Dr. Yaren Kaya

Biography

Yaren Bilge Kaya is a lecturer and researcher specializing in public service access provision. Her research interests encompass the application of large-scale optimization, simulation modeling, queuing theory, and machine learning to address social justice and equity issues in contexts such as human trafficking, housing, and healthcare. Given the complexity of these societal challenges, Yaren employs a community-based interdisciplinary approach to research, incorporating perspectives from multiple stakeholders affected by these social issues. She holds a PhD in Industrial Engineering from Northeastern University, where she received several awards for her outstanding contributions to the field. These include the 2021 Northeastern University College of Engineering Outstanding Graduate Teaching Award and the 2023 Outstanding Graduate Research Award. Additionally, she received the Paper Student Presenter Award at the Association for Computing Machinery Conference on Equity Access Algorithms, Mechanisms, and Optimization. Currently, Yaren serves as a lecturer in the Industrial Engineering Operations Research Department at Columbia Engineering, imparting her expertise through teaching courses related to healthcare, public sector operations research, optimization, and simulation modeling.

Research Interests

Experience

Awards