Senator Derek Stanford earned a PhD in Statistics at the University of Washington, following an MS in Mathematics at Claremont Graduate University and a BS in Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College.
Currently, Sen. Stanford runs a small business specializing in analytics solutions and statistical consulting. Previously, he has served as director of analytics at companies specializing in fraud detection and customer insights. He has also worked as a research scientist at a software company, where he served as principal investigator on a research project for DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency).
Sen. Stanford serves as vice chair for commerce and tribal affairs on the Senate Labor, Commerce & Tribal Affairs Committee and also serves on the Agriculture, Water, Natural Resources & Parks Committee and the Senate Environment, Energy & Technology Committee.
Sen. Stanford served in the Washington House of Representatives from 2011-2019, where he was the chair of the House Commerce & Gaming Committee. He is also chair of the Washington State Caseload Forecast Council. He is a former member of the Community Economic Redevelopment Board and the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee.