The Pakistan Journal of Statistics honored Ali, the George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Statistics, in January with a 200-page special volume.

The special issue consists of 17 refereed articles by leading statisticians, including one written by Dale Umbach, chair of Ball State's mathematical sciences department.

Ali's professional career began in 1957 with the Socio-Economic Board of the University of Dhaka in Bangladesh. He then served as a statistician for Pakistan's government until 1996 and was a teaching assistant at the University of Toronto from 1966 to 1969. Ali joined Ball State in 1969 as an assistant professor.

Ball State honored Ali in 1985 with the Outstanding Researcher Award and in 1993 with the Outstanding Faculty Award. In 2002, he was named a Sagamore of the Wabash, Indiana's highest civilian honor.