ASA Recognizes Four Leading Statistics Professionals with Prestigious Founders Award at Joint Statistical Meetings

ALEXANDRIA, VA (August 2, 2016) – At the Annual Founders and Fellows Awards Ceremony this evening at the Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM 2016) in Chicago, the American Statistical Association (ASA) presented its prestigious Founders Award to John L. Czajka, senior fellow at Mathematica Policy Research; Roderick Little, Richard D. Remington Distinguished University Professor of Biostatistics at the University of Michigan; James L. Rosenberger, professor and director of the Statistical Consulting Center and online programs at Penn State University; and Maura E. Stokes, senior R&D director at SAS Institute.

 “The ASA is extremely pleased to present our highest honor to John, Rod, Jim, and Maura. They have worked selflessly to advance the field of statistics and demonstrated impressively high standards that have helped strengthen the experiences of colleagues throughout the association’s membership. From teaching future generations of critical thinkers and expanding statistical literacy among various audiences to helping businesses prosper in an increasingly competitive global marketplace to conducting novel and groundbreaking research, they each leave a lasting legacy to our field,” said ASA President Jessica Utts.

The Founders Award is bestowed upon ASA members with longstanding and distinguished service to the association and its membership. To be eligible for the award, candidates must have served the organization and its membership over an extended period and in a variety of volunteer leadership roles, including involvement with chapters, sections, committees, officer positions and editorial activities.

John L. Czajka is recognized for outstanding leadership and contributions in small area estimation, policy analysis and the evaluation of estimates obtained from survey data; for long- term active involvement in ASA chapters, sections and committees, including serving as president of the Washington Statistical Society, serving twice as chair of the Government Statistics Section, as chair of the Survey Research Methods Section and as chair of the Council of Sections Governing Board, as well as serving on a wide variety of committees, including the Nominations, JSM Program, and Sirken Award committees; and for exceptional service and leadership in a wide variety of professional and government-related scientific activities.

Roderick Little is recognized for exemplary leadership in the discipline and its interfaces with government statistics; for representing the discipline on numerous National Research Council and other influential committees; for sustained efforts to improve the quality and analysis of U.S. federal statistics, especially in the decennial census, for example, by addressing the undercount; for significant editorial work, including service as the editor of the Journal of the American Statistical Association (JASA) and the Journal of Survey Statistics and Methodology, numerous guest and associate editorships and publications representative on the ASA Board of Directors; and for service to multiple ASA sections and committees.

James L. Rosenberger is recognized for career-long support of and involvement in the ASA; for leadership of the JCGS Management Committee; for extensive participation in the Statistical Computing Section; for leadership through task forces to improve ASA publications and enhance connections with the NSF; for many contributions serving on the Statistical Partnerships Among Academe, Industry and Government Committee, the Caucus of Academic Representatives and the Scientific and Public Affairs Advisory Committee; and for his wise counsel and guidance to the ASA Board while serving as vice president.

Maura E. Stokes is recognized for sustained, thoughtful contributions to the expansion of professional development opportunities for practicing statisticians; for outstanding leadership in the development of the Applied Conference on Statistical Practice, which extends the reach of the ASA to nonstatisticians as well as statisticians; for commitment to enhancing the relevance of the ASA to applied statisticians as evidenced by her leadership in the creation of the ASA's Professional Development Guidelines; for insightful teaching of LearnStat and JSM short courses; and for continued mentoring at the local and national levels.

About JSM 2016

JSM 2016 is the largest gathering of statisticians and data scientists in the world, taking place July 30-August 4, 2016, in Chicago. Occurring annually since 1974, JSM is a joint effort of the American Statistical Association, International Biometric Society (ENAR and WNAR), Institute of Mathematical Statistics, Statistical Society of Canada, International Chinese Statistical Association, International Indian Statistical Association, Korean International Statistical Society, International Society for Bayesian Analysis, Royal Statistical Society, and International Statistical Institute. JSM activities include oral presentations, panel sessions, poster presentations, professional development courses, an exhibit hall, a career service, society and section business meetings, committee meetings, social activities and networking opportunities.

About the American Statistical Association

The ASA is the world’s largest community of statisticians and the oldest continuously operating professional science society in the United States. Its members serve in industry, government and academia in more than 90 countries, advancing research and promoting sound statistical practice to inform public policy and improve human welfare. For additional information, please visit the ASA website at www.amstat.org.