at the University of California, Irvine, where he also received MAs in Sociology and Demography. He also holds an MS in Statistics from Northwestern University and a BS in Mathematics from the University of Oregon.
Awards and Grants
Prof Almquist is a recipient of the American Sociological Association’s (ASA) Section on Methodology’s Leo Goodman Award and the ASA’s Section on Mathematical Sociology’s Outstanding Dissertation Award.
Dr. Almquist is a recipient of the NSF’s CAREER Award and the ARO’s Young Investigator Program Award. His research has been funded by the NSF, NIH, ARO, University of Minnesota, and the University of Washington.
Service
Prof Almquist was elected vice chairperson (chair-elect) of the American Public Health Association’s Caucus on Homelessness (starting Fall 2024) and elected and served as the Secretary-Treasurer of ASA’s Section on Mathematical Sociology from 2018-2021.
He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Mathematical Sociology. He also served or serves on the Editorial Boards for the journals Social Networks, Sociological Perspectives, Population and Environment, and Sociological Methodology.
Research Statement
Professor Almquist specializes in developing and applying innovative methodologies to address complex and critical social issues. His research spans key domains, including housing and homelessness, demography and health, population health in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, environmental action, and governance and statistics. By pioneering advanced social network and statistical methods, Almquist seeks to improve data collection and analysis, particularly for marginalized and transient populations often underrepresented in traditional surveys. His work on homelessness, for example, leverages network-driven sampling to capture the mobility and needs of unhoused individuals, informing policy with nuanced data on housing insecurity. In public health, Almquist applies network and statistical models to examine disease transmission patterns, delivering insights into health disparities that COVID-19 has magnified. His research in environmental governance investigates networks of influence within and across organizations and communities to promote sustainable behaviors and effective policy responses. Almquist’s interdisciplinary approach not only advances social science methodologies but also addresses the practical needs of communities, contributing to more effective and equitable policy solutions across multiple sectors.
Public Outreach
Working Groups
- Homelessness Research Working Group
- Meets Fridays from 10-11:00 in Savery Hall Room 245