This series features ASA members who share their ASA stories. Our mission is to collect authentic and meaningful accounts of member experiences. If you have a story you would like to share, email the ASA’s marketing and communications coordinator, Kim Gilliam.

David Corliss is lead, Industrial Business Analytics, and manager, Data Science Center of Excellence, Stellantis

My story with the American Statistical Association begins with the influence of a mentor, Bruce Lund. I had long known about the ASA but, with a background in statistical astrophysics, most of my connections were in physics and astronomy or through the SAS community. As I began to take on more of a leadership role in analytics R&D through my work in the automotive industry, Lund recommended I become more involved with the ASA. In the last semester of my PhD program, I contacted my local ASA chapter in metro Detroit. I should have done it sooner! 

I made contact with many talented people and immediately got involved with chapter activities. I was working full time in the industry while continuing academic research on the side—something not often done in my area at the time. The local ASA chapter provided opportunities to bridge the gap between academia and industry.

A major milestone for me was my first ASA Conference on Statistical Practice in 2014. Becoming involved with conferences opened so many doors and created so many opportunities. It’s so important to do more than just attend presentations! You can always read the papers later; it’s only at the events that you can meet the authors, ask questions, and talk about their work. Getting involved with the conferences, themselves, is the most valuable part. The connections I have made—especially through CSP as a presenter and serving on the steering committee—have made all the difference, taking all aspects of my work to a new level. 

While I have worked for some great companies, volunteering outside of work has been the most rewarding, and my involvement with the ASA has played a crucial role. Always involved in community service, the local Habitat for Humanity chapter where I helped build houses asked me to develop a model identifying the best places to find more donors and volunteers in 2004. I did several more Data for Good projects over the following years, eventually focusing on justice advocacy such as poverty, homelessness, and education. When I became involved in the ASA, things really took off. 

My ASA story has been filled with collaborations with so many wonderful, talented, and giving people dedicated to using our shared talents to do the most good.

While there are so many people who are fortunate to dedicate their professional life to Data for Good, I came to see my role as an advocate for volunteering. Networking with colleagues, I formed the NGO Peace-Work in 2014 as an all-volunteer collaborative of statisticians, data scientists, and other researchers. Through volunteering, every one of us has a place in using statistics for the greater good. Working with the ASA has led to more contacts, projects, and opportunities to present our work to a wider audience. Peace-Work has become best known for human rights and justice analytics, especially in the fight against human trafficking. 

In 2017, fellow CSP committee member Mary Kwasny invited me to write a guest column on statistical volunteering for “Consultant’s Corner” in Amstat News. Through the support and mentorship of Megan Murphy and the Amstat News staff, this one-time guest article grew into a regular monthly column: Stats4Good. My ASA story has been filled with collaborations with so many wonderful, talented, and giving people dedicated to using our shared talents to do the most good.