Outreach at the Data Science Institute

We view data science as a lens to re-envision the University of Chicago’s relationship with the South Side of Chicago and greater Chicagoland, a platform for UChicago to lead, innovate and engage with industry, and a powerful approach for creating meaningful social impact. We want the DSI to be a national model for an equitable and inclusive data science academic community. Current programs include:

Rising Stars in Data Science: A workshop focused on celebrating and fast tracking the careers of exceptional data scientists at a critical inflection point in their career: the transition from PhD to postdoctoral scholar, research scientist, or tenure track position.

Data & Computing Summer Lab: A summer research opportunity for high school and undergraduate students focusing on rigorous, applied, interdisciplinary data science research and rooted in a cohort community.

Data4All High School Bridge Workshop: A weeklong virtual workshop aimed at introducing high school students to data science research and lowering barriers for participating in computing.

Civic Data & Technology Clinic: A program funded by the 11th Hour Project and the Public Interest Technology University Network (PIT-UN)  that connects students with organizations working in social and economic justice, sustainability, and climate change.

11th Hour Project: Data Science for Social and Environmental Impact 

The DSI serves as a centralized hub for software and data science for 11th Hour Project grantees. The 11th Hour Project, part of The Schmidt Family Foundation, serves nonprofits in four main impact areas: energy, food and agriculture, human rights, and marine technology. DSI research staff work to lower the barriers to mission driven data science through education, consultation, project based applications and collaboration.

UChicago students have the opportunity to drive social and environmental impact through projects with 11th Hour Grantees in the Civic Data and Technology Clinic, the Summer Lab program, and the Data Science Clinic.

View project videos from our collaborations with 11th Hour Project grantees.