Boston Chapter of the American Statistical Association Mu Sigma Rho Affiliate

Mu Sigma Rho is the national honorary society for statistics. Its purpose is to promote and encourage scholarly activity in statistics and the recognition of outstanding achievement among the students in eligible academic institutions. More information about Mu Sigma Rho can be found at the following web site: http://www.stat.sc.edu/msrnatl.html

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
In February, 2005, the National Mu Sigma Rho approved a proposal that Chapters of the American Statistical Association (including BCASA, the Boston Chapter) to become affiliate chapters of Mu Sigma Rho. This decision allows students from Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine who do not attend schools with Mu Sigma Rho chapters to become members through a process coordinated by BCASA. The decision also provides opportunities for BCASA to pursue further outreach with more isolated campuses and boost awareness of the ASA and the local chapter (by enrolling students members in ASA/BCASA when they join Mu Sigma Rho).

BCASA MU SIGMA RHO COMMITTEE
Five members of the Boston Chapter of the American Statistical Association oversee the process of nominating, vetting and recommending new members for Mu Sigma Rho. Current members are:

  1. Nicholas Horton, chair (through 2011)
  2. Scott Evans (through 2010)
  3. Shelley Hurwitz (through 2009)
  4. Liam O'Brien (through 2011)
  5. Paola Sebastiani (through 2010)
This group acts as a Subcommittee of the BCASA Planning Committee and is charged with disseminating information regarding Mu Sigma Rho in the region covered by the chapter (Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine). They solicit nominations for new members, bring recommendations for new Mu Sigma Rho members to the Planning Committee for final decision, and forward dues ($5 as of 9/2008) and names to the Mu Sigma Rho national secretary/treasurer.

PROCEDURES FOR NOMINATING STUDENTS
Students may be nominated by faculty members (including Professors at all levels, Lecturers and Research Scientists) located at a college or university in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire or Maine. The nominator is responsible for forwarding two copies of the students academic transcript along with evidence that the nominee has satisfied the requirements, providing full contact information for the student to the Chair of the Mu Sigma Rho Subcommittee by March 1st of each year for induction in that year, as well as $5 per nominee (payable to Mu Sigma Rho). The induction fee will be refunded if the nomination is not approved.

A copy of the nominating form can be found here.

To be eligible for induction in Mu Sigma Rho, undergraduate students shall:

  1. have completed at least 2 years of college course work;
  2. have completed 8 credits/semester hours (12 quarter hours) of statistics courses, of which at least 5 credits/semester hours (7 quarter hours) shall be junior level statistics course work;
  3. have a 3.25 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) in all statistics courses; and
  4. be in the top 1/3 of their class (junior, senior) in all course work.
Junior-level statistics courses would typically include intermediate statistics courses such as Regression, Linear Models, Design of Experiments, Bayesian methods or Mathematical Statistics. Only half of a two-semester or two-quarter Probability/Mathematical Statistics course would count towards the total number of statistics courses.

Graduate students shall:

  1. have completed 12 credits/eemester hours (18 quarter hours) of graduate level courses in statistics;
  2. have at least a 3.50 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) in all graduate level statistics courses; and
  3. be a graduate student in good standing.
Once two copies of both the nomination form and academic transcripts are received, all information is verified and the student is deemed eligible, the Subcommittee will forward recommendations to the BCASA Planning Committee. Ordinarily the Planning Committee will approve nominations based upon the recommendations of the Subcommittee. Once the BCASA Planning Committee has approved these names, letters will be sent to the students inviting them to join Mu Sigma Rho. The nominator will also be sent a copy of this letter. All students who accept this nomination will be invited to an induction ceremony at one of the regularly scheduled BCASA spring evening lectures. Then the Mu Sigma Rho Subcommittee Chair will send the list of students who accept membership along with the dues to the the Secretary/Treasurer of the National Mu Sigma Rho organization. A certificate will then be sent to each inductee. A copy of the nomination materials for all successful nominees is provided annually to the president of the BCASA chapter.

The BCASA Mu Sigma Rho Subcommittee seeks to create and maintain a list of liaisons at colleges and universities to seek statistics students with these qualifications for nomination. The Subcommittee submits a brief annual report for the BCASA newsletter regarding chapter activities during that year.

TIMELINE OF YEARLY CYCLE
January 1st: Outreach to colleges and universities to solicit nominations
March 1st: Deadline for nominations (including academic transcript, contact information, and verification of membership requirements) to the Subcommittee Chair
March 15th: Subcommittee reviews nominations
April 1st: BCASA Planning Committee acts on Nominations, letters sent to nominees and nominators
May: Induction ceremony at a regularly scheduled May BCASA lecture

PREVIOUS STUDENT INDUCTEES
2005:

Mariel Finucane (Smith College)
Yang Huang (Mount Holyoke College)
Mihaela Krasteva (Mount Holyoke College)
Lingling Li (Harvard School of Public Health)
Heather Litman (Harvard School of Public Health)
Ashley Provencher (Simmons College)
Linjuan Qian (Smith College)
Natasa Rajicic (Harvard School of Public Health)
Xiaohong Sang (Smith College)
Wan Yuan Tan (Mount Holyoke College)

2006:

Ryan Adams (Colby College)
Christine Anderson (Bates College)
Elizabeth Antoske (Smith College)
Stacy Braverman (Smith College)
Matt Downing (Colby College)
Beth Ann Griffin (Harvard University)
William Evan Johnson (Harvard University)
Sophia Lee (Boston University)
Jiang Li (Boston University)
Heather Litman (Harvard University)
Lixia Pei (Harvard University)
Maura Spiegelman (Smith College)
Suzanne Switzer (Smith College)
Lu Wang (Harvard University)
Rui Wang (Harvard University)
Vanessa Xanthakis (Boston University)
Mao Zheng (Colby College)
Lei Zhu (Boston University)
Yanyan Zhu (Boston University)

2007:

Julie Grace Bacon (Smith College)
Katharine Fischer Berry (Mount Holyoke College)
Onjira Boonroong (Smith College)
Wendy Chen (Mount Holyoke College)
David Fardo (Harvard University)
Janine Gresko (Mount Holyoke College)
Eleanor Hannon (Mount Holyoke College)
Audrey Eleanor Hendricks (Boston University)
Malcolm Itter (Colby College)
Shikha Jain (Smith College)
Mufaro Kanyangarara (Mount Holyoke College)
Kwun Suen Miu (Smith College)
Megan Othus (Harvard University)
Alison L. Pedley (Boston University)
Ha Thanh Pham (Mount Holyoke College)
Jian Rong (Boston University)
Ana Petrova Spasova (Smith College)
Chad Stecher (Colby College)
Nadia Timofeev (Boston University)
Ling Wang (Boston University)
Mary S. Warlaumont (Colby College)
Michael Wu (Harvard University)
Mei Yang (Boston University)
R. Andrew Yeskoo (Colby College)
Robin Lynne Young (Boston University)
Jingjing Zhou (Colby College)

2008:

Caleb Andrew Bliss (Boston University)
Olga Victorovna Demler (Boston University)
Nancy Dexter (Smith College)
Lee Dicker (Harvard University)
Yangchun Du (Boston University)
Wei Guo (Boston University)
Jennifer Kirk (Smith College)
Stephanie Lustgarten (Boston University)
Kaveh Maghsoudi (Harvard University)
Alisa Knodle Manning (Boston University)
Gina Marie Peloso (Boston University)
Dharana Rijal (Smith College)
Lisa Scoppettuolo (Harvard University)
Lin Ye Song (Boston University)
Kristin Tyler (Smith College)
Martha Woerner (Smith College)
Zhenming Zhao (Boston University)
Min Zheng (Smith College)

REGULAR MEMBERS (former or current BCASA Mu Sigma Rho subcommittee members)
2005:

Robert Goldman (Simmons College)
Nicholas Horton (Smith College)
Katherine Halvorsen (Smith College)
Michael Kahn (Wheaton College)
Scott Evans (Harvard University)

2007:

Shelley Hurwitz (Harvard University)

Created by Nicholas Horton, last updated October 10, 2008