Benjamin S. Baumer, Nicholas J. Horton, Ethan Meyers, and Andrea Dustin

The NSF-funded Data Science Corps Wrangle-Analyze-Visualize (DSC-WAV) project organized a symposium of academic leaders, faculty, and other stakeholders to foster the development of flexible and inclusive data science pathways in Massachusetts. The symposium was hosted by Smith College on June 13 with the following two goals:

• Advocate for the creation of data science transfer pathways
• Identify barriers and opportunities for student success in data science

Participants focused on the following questions:

• Where is the passion to make data science skills and capacities available to your students?
• What questions will these students be able to answer about their local community and their lives?
• How can we help students build these transferable skills while also making an impact locally?

Marc Maier—head of data science, risk, and product at MassMutual—opened the symposium with an address in which he described how data science has transformed the company. He shared how the 200 data scientists, engineers, and technologists at MassMutual have worked to improve decision-making at all levels of the company. He also noted how the company’s focus on drawing from a diverse pool of applicants and creating an inclusive workplace culture within the data science development program has resulted in a team that is 50 percent non-white and 70 percent non-male.

Chief scientist and associate director for research and methodology at the US Census Bureau Sallie Keller’s keynote address highlighted the importance of community colleges in her academic trajectory. Through the lens of her current work, she offered numerous examples of how data can be used to inform policy decisions in many realms. Examples included resource allocations in cities and ways to address disparities in services.

A panel with speakers from Bunker Hill Community College, Roxbury Community College, and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst shared innovative programs in Massachusetts, including a new data analytics program, a new certificate, and efforts to support transfer students at four-year institutions.

The 30 symposium participants came from 13 institutions and organizations. They spent time together in small groups identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for their institutions and students and worked to identify next steps to overcome barriers. Ideas from these discussions were incorporated into a white paper that identifies five curricular friction points that complicate transfer pathways.

The symposium leaders’ plans are to develop a roadmap to make data science opportunities available to all two-year college students in Massachusetts and beyond.