Developing Humanities-Focused Curricula in Data Science

FAIN: AKB-298374-24

Old Dominion University (Norfolk, VA 23529-0001)
Teresa Kouri Kissel (Project Director: September 2023 to present)
Holly Handley (Co Project Director: September 2023 to present)
Brian K. Payne (Co Project Director: April 2024 to present)

A three-year project to create a humanities concentration within a data science major and a minor in data science and humanities.

Data Science is often thought of as a purely STEM field. However, Data Science needs the Humanities to be an effective and complete discipline. We see humanistic and ethical issues arising for Data Science on topics like facial recognition software, AI, and self-driving cars. Humanities also needs Data Science. Linguists make essential use of data when they complete corpus searches. Sociologists study the impacts of algorithms and data on our lives, while criminologists use data to reduce crime. Data Science and the Humanities are essential partners. The NEH Implementation grant will be used to establish two new programs to explore the relationship between Humanities and Data Science. We will establish a concentration in the Data Science major and a separate minor to allow students to develop a deeper understanding of the relationship between the Humanities and Data Science. By establishing both programs, we will be able to reach both Humanities and STEM students.