# Mu Sigma Rho

Mu Sigma Rho (ΜΣΡ) is an American national honor society for statistics It was established at Iowa State University in 1968.

## History

Mu Sigma Rho was founded by Ted Bancroft, David Huntsberger, and Oscar Kempthorne at the Statistical Laboratory and Department of Statistics at Iowa State University in 1968. It was formed as the National Statistics Honor Society. Mu Sigma Rho seeks to promote and encourage scholarly activity in statistics, and to recognize outstanding achievement of students, faculty, and professional statisticians in academic and non-academic institutions.
The society was incorporated in the state of Iowa. Its first chapter, Alpha, was established at towa State University. Donald K. Hotchkiss was the first president of the national society, while Eric West was the first president of the Alpha chapter.
In February 2005, the society began allowing American Statistical Association chapters to join Mu Sigma Rho as affiliate chapters. The allows students to join the society who attend universities and colleges that do not have a Mu Sigma Rho chapters.

## Activities

Mu Sigma Rho provides outreach and professional service. Some chapters host speakers and provide tutoring services to other students. The society publishes an occasional newsletter, The Mu Sigma Rhover.
Mu Sigma Rho presents annual awards, including the William D. Warde Statistics Education Award and the Mu Sigma Rho Early Career Undergraduate Impact Award. The Early Career Undergraduate Impact Award is presented to a statistics faculty member for contributions to the success of undergraduate students. The Warde Statistics Education Award known as the Statistics Education Award before 2000, is presented to a statistics instructor for excellence in the classroom and a lifetime of commitment to statistics education. Faculty at any academic institution in the United States are eligible; recipients do not have to work for Mu Sigma Rho member institutions.

## Membership

Mu Sigma Rho's membership consists of undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, and honorary members.
To be eligible for membership, undergraduates must have completed two years of college and eight semester hours of statistics courses, including five hours at a junior level, with a 3.40 GPA in those courses and a 3.20 GPA overall. Graduate students seeking membership must have completed twelve semester hours with a 3.50 GPA.

## Chapters

Following is a list of Mu Sigma Rho chapters. Active chapters are in bold. Inactive chapters are in italics.
| Chapter | Former chapter name | Charter date and range | Institution | Location | Status |
| Iowa State | Iowa Alpha | 1968 | Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa | Active |
| Medical University of South Carolina | South Carolina Alpha | August 30, 1979 | Medical University of South Carolina | Charleston, South Carolina | Active |
| Virginia Tech | Virginia Alpha | 1979 | Virginia Tech | Blacksburg, Virginia | Active |
| Oklahoma State University | Oklahoma Alpha | Before 1982 | Oklahoma State University–Stillwater | Stillwater, Oklahoma | Active |
| | West Virginia Alpha | Before 1982 | West Virginia University | Morgantown, West Virginia | Inactive |
| | Colorado Alpha | Before 1986 | Colorado State University | Fort Collins, Colorado | Inactive |
| North Carolina State University | North Carolina Alpha | 1986 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, North Carolina | Active |
| | Utah Alpha | Before 1988 | Utah State University | Logan, Utah | Inactive |
| Brigham Young University | Utah Beta | 1988 | Brigham Young University | Provo, Utah | Active |
| University of South Carolina | South Carolina Beta | 1988 | University of South Carolina | Columbia, South Carolina | Active |
| | Alabama Alpha | Before 1989 | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | Inactive |
| | Louisiana Alpha | Before 1989 | McNeese State University | Lake Charles, Louisiana | Inactive |
| | New York Alpha | Before 1989 | Cornell University | Ithaca, New York | Inactive |
| | Pennsylvania Alpha | Before 1989 | Temple University | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Inactive |
| | Ohio Alpha | Before 1992 | Bowling Green State University | Bowling Green, Ohio | Inactive |
| University of Vermont | Vermont Alpha | April 18, 1994 | University of Vermont | Burlington, Vermont | Active |
| University of Florida | Florida Alpha | 1995 | University of Florida | Gainesville, Florida | Active |
| Virginia Commonwealth University | Virginia Beta | | Virginia Commonwealth University | Richmond, Virginia | Active |
| | Wyoming Alpha | | University of Wyoming | Laramie, Wyoming | Inactive |
| Bryant University | | | Bryant University | Smithfield, Rhode Island | Active |
| Butler University | | | Butler University | Indianapolis, Indiana | Active |
| Cal Poly | | | California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo | San Luis Obispo, California | Active |
| Cal - Riverside | | | University of California, Riverside | Riverside, California | Active |
| Eastern Kentucky University | | | Eastern Kentucky University | Richmond, Kentucky | Active |
| Florida State University | | | Florida State University | Tallahassee, Florida | Active |
| George Mason University | | | George Mason University | Fairfax, Virginia | Active |
| Grand Valley State University | | | Grand Valley State University | Allendale, Michigan | Active |
| Kennesaw State University | | | Kennesaw State University | Kennesaw, Georgia | Inactive ? |
| New York University | | | Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development | New York, New York | Active |
| Penn State University | | | Pennsylvania State University | University Park, Pennsylvania | Active |
| Purdue University | | | Purdue University | West Lafayette, Indiana | Active |
| Texas A&M | | | Texas A&M University | College Station, Texas | Active |
| University of Georgia | | | University of Georgia | Athens, Georgia | Active |
| University of Louisville Biostatistics | | | University of Louisville | Louisville, Kentucky | Active |
| University of Maryland, Baltimore County | | | University of Maryland, Baltimore County | Catonsville, Maryland | Active |
| University of Nebraska | | | University of Nebraska–Lincoln | Lincoln, Nebraska | Active |
| Boston Chapter of ASA | | 2005 | Colby College and Saint Michael's College | Boston, Massachusetts | Active |
| Cleveland Chapter of ASA | | After 2005 | Cleveland State University | Cleveland, Ohio | Active |
| Dayton Chapter of ASA | | After 2005 | | Dayton, Ohio | Active |
| Kentucky Chapter of ASA | | After 2005 | University of Kentucky | Lexington, Kentucky | Active |
| Pittsburgh Chapter of ASA | | After 2005 | | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Active |
| Southern California Chapter of ASA | | After 2005 | University of California, Los Angeles | Los Angeles, California | Active |
| Albuquerque Chapter of ASA | | 2006 | University of New Mexico | Albuquerque, New Mexico | Active |
| Winona State University | | 2007 | Winona State University | Winona, Minnesota | Active |
| Washington, D.C. Chapter of ASA | | 2008 | | Washington, D.C. | Active |
| Kansas Western Missouri Chapter of ASA | | 2012 | University of Central Missouri | Warrensburg, Missouri | Active |
| Elon University | | January 2016 | Elon University | Elon, North Carolina | Active |
| University of Arizona | | April 2021 | University of Arizona | Tucson, Arizona | Active |
| St Lawrence University | | 2023 | St. Lawrence University | Canton, New York | Active |
* ↑ Chapter covers the greater Pittsburgh area, including Carnegie Mellon University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Slippery Rock University, and the University of Pittsburgh.

## Notable members

* Marcia Gumpertz, professor of statistics at North Carolina State University