2025 U.S. Conference on Teaching Statistics, 
Useful Models for Effective Teaching

Workshops begin July 15th, Conference July 17th - 19th, 2025
Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa

Registration for the U.S. Conference on Teaching Statistics (USCOTS), to be held at Iowa State University in July of 2025, is now open.  The conference runs from Thur July 17 - Sat July 19, with pre-conference activities (including workshops) beginning on Tues July 15.  Information and a link to register can be found here: www.causeweb.org/cause/uscots/uscots25/registration.

Please keep reading for answers to more than a dozen questions that some of you may have about USCOTS:

What is USCOTS?

This one is pretty self-explanatory from the expanded version of this acronym: a conference about teaching statistics, held in the United States.  The 2025 USCOTS will be held near the middle of the country, on the campus of Iowa State University.  USCOTS has been held in odd-numbered years since 2005.  You can learn much more, including about previous year’s incarnations of USCOTS, at: www.causeweb.org/cause/uscots/uscots25.

How broadly is “Teaching Statistics” to be interpreted?

Quite broadly.  We include “data science” as well as “statistics,” and we include any field that involves data.  We emphasize the teaching of undergraduates, but we trust that high school teachers will find much of interest.  We also hope that USCOTS will appeal to education researchers, and students, and curriculum developers, and educational software developers, and anyone else with an interest in the teaching and learning of data concepts and skills. 

What’s the best thing about USCOTS?

The people who attend! It’s great to attend statistics conferences and conferences about teaching, but it’s even better to attend a conference where everyone has a common interest in both data and teaching.  We happily anticipate that conversations among USCOTS participants in hallways, before/during/after sessions, and at meals will be one of your highlights of the conference.

What kinds of sessions?

USCOTS features many types of sessions:

• Keynote presentations
• Breakout sessions that feature interaction between presenters/participants and among participants
• “Posters and beyond” sessions that provide an opportunity to engage with the presenter
• Exhibitor technology demonstrations
• “Birds of a feather” discussions at lunch
• Banquet presentation and awards ceremony
• “Speed mentoring” session

What does the registration fee include?

A lot!  In addition to providing access to conference sessions and exhibitors, the registration fee includes four meals (dinner on Thursday and Friday, lunch on Friday and Saturday).  Pre-conference events are also free for USCOTS registrants.

What are the pre-conference events?

We are very pleased to offer:

• Sixteen workshops, ranging in duration from half-day to 1.5 days
• Liberal Arts Statistics Symposium, for teachers at liberal arts colleges and those interested in such a career path, to be held on Wed July 16
• Research Satellite, for statistics and data science researchers, to be held on the evening of Wed July 16 and the morning of Thur July 17

So, what is the amount of the registration fee that includes so much stuff?

The early-bird (by May 1) registration fee is $255.  Registrants from institutional members of CAUSE receive a $30 discount.  After May 1 the registration fee will increase to $290.  

You were doing so well at limiting the issue of acronyms to just USCOTS, but what is CAUSE?

The Consortium for the Advancement of Undergraduate Statistics Education is the organization that runs USCOTS.  CAUSE is headquartered in, and generously supported by, the Department of Statistics at Pennsylvania State University.  (But remember: USCOTS will be held at Iowa State, not Penn State, in 2025.)

How easy is it to become an institutional member of CAUSE?

Very easy!  You just need to fill out a form, obtain a department head/chair’s signature to indicate support, and agree to serve as a liaison who informs your colleagues about CAUSE activities.  There’s no membership fee involved.

What if the registration fee is too steep for my circumstances?

We encourage those for whom the registration fee would be a burden, in particular students and high school teachers and two-year college teachers, to apply for a registration grant/waiver using this form.

Where is Iowa State University (and please don’t just say “in Iowa”)?

Ames, Iowa, which is in the middle of Iowa

How can I get to Ames?

The closest airport to Ames is Des Moines (DSM).  In part because ride-sharing services are not reliable around Ames, we will offer an airport shuttle between DSM and hotels/dorm in Ames.  You can read more and request an airport shuttle here (scroll down).

Where can I stay in Ames?

We have reserved a block of rooms at three hotels in Ames, and we also offer an option to stay in a dorm room on the Iowa State campus.  You can read about these options, and also find a form to request a dorm room, here (scroll down).  Be aware that the number of dorm rooms is limited, and we expect them to fill up.

Can I attend USCOTS remotely?

No.  But we do have two more positive reactions: First, resources from most sessions will be shared freely on the USCOTS website, and recordings from the keynote sessions will be posted.  Second, the Electronic Conference on Teaching Statistics (eCOTS) will be held in the late spring of 2026.

Would it be okay if I let my colleagues know?

Yes, please!  We will greatly appreciate your forwarding this message to colleagues at your own institution and beyond. Remember our saying that the best part of USCOTS is the people who attend?  Well, please help to make that statement true by coming yourself and encouraging your friends and colleagues as well.

Who can I send my questions to?

We realize that this long message has not come close to addressing all issues that will arise.  Please send your questions to: uscots25organizers@googlegroups.com.

Thanks for reading this message.  We hope to see you at USCOTS!

Allan Rossman, Kelly McConville, Laura Ziegler, Matt Beckman, Andrew Ferguson

(on behalf of the USCOTS organizing committees)