United States Department of Agriculture

WASHINGTON, March 27, 2014  –USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) today established a Hall of Fame and inducted an inaugural group of five individuals whose work at the agency has had a lasting impact on agricultural statistics and the service NASS provides. 

“The work of the individuals recognized today was significant in its own time. But the principles they advocated – including rigorous methodology, excellent staff training, and effective use of modern tools – continue to be hallmarks of our work today,” said NASS Administrator Dr. Cynthia Clark at the induction ceremony. 

The inaugural inductees to the NASS Hall of Fame are:

• Bruce M. Graham -- for his outstanding leadership in the Statistical Reporting Service and NASS, including leadership of the Survey Operations Group, which expanded the use of probability area frame surveys into most states.
• Sterling R. Newell – for leading the development of the 1957 long-range plan to expand USDA data collection. As Chair of the Crop Reporting Board (1950 – 1962), he helped convince Congress to support the plan, leading to the creation of the Statistical Reporting Service (now NASS).
• Cary Palmer – for service as an exemplary State Statistician known for his highly successful recruitment of college graduates who went on to become outstanding statisticians and leaders in the Statistical Reporting Service and NASS.
• Glenn D. Simpson – for the leadership he provided in the staffing and organizational structure of the new Statistical Reporting Service and for developing USDA Statistical Scope and Methods, which guided the agency’s statistical processes for many years.
• Harry C. Trelogan – for the vision and leadership he provided in transforming previous USDA data collection programs into the internationally renowned statistical agency NASS is today. He was the founding Administrator (1961 – 1975) of the Statistical Reporting Service (now NASS).

Individuals honored in the Hall of Fame exemplified integrity, honesty, and commitment to public service. A nominating committee of former NASS employees and independent statisticians selected the inductees for both their professional contributions and their personal attributes.

Dr. Catherine Woteki, USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics, participated in today’s ceremony and noted NASS’s credibility and long-standing record for producing timely, accurate, and useful agricultural data. “The internationally recognized agency NASS is today draws on the talent, vision, and energy these individuals brought to the task in their time,” she said.

NASS established the Hall of Fame to recognize former employees whose contributions to the agency and to agricultural statistics transcend time. For the inaugural induction, inclusion was limited to individuals who are deceased, retired more than five years ago, and worked for the agency after 1957, when USDA developed a plan to expand data collection and make it the work of a separate agency within the Department of Agriculture. 

To learn more about the NASS Hall of Fame, including information on how to submit a nomination, visit www.nass.usda.gov/About_NASS/Hall_of_Fame