In order to continue more effectively the work of the Steering Committee, we are forming working groups with discrete responsibilities. Please see below for a summary of the five current working groups and their membership. If you are interested in being involved in any of the working groups, please reach out to any member of a working group or email the Steering Committee at DSSCommittee@vassar.edu!
Curriculum and Staffing Working Group. This group aims to develop courses and a curricular program or programs that will meet the demand for education in data science and society at Vassar College while maintaining the college’s liberal arts mission. While these courses and programs will necessarily change over time, the working group will develop the first set of such offerings. Curricular programs may include correlate sequences, majors, or pathways within existing programs, as determined by the working group. All offerings developed will be presented to the full DSS steering committee and the appropriate faculty committees, departments and programs, and faculty as a whole for approval. In addition, the working group—in consultation with relevant departments and programs—will identify staffing plans that meet these curricular needs, for both the short and long terms.
Members:
- Abby Coplin (Sociology, STS)
- Jonathan Gordon (Computer Science)
- Ben Lotto (Mathematics and Statistics)
- Sarah Pearlman (Economics)
- Marc Smith (Computer Science)
Development Working Group. This group aims to conceptualize a center (broadly-defined) that fulfills the following roles:
- Faculty grants – teaching & research, data-theme, broadly defined
- Student grants – research, data-theme, broadly defined
- Mechanism for connecting faculty with student “consultants”
- Central place for students & faculty to come with data analysis questions on collaborative work
Members:
- Ming An (Mathematics and Statistics)
- Allan Clifton (Psychological Science)
- Leroy Cooper (Biology, STS)
- Ben Ho (Economics)
- Monika Hu (Mathematics and Statistics)
Computing Resources Working Group. This group will liaise with CIS and Asprey/CCAS to identify and address computing needs around data-centric work on campus.
Members:
- Allan Clifton (Psychology)
- Carlos Garcia (CIS)
- Jonathan Gordon (Computer Science)
- Jason Waterman (Computer Science)
Programming Working Group. This group will organize events on campus, including the existing DSS Colloquium Series and a potential Conference on Humanities and Digital Science in the spring.
Members:
- Robin Belton (Mathematics and Statistics)
- Abigail Coplin (Sociology and STS)
- Logan Stapleton (Computer Science)
External Outreach Working Group. This group will identify and explore funding sources, including potential alumnae/i donors and national funding sources, and outreach with other institutions that have data science programs.
Members:
- Ming An (Mathematics and Statistics)
- Leroy Cooper (Biology and STS)
- Monika Hu (Mathematics and Statistics)