Congressman Dave Loebsack (D-IA) introduced H.R. 1817, the Statistics Teaching, Aptitude and Training Act of 2011 (STAT Act of 2011), today. The bill, which differs slightly from
last Congress's H.R. 6355, promotes K-12 statistics education through professional development of teachers and statistics education programs.
I ask you to urge your U.S. Representative to cosponsor H.R. 1817. By signing up for the ASA
Statistical Literacy Grassroots Campaign, we will provide you with the guidance for requesting a meeting with your Congressman in his/her home district office and preparing for the meeting.
This is a wonderful opportunity to share your enthusiasm for statistics with your elected official and to tell them about the importance of statistics education and what it is statisticians do. Last year, more than 40 ASA members conducted such meetings with great effect. 10 Members of Congress cosponsored the bill and many more expressed interest.
Such congressional outreach is especially timely with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (aka No Child Left Behind) due to be reauthorized.
In a
May 10 press release, Loebsack says, “Our nation’s economy is becoming increasingly reliant on data, and organizations and businesses need employees with statistical knowledge and skills. Unfortunately, many students are often unprepared to fill this demand. This legislation would help us to emphasize statistics education and make sure that our nation’s students have the statistical knowledge and skills necessary to secure good-paying jobs and succeed in the 21st century economy.”
A
letter from the heads of seven organizations was sent today to Mr. Loebsack in support of the STAT Act of 2011. The seven organizations were ASA, Alliance for Excellent Education, National Association of Secondary School Principals, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Mathematical Association of America, and American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges. The letter states, “…being statistically literate means being armed with the skills necessary to understand and interpret data and weigh risks and rewards to make decisions in the presence of uncertainty.”
For more information, or to sign up for the Statistical Literacy Grassroots Campaign, go to