Virginia Tech is set to host its annual Women in Data Science (WiDS) Blacksburg event on February 18-19, celebrating women in the field of data science and aiming to increase their participation. The event is part of the global WiDS Worldwide movement, which seeks to empower women in data science to achieve 30% representation by 2030. Currently, women make up less than 20% of students and less than 10% of decision-makers in the field.
The event will kick off with a networking mixer on Tuesday, February 18, in the atrium of the Data and Decision Sciences Building from 5:30-7 p.m., allowing attendees to connect with students, faculty, and professionals interested in data science. The following evening will feature a conference with keynote speakers Neeta Eapen and Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, an expert panel focused on mentoring the next generation of data scientists, and a student poster session. The conference will take place from 5-8:45 p.m. in the 220 Classroom Building.
Neeta Eapen, formerly an applications engineer at Oracle and now a faculty member at Radford University, will deliver the opening keynote address. Her research focuses on optimization challenges in computational geometry, machine learning, and transportation systems. Bonnie Ghosh-Dastidar, president of the American Statistical Association in 2024 and a senior statistician and data scientist at RAND, will give the closing keynote address, discussing the impact of statisticians in health policy.
Registration for this free event, open to anyone interested in data science, closes on February 14. For the latest details and full agenda, visit the event website.
