Aisha Najera Chesler is a mathematician at the RAND Corporation. Her research has addressed various areas such as supply chain management, impacts of emerging technologies, national security and violence against women. She is interested in embedding diverse perspectives into data science practices and uses mathematical models, algorithms, data analysis and artificial intelligence to provide insights that inform strategic decisions, improve data quality and manage risks.

Among her many outreach activities, Aisha co-organized a multidisciplinary workshop in mathematics and public policy which resulted in a publication of a Springer book. The workshop, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, brought together women from industry and academia to collaborate on pressing policy issues including climate change and cybersecurity.

Prior to joining RAND, Aisha was a consultant for IBM Global Business Services, where she worked on software implementations and strategic business opportunities for some of IBM’s largest global clients.

She holds a PhD in mathematics from Claremont Graduate University. She also has an M.S. from the University of Arizona and a B.S. from the National University of Mexico, both in mathematics.

Fun fact: Aisha finds some of life’s pleasures while smelling night blooming flowers, jogging to sunrises, life drawing and dancing to Latin tunes. Though, more recently, she has discovered a new hobby through Zoom: belly dance classes with her Mexican friends.