Proudly Serving Statisticians at the 2020 Joint Statistical Meetings

Proudly Serving Statisticians at the 2020 Joint Statistical Meetings

Grant:
Lecturers' Professional Development Fund (LPDF)
Academic Year:
2019 - 2020 (June 1, 2019 through May 31, 2020)
Funding Requested:
$2,000.00
Project Dates:
-
Applicant(s):
jabmille
Overview of the Project:
The LPDF monies will be used to fund the bulk of the cost of attending the 2020 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM), which will be held in Philadelphia, PA, from August 1 through August 6, 2020. JSM is the largest professional meeting of statisticians and data scientists in North America. The theme is exciting: “Everyone Counts: Data for the Public Good.” I am helping shape the program in terms of invited and topic-contributed sessions as well as continuing education offerings as a member of two committees for the American Statistical Association (ASA). Additionally, I have recently become the Chair of ASA’s LGBT Concerns Committee and am actively involved in diversity and inclusion efforts in that role. By using the LPDF monies to fund most of JSM 2020 costs, I will be able to use departmental funds for another conference focused on teaching and learning.
Final Report Fields
Project Objectives:

The original purpose for the LPDF monies was to fund the bulk of the cost of attending the 2020 Joint Statistical Meetings (JSM), which were to be held in Philadelphia, PA, from August 1 through August 6, 2020. The plan was that by using the LPDF monies to fund most of JSM 2020 costs, I would be able to use departmental funds for another conference focused on teaching and learning.

Project Achievements:

As it turns out, 2020 had other plans for all of us. Instead of spending the bulk of my LPDF funds on JSM 2020, I used the monies to assist with my attendance at a conference and enrollment in a course:

  • In January 2020 I participated in a workshop "Introduction to Data Science in the Tidyverse" at the rstudio::conf 2020. I used about half of my LPDF funds to pay for the hotel for the workshop. Attending the workshop was ideal for me--I finally had a chance to sit down and focus on learning R away from my regular duties. The foundations that I learned at that workshop have helped me while using R for Stats 250. 
  • Once COVID-19 turned our world upside down, there was a scramble to learn about online teaching. I had some knowledge about online instruction, but I knew that I wanted to learn more. I used the other portion of my LPDF monies to fund my enrollment in a six-week "Fundamentals of Online Teaching" (FoOT) course offered through the University of Wisconsin. I learned so much during that 6-week course and was able to share my experience with HyFlex with some of the students. My course project was based on how I would teach Stats 250 this fall. During that project, I was able to think about my return to Stats 250 (I had stepped away for three years), how I would modernize and overhaul my section of the course with simulation-based methods, and how all of this would be done in a remote context. The FoOT course was an excellent chance for me to learn about online teaching from a more global perspective, and it complemented my local UM training from CAI and CRLT. 

So, while I only spent about 1/4 of my LPDF grant on JSM 2020 (registration), I was able to get crucial experience with coding in R and in online instruction.   

Continuation:
In some ways the project is continuing beyond the grant period. What I learned during the workshop and the online teaching course will continue to impact my students for many years to come!
Dissemination:
I have shared what I learned in FoOT with members in my department through discussions and documentation. Some of what I learned during FoOT was included in my participation in the "Online Assessment in Large Courses: an LSA faculty panel" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HC6tKEyKZXg&feature=youtu.be) and my Ready To Go Blue workshop "Ask Me Anything: HyFlex with Dr. Jack Miller." I am always happy to help others when I can.
Advice to your Colleagues:
Be flexible, because unexpected things happen. The LPDF is an excellent way to fund learning, ultimately helping our students.
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