Researchers involved in the Arkansas NSF EPSCoR DART program recently met while analyzing data that is Robust and Trusted All Hands Meeting and Student Poster Competition in Little Rock. Abby Willard, a rising junior in data science, won first place in the poster contest at the conference.

Willard’s project, which included the help of his faculty advisor, Karl Schubert, and personal advisor, Lee Shoultz, involved creating data science case studies for other colleges and universities across the country. “Data Science for Arkansas (DS4A)” ecosystem to help get their courses and programs started. This project is important and insightful because the U of A’s data science program, which launched in the fall of 2020, is the first of its kind in the state of Arkansas. Willard’s award-winning poster, titled “NSF EPSCoR PI Team Case Study Project,” won him a $1,000 prize to be used to attend a future conference of his choice.

Karl Schubert, associate director of the data science program at the U of A, said, “I am very proud of Abby and her contribution to our statewide data science ecosystem,” Data Science for Arkansas,” as its winning poster acknowledges. . His work helps us and our two- and four-year data science program partners with case study examples with real-world data and real-world problems.

About DART: In 2020, the Science and Technology Division of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, in partnership with the U of A and eight other colleges and universities, received a $20 million grant from the Established Program of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to stimulate competitive research (EPSCoR). The grant is supplemented by $4 million from the state. As a result, the researchers set up a program called “Data Analytics That Are Robust and Trusted”, or DART. DART is designed to overcome fundamental barriers to the practical application and acceptance of modern data analysis, learning, and prediction, any of which could derail or impede its full development and contributions. DART will also establish a statewide data science education ecosystem by defining a combination of model programs, degrees, pedagogy, and curriculum; provide resources and training for K20 educators; provide educational opportunities inside and outside the classroom for K20 students; and ensure broad participation to impact the state’s skilled data science worker pipeline.

DART Participating Institutions

• Arkansas State University, Beebe
• Arkansas State University, Mountain Home
• Arkansas State University
• Black River Technical College
• Cossatot Community College at the University of Arkansas
• Northwest Arkansas Community College
• Philander Smith College (HBCU)
• Shorter College (HBCU)
• Southern Arkansas University of Technology
• University of Southern Arkansas
• University of Arkansas Community College in Batesville
• University of Arkansas Community College in Morrilton
• University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College
• University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
• University of Arkansas, Fayetteville (MSI)
• University of Arkansas, Little Rock
• University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff (HBCU)
• University of Central Arkansas