I live on the East Coast of the United States, where the seasons are generally welcomed by temperature changes. The fall brings cooler temperatures; changing colors of the tree foliage; football games; and pumpkins, pumpkins, and more pumpkins. Speaking of pumpkins, I have decorated my home for the fall and am preparing for my family celebration of Thanksgiving. The fall and coming of Thanksgiving is also a wonderful time to reflect. I have so much gratitude for the members of our ASA community. Capturing this in a column was daunting, so I decided to look back at past editions of Amstat News for inspiration.
January 2023
I am grateful for our impact on policy and decision-making and our significant history exemplified by the celebration of 10 years of forensic science.
February 2023
I am grateful for colleagues who take the time to submit nominations and to the colleagues who are recognized for their contributions to the profession. In the February issue, the Annie T. Randall Award, established by the Biometrics Section in 2020, was highlighted. The award was named in honor of path-breaking Black female statistician Annie T. Randall for her pioneering career in government amid pervasive racial discrimination. The most recent winner is Felicia Simpson, associate professor of statistics and chair of the department of mathematics at Winston-Salem State University.
March 2023
I am grateful for our colleagues who are willing to serve the ASA. My sincere thanks to all the candidates, and I look forward to the contributions of our leaders as we move forward.
April 2023
I am grateful for our community’s commitment to ethical statistical practice and the work we do to ensure all statistical practitioners understand and are able to use the guidelines.
May 2023
I am grateful for the research done by our community, which can be seen in a new series highlighting the connection between the ASA and National Science Foundation. Our research is an example of the incredible science we do.
June 2023
I am grateful for the students and early-career members of our community who will be the future leaders of the ASA and are committed to learning and growing their knowledge. One example is Lucy Tu, who spent 10 weeks as a science journalist with Scientific American during the summer as the ASA’s 2023 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.
July 2023
I am grateful for dedicated educators such as Golde Holtzman.
August 2023
I am grateful and hopeful about the future because of the wonderful work done by K–12 students as exemplified in the ASA Data Visualization Poster and Statistics Project competitions. Of course, I am also grateful for all who volunteer to make the competition possible.
September 2023
I am grateful for the opportunities to come together, to learn, to collaborate, to celebrate our successes, and to make new friends and rekindle established friendships. I talk about that in my September column.
October 2023
I am grateful for the talented next generation, exemplified by the winners of the ASA Scientific and Public Affairs Advisory Committee’s annual Statistical Significance competition. Two competitors took first place with projects inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic: Shinpei Nakamura-Sakai, a PhD student in statistics from Yale University, and Madeline Ward, a PhD student in biostatistics from the University of Calgary.
I have only highlighted a few items here, but truly there are so many events, awards, people, and accomplishments for which I am grateful. Thank you to our amazing professional community. I am so grateful for all you do. For those who celebrate, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.
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