Statistics in the Community (STATCOM)

Statistics in the Community (STATCOM)

by Nilupa Gunaratna

STATCOM Advisor

Statistics in the Community (STATCOM) is a graduate student-run consulting program within the Department of Statistics that provides professional statistical consulting services to nonprofit groups and the local government free of charge. Students volunteer their time to help community clients address specific problems and needs. In return, they are able to apply statistical concepts to solve real problems, while gainingexperience in leadership, consulting in teams, and communication of results to the general public.

STATCOM grew rapidly over the 2004-2005 academic year and now has over 35 members from Statistics and related disciplines. Eleven student teams provided advice, designed surveys, and analyzed data for local clients including school corporations, libraries, and community assistance programs. Meanwhile, other student teams redesigned STATCOM’s website, established an energetic P-12 Outreach program, and developed a presentation for recruiting undergraduates into the Statistics Department’s graduate program.

The group also continued its relationship with the city of West Lafayette by designing, analyzing, and presenting the results of a community survey for the city’s strategic planning process. The results of STATCOM’s project with the Sagamore Parkway Task Force in 2003 also became apparent as the city of West Lafayette began to address the condition of sidewalks and crosswalks along the Sagamore Parkway and established a farmers’ market this summer.

As STATCOM members grow in number and experience, there is increased opportunity for students to learn about statistical consulting and data analysis from each other. Biweekly STATCOM meetings now feature presentations by students on statistical methods or consulting problems. These meetings also allow student members to advise each other on problems and questions that arise in STATCOM projects.

To accommodate the growth in activity and mission, two project managers now assist the director and associate director as STATCOM leaders. The new project manager positions spread out responsibilities, involve more students in decision-making, and are intended to encourage more M.S. students to take on leadership roles.

In addition to P-12 Outreach, STATCOM members have developed and given presentations to various undergraduate classes on the Purdue University West Lafayette campus. These talks addressed careers in statistics and the role statistics plays in other disciplines and in everyday life. Audiences for the presentations included undecided freshmen, non-statisticians who will use statistics in their careers, and future statisticians.

Professional activities are also an important part of STATCOM. Graduate students Gayla Olbricht and Adam Reeger presented a poster entitled “STATCOM: K-12 Outreach” at the Purdue P-12 Engagement Forum on April 22, 2005. At the Joint Statistical Meetings 2005, three past STATCOM directors – Nilupa Gunaratna, Craig Johnson, and John Stevens – presented an invited paper entitled “Service Learning through a Student-run Consulting Program” at the Section on Statistical Education’s session on “Service Learning in Undergraduate and Graduate Statistics Education”. The goal of this paper was to present amodel for integrating service learning activities into graduate student education at other universities.

The support STATCOM receives from the Statistics Department’s faculty and staff is crucial to its success. Regina Becker, Teena Seele, and George McCabe advise student consultants on all aspects of STATCOM’s activities, from seeking new clients to preparing final reports. In the past year, Ellen Gundlach became actively involved as advisor to the P-12 Outreach program, and Cheryl Crabill assisted in major changes to STATCOM’s website as well as in publicizing the group’s activities. Mary Ellen Bock also provided important encouragement and advice, especially as STATCOM expanded in membership and mission. The group looks forward to playing an active role in both the department and the local community in the coming year!

Photo Caption: The results of a project completed by graduate students Nik Tuzov, Evi Laksana, Xian Xiao, and Huiping Xu are being used by the Tippecanoe Arts Federation to formulate their next strategic plan.