Writing Workshop Succeeds with a Hybrid Approach in 2022

Regina Nuzzo (Gallaudet University), engages with attendees about "How to Get Started and Avoid Writer’s Block."  Ali Shojaie (U of Washington), Judy Wang (NSF DMS Statistics Program Director & GWU), Edsel Pena (NSF DMS  Statistics Program Director & U of South Carolina), Susan Ellenberg (U Penn), discuss and responds to questions regarding their own careers and how they got to where they are.

NISS's Writing Workshop for Junior Researchers has been held in conjunction with JSM for nearly two decades and it continues to provide valuable insights, enriching mentoring experiences and networking opportunities with some of the most talented and experienced statisticians in the field.  (see Event page)

In 2020 and again in 2021 NISS scrambled, prepared for and continue to maintain very successful workshops despite the pandemic wreaking havoc with everyone's ability to gather and converse.  This year, as the American Statistical Association decided to hold the Joint Statistical Meetings in person in Washington, D.C. NISS decided to take a hybrid approach splitting the conference, as usual, into three days but holding the first two days weeks in advance before coming together for the last day at JSM.  By maintaining an online aspect to the workshop NISS was able to reach out to junior researchers that might not have been able to travel to JSM, and especially reach out to those in foreign countries.

Once again, the response from senior individuals to take time out their schedule to talk with attendees about their writing was overwhelming.  The list of mentors and speakers is down right impressive! Current and former editors of prestigious journals in the field, successful grant winners as well as individuals from organizations that review grants that are submitted, in addition to those who specialize in writing in science. (see the complete list below!)

We have all been in way too many Zoom meetings over the past couple of years, so it was especially welcome to be able to get together for the final day of presentations, discussions and meeting face to face with mentors on the Sunday as JSM was getting started.  The final day started off with the always engaging Regina Nuzzo who provided tips and suggestions and mediated discussion about avoiding writer's block.  This was followed by a panel of four individuals who spoke about their own personal experiences getting started in the field and how their own careers advanced over time. The number and diversity of questions followed by the quality of the discussion was refreshing, but also meant that this session went over time!  A sure sign of engagement!

The final activity of the workshop was a brunch where many of the mentors came back and attended and got a final chance to speak to the folks they were working with.  All in all, this year's workshop was another success!

You can view the agenda of the workshop on the NISS event page.  And, as promised below please find a list of all those mentors and speakers that took the time out of their busy schedules to talk to and work with those just entering the field.


A Huge Thank You to all Session Speakers / Mentors in 2022!

Jim Albert (Emeritus Distinguished University Professor of Statistics, Bowling Green State University)
Naomi Altman (Penn State University)
Angela Dean (Professor Emeritus of Statistics, The Ohio State University)
Cheryl Eavey (Program Director at SBE/MMS, National Science Foundation)
Susan Ellenberg (Emerita Professor of Biostatistics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine)
Xuming He (Chair and H.C. Carver Professor of Statistics, University of Michigan; Past Co-Editor of Journal of the American Statistical Association)
Gabriel Huerta (Statistician, Sandia National Laboratories)
Peter Imrey (Professor of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic)
Nicholas Jewell (Professor of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of California, Berkeley and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine)
Jiming Jiang (Professor of Statistics, University of California, Davis)
Galin Jones (Professor and Director of the School of Statistics, University of Minnesota; Co-Editor for Journal of Computational and Graphical Statistics)
Karen Kafadar (Commonwealth Professor and Chair of Statistics, University of Virginia; Past Editor-in-Chief of The Annals of Applied Statistics)
Nicole Lazar (Professor of Statistics, The Pennsylvania State University; Past Editor-in-Chief of The American Statistician)
Shuangge Steven Ma (NIH BMRD Study Section Chair; Interim Department Chair and Professor of Biostatistics, Yale School of Public Health)
Regina Nuzzo (Gallaudet University)
Edsel Pena (Program Director for Statistics at MPS/DMS, National Science Foundation; Professor of Statistics, University of South Carolina)
Donald Richards (Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Statistics, The Pennsylvania State University)
David Rocke (Distinguished Professor of Biostatistics, University of California, Davis)
James Rosenberger (Director, National Institute of Statistical Sciences)
William Rosenberger (University Professor of Statistics, George Mason University; North American Editor of Biometrics)
Ali Shojaie (University of Washington) 
Lingzhou Xue (Associate Professor of Statistics, The Pennsylvania State University; Associate Director, NISS)
Judy Wang (NSF DMS Statistics Program Director & George Washington University)

Wednesday, August 17, 2022 by Glenn Johnson