Morris Hansen Lectures
The Morris Hansen Lecture series was established by the Washington Statistical Society (WSS) in 1990 with a financial grant from Westat, Inc. It was set up to honor Morris Hansen, whose pioneering contributions to survey sampling and related statistical methods during his long and distinguished career at the Census Bureau and at Westat established many standards and methods, mostly still in use, for the conduct of surveys. In later years, Westat has made periodic financial contributions to WSS so that the Hansen Lecture series could continue.
The Morris Hansen Lecture usually is held in the fall of the year, typically October or November. The usual format is to have a primary speaker of outstanding merit cover an important topic of wide interest, and two discussants, one local. The Hansen Lecture series seeks to achieve balance between theory, applications, and policy; and to highlight the diversity of disciplines that inform survey practice. There were no lectures in 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first lecture was held at the National Academy of Sciences and was co-sponsored by the Committee on National Statistics, with tentative plans to rotate the series, and co-sponsorship, among various government agencies. However, when arrangements worked very well in year two, the National Agricultural Statistics Service became a co-sponsor, and it has hosted sessions at USDA's Jefferson Auditorium and Whitten Building Patio ever since. Typically, the Hansen Lecture is held at 3 or 3:30 p.m. and is followed by a catered reception. The speaker receives an honorarium of $1000. Expenses are paid for the speaker and discussants.
Annual Lectures
Topics and speakers for the Hansen lectures have covered an appropriately broad range of statistical applications. Some presentations specifically focused on review and extension of Morris's work. Others represented topics that Morris likely would have pursued, either through his own efforts or by asking questions. Most presentations have been by traditional lecturers with discussants. In 2002, a 3-person panel spoke on Privacy and Confidentiality.
Most lectures have been published. The first five lectures were published in the International Statistical Review. The majority of the subsequent lectures have been published in the Journal of Official Statistics, but several of the lectures have been published elsewhere. Abstracts for each lecture can be obtained via the appropriate link below.
Return to topCommittee Membership
The committee consists of a total of 6 members: 2 special members and 4 regular members. The special members represent the sponsoring organization, Westat, and the cosponsoring host organization, currently NASS. The 4 regular members are appointed to serve staggered 4-year terms. One of the regular members is appointed annually by the WSS President. The appointment occurs in the Fall of the year, in time for the new appointee to participate in the Hansen Lecture. Members will be selected to represent a broad view of statistical and survey methodology. The regular members should include government experts and at least one academic expert. The regular member serving the third year of his/her term will be Chair of the Committee.
Responsibilities
The committee organizes the Morris Hansen Lectures. This includes selecting and inviting the primary speaker and discussants; making arrangements for the Lecture facility and the reception facility; assuring that WSS has made the arrangements for catering of the reception; inviting the Hansen family to the event; and organizing the participant dinner following the reception. It also includes publicizing the event through the WSS newsletter and the preparation of a special brochure; and arranging for publication of the papers from the event (if appropriate).
Committee Members
- Ron Fecso (2011 chair)
- Connie Citro (2012 chair)
- Don Malec (2013 chair)
- John Czajka (2014 chair)
- Eric Slud (2015 chair)
- Barry Graubard (2016 chair)
- Frauke Kreuter (2017 chair)
- Morgan Earp (2018 chair)
- Steve Cohen (2019 chair)
- Brian Harris-Kojetin (2021 chair)
- Partha Lahiri (2022 chair)
- Jenny Thompson (2023 chair)
- Linda Young (NASS representative)
- Jeri Mulrow (Westat representative)
Biography of Morris Hansen, Historic Items
The National Academy of Sciences has included a biography of Morris Hansen in its 1996 volume entitled "Biographical Memoirs" (vol. 70) published by the National Academy Press. The memoir of Morris Howard Hansen was co-authored by Joseph Waksberg and Edwin D. Goldfield and is available at the NAS site.
Historic pictures and items from Morris Hansen's life were shown at the 2018 lecture.
Return to top
