ASA President Jessica Utts gaveled to order the final ASA Board meeting of 2016 at the ASA offices in Alexandria, Virginia. The highlights of the meeting follow.

Discussion Items

Board members had a lively discussion about more effectively communicating why involvement in the ASA is important and meaningful.

Amanda Malloy, director of development, led a conversation about the ASA’s fundraising program, especially with respect to telling member stories about the impact of the ASA.

The list of JSM locations was preliminarily reviewed by the board in response to a suggestion from a chapter about a possible new location. Research will be conducted on several cities and this topic will be taken up again at the next meeting.

Action Items

Concluding a year-long process, and based on thoughtful feedback from ASA members, the ASA Board approved a new ASA strategic plan.

The board made technical changes to the ASA’s Investment Policy Guidelines, including some revisions to target asset allocations in various investment categories.

The board endorsed a set of curriculum guidelines for undergraduate programs in data science, drafted this summer by a group of faculty led by former ASA Board member Dick De Veaux at the Park City Math Institute.

Reported Items

The board heard a detailed update from our partner, Stanton Communications, on the ASA’s national public relations campaign, “This Is Statistics.” The board received metrics about response to the program and discussed plans for next year. This campaign, aimed at high-school and undergraduate students, is a long-term investment of the ASA in the future of the profession.

The board followed that report with a preliminary discussion of what our next national PR campaign will be. The discussion will continue next spring.

Wendy Naus, executive director of the Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA), updated the board on COSSA’s advocacy activities. The ASA is a founding member of COSSA, and we partner with COSSA in support of research funding, federal statistical agencies, and other important matters.

Nell Sedransk, executive director of the National Institute of Statistical Science (NISS), informed the board about activities and transitions at NISS. The ASA is also a founding member of NISS.

At every meeting, the board receives an update on the progress of ASA president initiatives. Reports on the final status of 2016 initiatives (from Utts) and the progress of 2017 initiatives (from president-elect Barry Nussbaum) were heard and discussed.

Also at every meeting, the Council of Chapters Governing Board (COCGB) and Council of Sections Governing Board (COSGB) report on their recent activities. The COCGB highlighted its work to provide “stimulus funding” to chapters. The COSGB has been active in providing additional support for interest groups.

ASA Director of Science Policy Steve Pierson reviewed the advocacy activities of the association. He praised the work of new ASA Science Policy Fellow Amy Nussbaum and highlighted the new Commission on Evidence-Based Policy Making.

The annual report of the Education Council was presented by Vice President Rob Santos. These council reports help the board stay connected with ASA committees and vice versa.

Associate Executive Director and Director of Operations Steve Porzio updated the board on ASA financials through the third quarter. JSM was a big success in many respects, including record attendance and a solid bottom line. Porzio said the ASA would end 2016 in the black.

Rebecca Nichols, ASA director of education, highlighted two educational activities: the ASA’s Meeting Within a Meeting, which just celebrated its 10th anniversary at JSM 2016, and the new K–12 Educational Ambassador program. Nichols noted both programs are important components of the ASA’s larger efforts to improve K–12 statistics education.

The ASA Board meets again April 7–8 at the ASA offices.