We interviewed a few current and former officers of the Statistical Graphics Section to find out why statistical graphics are an important component of the profession. Here’s what they said.
department of statistics
Amanda F. Mejia
Amanda F. Mejia started with limited financial resources at her disposal, but pursued scholarship and fellowship opportunities and earned her master’s as an industrial engineer. She soon discovered she wanted to learn more advanced analytical techniques and work toward a positive societal impact, so she returned to graduate school. As a professor today, she strives to emphasize the “why” of statistics before the “how” and to bring research problems into the classroom.
Karen Kafadar
Karen Kafadar had the great fortune to heed the council of her master’s adviser, Bradley Efron, and earn her PhD in statistics. It was during her studies she learned from some of the best, including John Tukey. Her career is living proof of the influence others can have on a career. Besides her service to the ASA, she has worked in applications such as forensic science and randomized cancer screening trials.
GWU Department of Statistics Celebrates 75 Years
The department recently celebrated its 75th anniversary with a one-day symposium featuring many distinguished speakers.
Why We Need Data on Our Profession
Due to the economic downturn, many (most?) colleges and universities are looking to cut costs. At the University of Central Florida, this means eliminating the Department of Statistics (among others). At other universities, it could mean merging a statistics department with another discipline. Even worse, it could mean breaking up a statistics department and sending individual faculty to different departments.