Charter - Statistical Consulting Section

ASA Section on Statistical Consulting Charter

(Revised: 1997, 2007, 2010, 2014, 2019, 2022, and 2025)

Article I. NAME

The name of this organization is the Section on Statistical Consulting (hereafter called the Section) of the American Statistical Association (hereafter called the ASA).

Article II. OBJECTIVES

The special interests of the Section are developing, encouraging, and facilitating best practices in statistical consulting and statistical collaborations in interdisciplinary research. The Section fosters the increased and improved use of statistical thinking through eﬀective relationships among statisticians and non-statisticians. The Section achieves these objectives by providing a forum for the interchange of ideas and information on statistical consulting, statistical collaboration and the education of statisticians in multidisciplinary environments. The Section may engage in speciﬁc activities appropriate to pursue the above objectives, including but not limited to:

1. Foster the role of consultant and collaborative statisticians.

2. Regularly communicate information on statistical consulting/collaborating through the Section’s ASA microsite and/or appropriate publications.

3. Sponsor sessions at ASA meetings and in other settings to encourage best practices in statistical consulting/collaborating.

4. Coordinate eﬀorts with other Sections of the ASA and with other societies and organizations.

5. Encourage improved training of consulting and collaborative statisticians and promote eﬀective, innovative training- methods.

6. Study the organizational structure of the training of consulting and collaborative statisticians and the placement of consulting and collaborative statisticians.

7. Promote the use of ethical standards in statistical consulting/collaborating.

8. Promote the professional stature of the consultant and collaborative statistician.

Article III. MEMBERSHIP

The Section recognizes the breadth of people, thought, and experience that contribute to consultant and collaborative statistics and strives to build and maintain a community that is diverse, respectful, accessible, and inclusive. Any ASA member may become a Section member by paying the Section dues appropriate for their type of ASA membership. The membership year for each Section member shall coincide with that member's ASA membership year. An individual may hold no more than one elected oﬃce within the Section at a given time; At-large members can concurrently hold one elected and one appointed office per the discretion of the executive committee. For example, an At-large member may be appointed as the Communications Officer. The Section expects all members to uphold the ASA Code of Conduct.

Article IV. OFFICERS

All oﬃcers must be Section members in accordance with Article III above. The Section oﬃcers shall be the Chair, the Chair-Elect, the Past Chair, the Secretary/Treasurer, the Program Chair, the Program Chair-Appointee, the Communications Oﬃcer, the Activity Coordinator, the Webmaster, the Publications Oﬃcer, three at-large members of the Executive Committee, the Representative(s) to the ASA's Council of Sections, and up to two Student Liaisons. The number of Representatives shall be determined by the Charter of the ASA’s Council of Sections. The Chair-Elect, Secretary/Treasurer, the Publications Oﬃcer, the three at-large members, and the Council of Sections Representative(s) are elected; the Chair-Elect succeeds the Chair who succeeds the Past Chair; all other oﬃcers are appointed. All members of the Executive Committee are voting members.

The Chair is the chief oﬃcer of the Section and is the preceding year’s Chair Elect. The Chair shall preside at all meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee and coordinate the work of the Section oﬃcers and committees. The Chair shall prepare an annual report on Section activities. The Chair shall regularly review the ﬁnancial reports provided by the ASA's online system. The Chair appoints the Communications Oﬃcer, Webmaster, Activity Coordinator, and the student liaisons, when the positions are open. The Chair, with the approval of the Executive Committee, may appoint additional individuals or committees to carry out Section functions.

The Chair-Elect shall preside over meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee in the absence of the Chair. In consultation with the Chair and Secretary/Treasurer, the Chair-Elect shall prepare the budget of the Section for the year in which the Chair-Elect is Chair. Early in the Chair-Elect’s tenure, the Chair-Elect shall appoint the Program Chair-Appointee, who will succeed the Program Chair the following year.

The Past Chair is the previous year’s Chair. The Past Chair shall advise and assist the Chair and the Executive Committee. The Past Chair is Chair of the Committee on Nominations.

The Secretary/Treasurer shall be responsible for the minutes of all meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee. The Secretary/Treasurer shall also assist the Chair-Elect in preparing the annual budget and shall monitor the Section's dues collections and expenditures and prepare an annual report on the ﬁnancial condition of the Section. In the middle of the year, the Secretary/Treasurer should notify the Executive Committee of expected committee vacancies. The Secretary/Treasurer shall also maintain Section’s email account, any video conferencing accounts, and other login information.

The three at-large elected members of the Executive Committee serve as a channel for information between the membership and the Executive Committee and serve on committees of the Section. They shall also assist the Section through special assignments made by the Chair and/or Executive Committee.

The Representative(s) to the Council of Sections shall report to the Executive Committee (and, as appropriate, to all Section members) about issues being discussed by the Council of Sections, shall communicate feedback from members to the Council of Sections, and shall represent the interests of the Section and its members to the Council of Sections.

The Publications Oﬃcer shall coordinate paper and electronic publications associated with the Section including, but not limited to, Section columns in Amstat News, proceedings of meetings, and other presentations. The Publications Oﬃcer serves as Chair of the Section’s Publications Committee. The Publications Oﬃcer shall serve as the Section's representative on ASA committees concerned with Section publication matters. When requested by the Editors, the Publications Oﬃcer shall assist in soliciting, reading, and editing articles on topics related to section charges, activities, or related works for publication in the ASA's journals.

The Program Chair shall be responsible for developing and coordinating the Section's sessions and other program events at national and regional meetings of the ASA. The Program Chair serves as a member of the ASA's Program Committee. The Program Chair is the preceding year’s Program Chair-Appointee. The Program Chair presents the proposed invited program to the Executive Committee for ﬁnal approval.

The Program Chair-Appointee shall coordinate the Section’s roundtable sessions at the Joint Statistical Meetings and assist the Program Chair.

The Communications Oﬃcer shall distribute relevant information and updates to Section members through the Section’s microsite and discussion board.

The Activity Coordinator shall work with the Communication Oﬃcer in developing Section activities throughout the year that include webinars and potentially other activities such as mentoring and student events.

The Webmaster maintains the Section’s website(s) and coordinates its improvement and content with the advice of the Publications Committee and Executive Committee.

The Student Liaisons shall assist the Program Chair and Program Chair-Appointee with tasks related to the Section’s program at JSM, assist the Communications Oﬃcer and Publications Oﬃcer in communicating with student members, and assist the Activity Coordinator to implement programming for students, including developing professional development and career skills and growing into a career as a consultant and collaborative statistician.

Article V. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The Executive Committee of the Section shall consist of the oﬃcers of the Section. Between business meetings, the management of the aﬀairs of the Section shall be in the hands of the Executive Committee.

Article VI. NOMINATION AND ELECTION

Each year the Section's Nominations Committee shall submit, to the Secretary of the ASA and the Section Chair, at least two candidates for each position to be ﬁlled, meeting the ASA's general deadline for submission of nominations. As part of the ASA's annual election, the Secretary of the ASA will transmit a ballot to all Section members. Additional nominations may be made by submitting a timely petition, signed by at least 25 Section members, to the Section Chair and the Secretary of the ASA. Such a petition must be submitted a minimum of two weeks before the ASA's deadline for including candidates on the ballot. If the oﬃce of Chair becomes vacant, the Chair-Elect shall become the Chair, the term extending through the following year. Vacancies in other oﬃces shall be ﬁlled by the Chair’s appointment with the approval of the Executive Committee.

Article VII. TERMS OF OFFICE

The Chair, Chair-Elect, Past Chair, Program Chair, and Program Chair-Appointee shall each serve a one-year term. The Chair, Chair-Elect and Program Chair-Appointee shall automatically succeed the Past-Chair, Chair and Program Chair, respectively, at the annual change of oﬃcers, occurring on January 1.

The Secretary/Treasurer and the Publications Oﬃcer are each elected to a two-year term.

The at-large elected members of the Executive Committee shall serve three-year terms, staggered so that one member is elected each year.

The term of oﬃce for the Representative(s) to the Council of Sections shall be as speciﬁed in the Charter of the ASA’s Council of Sections. Staggered elections will be used when the Section has more than one Representative.

The Communications Oﬃcer, the Activity Coordinator, and the Webmaster are appointed for two-year terms. The terms of the Communication Oﬃcer and Activity Coordinator shall be oﬀset from each other. No elected oﬃcer shall be eligible for immediate re-election to the same oﬃce except the Secretary/Treasurer. The Communications Oﬃcer, Activity Coordinator, and the Webmaster may be reappointed.

The Student Liaisons are appointed for a one-year term. Liaisons may be reappointed.

Article VIII. COMMITTEES

1. Types. The Committees of the Section shall consist of the Executive Committee, Standing Committees provided by this Charter, and such Standing or Current Committees as the Chair may establish. Current Committees may be established to serve a particular need or interest of the Section.

2. Membership. The terms of membership on Standing and Current Committees, if not otherwise speciﬁed in this Charter, shall be three years. Initial terms shall be set by the Chair for one, two, or three years so that, as nearly as possible, one third of the members shall be appointed each year. Members of committees shall serve until their successors are appointed or elected. Unless otherwise speciﬁed in this Charter, each committee shall be governed by a chair appointed by the Section Chair. All members of Standing and Current Committees shall be members of the ASA. The Chairs of all Standing and Current Committees shall be Section members.

3. Normal Time of Appointment. So new members of Standing and Current Committees may begin work promptly, the Chair-Elect shall normally designate these members. If possible, the designations shall be made at least two months prior to the time when the new committee members begin their terms.

4. Standing Committees. The Standing Committees provided by this Charter are as follows:

Nominations Committee. The Committee on Nominations shall consist of the immediate Past Chair of the Section, who serves as chair of the Committee, and three other members, one appointed each year by the chair of the Committee for a three-year term. The Committee shall submit nominations for oﬃcers as provided in Article VI. Members of the Committee are not eligible for nomination by the Committee.

Fellows Committee. The Committee to Nominate Fellows shall consist of three Section members who are ASA Fellows. The members are appointed by the Section Chair to have staggered 3-year terms. Each year the Committee shall identify Section members suitable as nominees for the honor of Fellow of the American Statistical ASA (described in the By-Laws of the ASA) and shall coordinate preparing and submitting nominations.

Charter Committee. The Section Chair shall appoint a Charter Committee for the purpose of reviewing the Charter of the Section as needed, normally every three years when contacted by a Vice Chair of the Council of Sections. The Charter Committee shall typically be comprised of the Chair Elect who will chair the Committee, the Secretary/Treasurer and an Executive Committee member with a Section’s Council of Sections Representative being a liaison with the Council of Sections. If revisions are merited, the Charter Committee shall prepare a revision to be submitted to the Section in accordance with Article XI of this Charter.

Publications Committee. The Publications Committee shall consist of the Publications Oﬃcer, who serves as Chair of the Committee, the Section Communications Oﬃcer, and the Webmaster. It shall coordinate the publication and external communication activities of the Section.

Supervisory Committee. The Supervisory Committee shall consist of the Chair, Chair-Elect, Past Chair, and Secretary/Treasurer. It shall advise the Chair where needed between meetings of the Executive Committee. The Chair shall summarize discussions of the Supervisory Committee, if any, at the next meeting of the Executive Committee.

Mentoring Award Committee. The Mentoring Award Committee shall consist of three members: one Representative to the Council of Sections, one additional Executive Committee member, and one additional member of the section. It shall be responsible for publicizing the Section’s annual Mentoring Award, reviewing nominations, and selecting an awardee.

Pathways to Promotion Committee. The Pathways to Promotion Committee should consist of at least three members including one executive committee member. All members should belong to the consulting section of the ASA. The committee will invite an Executive Committee member to participate in the event that none on the committee are currently part of the Executive Committee. The Pathways to Promotion Committee shall be responsible for providing tools, resources, and support to academic collaborative statisticians seeking promotion.

Membership Engagement, Outreach, and Diversity Committee. The Membership Engagement, Outreach, and Diversity Committee shall consist of at least three Section members. The committee members shall elect the committee Chair for a 3-year term (Chair-Elect, Chair, Past Chair); though any committee Chair must be approved by Section Chair. The Committee’s Chair, Past Chair, and Chair-Elect are responsible for recruiting at least one new member to join the committee annually as the Past Chair rotates off the committee leadership. The charge of the committee is to increase positive engagement of current members and proactively recruit new members for the Section in an inclusive manner by being mindful of diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging. The goal is to have a more inclusive representation of consulting and collaborative statisticians with a voice in the Section. Initiatives of the committee will be developed with the Executive Committee and other Section committees.

5. Ad-Hoc Committees. The life of an Ad-Hoc Committee may not exceed ﬁve years without a review of its need by the Executive Committee. Any committee that is to continue for more than one year must have a charge approved by the Executive Committee. Each committee must submit an annual report to the Executive Committee. Ad-Hoc Committees established in accordance with this article may be dissolved at any time by a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

Article IX. PUBLICATIONS

Publication of non-journal periodicals, reports, proceedings, or other publications may be authorized by Executive Committee vote. Editors for Section publications shall be members of the Section and shall be appointed by the Chair with the approval of the Executive Committee.

Article X. MEETINGS

The Executive Committee shall meet at the annual meeting of the ASA. It may also hold additional meetings at times and places designated by the Chair with the Executive Committee’s consent. Meetings shall be held at the call of the Chair or by vote of two-thirds of the Executive Committee. Between meetings, the Executive Committee may conduct business by mail, telephone, or electronic means. The annual business meeting of the Section shall be held in connection with the annual meeting of the ASA and shall be announced in the program of the annual meeting. The oﬃcers may also conduct business with the Section members by mail, or electronic mail or other electronic means.

Article XI. AMENDMENTS

1. Proposal. Amendments to this Charter may be proposed by the Executive Committee or by a petition signed by at least 25 Section members. An amendment originating by petition shall be referred to the Executive Committee, which shall vote on its recommendation regarding ratiﬁcation. Periodic revisions, as provided for in Article VIII Item 4, shall be referred to the Executive Committee, which may recommend ratiﬁcations as a whole or in parts. The Executive Committee may also decide upon the ﬁnal wording of a proposed amendment, as long as such wording is consistent with the original intent of the petition.

2. Ratiﬁcation. All proposed amendments shall be submitted to the members of the Section for their vote at the time of the next annual election of oﬃcers. If approved by a majority of the members voting, the amendment shall take eﬀect immediately. A copy of the amendment shall be ﬁled with the Secretary of the ASA.