Two will be selected from proposals received by the deadline

Planning for the 2017 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM) program started last July, and most technical sessions have already been organized. This advanced planning is required to organize such an expansive meeting as JSM, but may preclude scheduling sessions on contemporary topics of emerging interest as the year progresses. Two invited session slots have been set aside for such late-breaking topics, and any member of one of the JSM sponsoring organizations or partnering societies can propose such a session.

A late-breaking session must cover one or more technical, scientific, or policy-related topics that have arisen during the one-year period prior to JSM 2017. Proposals for late-breaking sessions should be emailed to JSM 2017 program chair, Regina Y. Liu, with a copy to the ASA meetings department by April 14. The proposal must include the following:

• Session description—including a title, summary of statistical and scientific content, and explanation of the subject’s timeliness and significance—and comments about the intended target audience
• Format of the session (e.g., a chair and four panelists, 2–3 speakers and a discussant, etc.)
• Names, affiliations, and contact information for the session organizer, chair, and all participants (speakers, panelists, discussants)
• A title for each presentation in the session
• Web links to relevant technical reports or news reports, if applicable

Organizers should make sure participants have agreed to participate before the proposal is submitted. The JSM participation guidelines state that a speaker can give a main presentation and participate in a late-breaking session at the same meeting, so previous commitment to a regular session does not preclude participation.

Two late-breaking sessions will be selected from the proposals received by the deadline (subject to approval by the ASA Committee on Meetings). Proposals will be judged on statistical and scientific quality, timeliness, significance and impact, potential audience appeal, and completeness. A description of the late-breaking sessions and other special sessions will appear in a future issue of Amstat News. Please submit your proposals to add exciting late-breaking sessions to the JSM 2017 program.