Saturday September 27th, 2014
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina
North Carolina State University is hosting StatFest 2014, a one day conference aimed at encouraging undergraduate students from historically under-represented groups to consider careers and graduate studies in the statistical sciences. The conference is an ongoing initiative of the American Statistical Association through its Committee on Minorities in Statistics. The conference includes presentations from established professionals, academic leaders, and current graduate students that will help attendees understand the opportunities and routes for success in the field. Panel forums include information and tips for a rewarding graduate student experience, achieving success as an academic statistician, opportunities in the private and government arenas, among other topics.
The program for this event (subject to minor changes) is as follows:
StatFest 2014
Park Shops Building, Room 210
North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
September 27, 2014
8:30 Continental Breakfast & Registration
8:45 Welcome
Dan Solomon, NCSU, Dean of College of Sciences
Montserrat Fuentes, NCSU, Department Head, Department of Statistics
Renee' Moore, NCSU, StatFest Organizing Committee Member
8:55-9:15 Keynote Address
"Statistics: Paving the Way in the Big Data Era"
DuBois Bowman, Columbia University
9:15-10:15 Session I: Statistics Careers in Government
Neal Jeffries, National Institutes of Health
Joe Fred Gonzalez and Alena Maze, Centers for Disease Control
David Mintz, Environmental Protection Agency
Moderator: Beimar Iriarte, Abbott Laboratories
10:15-10:30 Break/Snack
10:30-11:30 Session II: Statistics in the Private Sector
Abie Ekangaki, Quintiles
Jamila Mathias, CIT Group
Gerardo Hurtado, SAS
Moderator: Randy Davis, GlaxoSmithKline
11:30-12:30 Lunch
12:30-1:45 Session III: Statistics in Academia
Kim Sellers, Georgetown University
Consuelo Arellano, NCSU
Tim Thornton, University of Washington
Jesse Chittams, University of Pennsylvania
Moderator: Jackie Hughes-Oliver, NCSU
1:45-2:45 Session IV: Graduate Programs in Statistical Sciences
Kim Weems, NCSU
Lance Waller, Emory University
Derrick Rollins, Iowa State University
Moderator: Nagambal Shah, Spelman College, Professor Emerita
2:45-3:00 Break/Snack
3:00-3:20 Special Presentation
Bob Rodriguez, SAS
3:20-4:30 Session V: Parallel Sessions
Students: The Graduate Student Experience
Erica Dawson, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Carmen Smith, University of Iowa and Spelman College
Adrian Coles, NCSU
Ixavier Higgins, Emory University
Palpasa Manandhar, NCSU
Moderator: Christina McIntosh, Harvard University
Faculty and Professionals: Attracting and Retaining Students -
Building a Statistical Alliance
Facilitator: Kim Weems, NCSU
Facilitator: Beimar Iriarte, Abbott Laboratories
4:30-4:45 Conference Wrap-up
4:45-5:30 Social Mixer and Poster Session
If you are an undergraduate who would like to present your research work in a poster session please contact Nagambal Shah at nshah@spelman.edu.
Registration:
Registration is free but required so we may have an accurate count of attendees. Click here to link to the registration page. Unfortunately, travel support for individuals is not generally available though institutions bringing a bus or van of participants may be eligible for some reimbursement toward fuel costs.
Map:
A Google map of the building (Park Shops Building, 101 Current Dr., Raleigh NC 27695) is available here. The building entrance to use is on the West side, across the street from Daniels Hall near the corner with Stinson Drive. The parking lot is behind SAS Hall which is across Stinson Drive from Park Shops.
Housing:
Two nearby hotels have a small number of blocked rooms. To reserve a room, please follow the instructions below. The rooms will be held at a special rate (about $100 at the Holiday Inn Express and about $120 at the Doubletree-Brownstone) for reservations made by September 16, 2014. The StatFest rates will not apply for reservations made after September 16.
- Holiday Inn Express Hotel and Suites. 3741 Thistledown Drive, Raleigh, NC. To make reservations, call 919-854-0001 or 1-800-HOLIDAY. Guest should request group code STA or group title STATFEST. Reservations can also be made online.
- Doubletree by Hilton - Brownstone. 1707 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC (two blocks to campus). To reserve a room call 919-582-2872. Guests should request group code STA or group name Statfest. Reservations can also be made online.
Transportation from hotels to conference:
Sky Shuttle charges approximately $24 from the airport to the Doubletree Brownstone one way or $46 round trip. The fare is $22 approximately from the airport to the Holiday Inn Express and $42 round trip. For more information regarding the shuttle call 919-599-8100 or go to http://skyshuttleride.com. Taxi service is also available but may be more expensive.
For more information contact Marcia Gumpertz (gumpertz@ncsu.edu) or Renee' Moore (rhmoore@ncsu.edu). Sponsorship is provided by North Carolina State University, the American Statistical Association, and Abbott Laboratories.