{"id":133905,"date":"2021-01-14T11:37:37","date_gmt":"2021-01-14T21:37:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=133905"},"modified":"2021-01-14T11:39:03","modified_gmt":"2021-01-14T21:39:03","slug":"inaugural-datacamp-launches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2021\/01\/14\/inaugural-datacamp-launches\/","title":{"rendered":"Inaugural DataCamp launches Pacific-wide STEM<\/abbr> community"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Students attend DataCamp class on Zoom. (Courtesy photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At the inaugural DataCamp in fall 2020, students from Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> and the Pacific region worked together on projects in real-time, launching a network of future indigenous data scientists. The camp was supported through the Islands of Opportunity Alliance<\/a> (IOA<\/abbr>), a network of higher education institutions from Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> and 10 other partners located throughout the U.S.-affiliated Pacific. <\/p>\n

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Hilo<\/a> serves as the administrative hub of the group, which includes partner campuses in American Samoa, Guam, Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span>, Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and the Northern Marianas Islands. The Pacific-based program is geared toward minority students, specifically Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, and is aimed at encouraging students from two-year programs to continue their education at four-year institutions. <\/p>\n

“Upskilling” data analysis<\/h2>\n

The online DataCamp was run by faculty and staff from alliance member Chaminade University and focused on data analytics proficiency. The course introduced the field of data analytics and started the process of “upskilling or reskilling” through a set of curated hands-on learning modules.<\/p>\n

Students did not need any prior skills or knowledge in programming, statistics or visualization. However, at the end of the course, each participant emerged with the confidence and empowerment to continue to the next phase of the program, which is to apply the learned competencies to a real, current and relevant project in the student\u2019s own community.<\/p>\n

“I developed a respect for those who are interested in coding and data science,” said Pearlnalin Anien<\/strong>, a biology major at UH<\/abbr> Hilo who attended the DataCamp. “There was a lot to learn, and it is not an easy thing to spend four to six hours per day doing data analysis. The knowledge I acquired will go a long way in my research career.”<\/p>\n

See also Biology major receives scholarship from non-profit supporting Micronesians in Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span><\/p>\n