Nominations are open for the 2016 Roger Herriot Award for Innovation in Federal Statistics. The award is intended to reflect the special characteristics that marked Roger Herriot’s career, including the following:

• Dedication to the issues of measurement
• Improvements in the efficiency of data collection programs
• Improvements and use of statistical data for policy analysis

The award is not limited to senior members of an organization, nor is it to be considered a culmination of a long period of service. Individuals or teams at all levels within federal statistical agencies, other government organizations, nonprofit organizations, the private sector, and the academic community may be nominated on the basis of their contributions. Since innovation often requires or results from teamwork and team innovations often are more lasting—resulting in real paradigm shifts, not just one-time improvements—team nominations are encouraged. For an example, see the 1998 Herriot (team) award.

The recipient of the 2016 Roger Herriot Award will be chosen by a committee comprising representatives of the American Statistical Association’s Social Statistics and Government Statistics sections and the Washington Statistical Society (WSS). Herriot was associated with, and strongly supportive of, these organizations during his career.

The award consists of a $1,000 honorarium and a framed citation, which will be presented at a ceremony during the Joint Statistical Meetings in August 2016. The WSS will also host a seminar given by the winner on a subject of his or her choosing.

Nomination packages should contain the following:

• A cover letter from the nominator that includes references to specific examples of the nominee’s contributions to innovation in federal statistics. These contributions can be to methodology, procedure, organization, administration, or other areas of federal statistics, and need not have been made by or while a federal employee.
• Up to six additional letters of support that demonstrate the innovativeness of each contribution.
• A current curriculum vita for the nominee with contact information. For team nominations, the vitae of all team members should be included.
• The committee may consider nominations made for prior years, but encourages nominators to provide updated information in resubmitting those nominations.

For more information, contact Dave Hubble, chair of the 2016 Roger Herriot Award Committee, at (301) 610-8814 or davidhubble@westat.com. Nominations for the 2016 award will be accepted beginning in January 2016. Completed packages must be received by April 1, 2016. Electronic submissions in MS-Word or as a PDF file are strongly encouraged.

View the names of previous award recipients and read more about Herriot’s life.