Why Your Involvement Matters

The International Year of Statistics, 2013, focused on outreach in a wonderful way. As we celebrate the ASA's 175th anniversary in 2014, it is worthwhile to look inward as well and think about how to keep our association and profession strong, so that our successors will be able to celebrate the 275th anniversary. The ASA, with its long history, its fine staff and organization, and its financial resource base, is well positioned to serve the profession, and indeed society, and it is very successful at doing so. But the real measure of the health of our association is the size and level of engagement of its membership, whose participation is a major source of the ASA's strength. So, what is it that compels people to be members? One might argue that it is the tangible benefits that we receive in exchange for our dues--magazine and journal subscriptions, discounted meeting registrations, and so on. Although such benefits are attractive, I believe they are not the primary reasons people are ASA members. What compels people is the value they find through involvement in the association. Unlike benefits, which are objective, value is subjective, varying over time and varying from member to member or group to group. And unlike benefits, which can be listed as bullet points, value is best borne out in personal experiences. In this address, I will use experiences that ASA members have shared with me, along with experiences of my own, to paint a picture of the deep value that involvement in the ASA has provided. I also will challenge you to continue to find the extraordinary value available through involvement in our association.