Dear Colleagues –

On behalf of the Board, we welcome you to WDSI 2022 on the beautiful Big Island of Hawaii. This year is very special to us as we celebrate our Golden Anniversary. We are excited and grateful to have you joining us for this milestone celebration. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the members who have been on this journey with us and welcome our new members who will hopefully continue to be part of our organization in the future. I am privileged to be the Program Chair of this auspicious occasion.

Over the last 50 years, WDSI members have made significant contributions in research, teaching, and practice, impacting many disciplines. For this landmark year, let us celebrate not only what we have achieved as a professional community, but also the life-long relationships we have forged on this journey. WDSI is unique in that the contribution of every individual is voluntary. We are here to create genuine connections, create a community, and focus on the experience. Our vision is to continue to foster these relationships and create value for our current and future members. To that end, this conference will be one for us to share our thoughts and exchange ideas on how to chart our journey forward to reach new heights.

Another reason this year is even more exciting is that we are gathering after a two-year hiatus caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. As we put the worst of the pandemic behind us, we hope this occasion allows our members to reflect upon and celebrate their past accomplishments, renew friendships, and extend their networks. We hope that you will have a productive and fun‐filled time at this very special conference.

To put a conference of this magnitude together is not a small task. In Spring of 2019, we selected this beautiful location with the help of Past President, John Davies, Immediate Past President, Omer Benli, and current President, Theodore Byrne. I want to thank them for their help and specifically acknowledge the continued mentorship of Omer since then. I have lost count of the number of times I have reached out to him for his advice. I would like to thank our Treasurer Sheldon Smith, for not only his invaluable guidance on monetary matters, but also his insights into best practices on many other issues. I am also indebted to WDSI Director of Information Systems, Khosrow Moshirvaziri, who went above and beyond his responsibilities to assist me throughout the process. My heartfelt gratitude goes to Yuanjie He, our Program Chair elect, and his colleague from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, Shuo Zeng, who were instrumental in putting together the conference program. Additionally, I would like to thank my colleague, Nupur Shah, for his exceptional technical expertise and work during the conference.

I would like to extend my appreciation to all the Track Chairs, without whose assistance we would not be here; the members of the Awards committee, who went out of their way to deliver on time; Vivian Landrum, Executive Director of DSI, our parent organization, who assisted with the registration process; and our financial sponsors who have supported us not just this year but every year. Lastly, I would like to thank all of you, our conference participants, for your contributions which are the foundation of this conference.