Post by Chris Bilder

Yesterday was a very sad day for all of Statistics: The University of Nebraska Board of Regents voted 9-1 (with 2 abstentions) to eliminate its Department of Statistics (https://lnkd.in/gJzJ_yki). There was more than 5 hours of testimony by more than 100 faculty/students/public (Statistics testimony: https://lnkd.in/gbCDnMu9) testifying against the eliminations of four different departments. Arguments of 1) Flawed data and statistical analyses to choose these four departments, 2) Proposed alternative savings and revenue options, and 3) Importance of the disciplines now and in the future did not convince the Regents. We were overwhelmed by all of the support that we received from the statistical community over the last few months. Thank you. What’s next? The department’s excellent faculty (https://lnkd.in/gaiMfa7d) are now available for new positions. We are guaranteed employment until Dec. 2026, and some may have employment until May 2027. Please contact my colleagues if you are looking for new faculty. Most of the department’s excellent students (80 BS/MS/PhD) are looking for new Departments of Statistics to complete their majors. Please contact our undergraduate and graduate committee chairs (U: Erin Blankenship, G: Souparno Ghosh).