"We may not think of mentors as famous, champions, or people of significant importance. However, to those of us who are mentored, being a mentor means being a hero."
So writes Cornell alumni Philip Scinto about his mentor, SDS Professor Emeritus Steven Schwager, in this Amstat News piece announcing Schwager as the recipient of this year's ASA Mentoring Award for Impact. The ASA Mentoring Award is given each year to a member who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership in developing the careers of statistics students, statisticians, or statistical researchers early in their careers.
"He was (and still is) my mentor and a mentor to many others, because that is his passion," Scinto wrote. "Whether as a professor, adviser, faculty adviser for student-run clubs, a consultant in industry, or friend, Steve always enthusiastically takes time and care to listen and discuss career, statistics, and life."
Schwager joined Cornell in 1978 as a member of what would become the Department of Biological Statistics and Computational Biology. He was also a faculty member in the Department of Statistical Science, which became the Department of Statistics and Data Science this year. He retired in late 2011.
In early July, Schwager was recognized with the mentoring award at the ASA President’s Address and Awards ceremony at the Joint Statistical Meetings in Denver.