New College of Florida pairs with local businesses for data science program

MANATEE -- The director of New College of Florida's data science program got a tip from a friend in the technology industry: Companies need well-trained data scientists.

The result: New College is starting a program aimed at bringing students into that high-demand job market.

Data science is a mixture of computer science and statistical analysis. Starting in February, 15 students will take classes in those subject areas, as well as a data ethics course specifying how data should and should not be used.

The goal of the program, according to New College's associate director of communications Dave Gulliver, is "to train students in a field that's tremendously important in many industries, including medicine, communications, finance, retail, and technology."

The program also fulfills a goal of Florida's higher-education system: to supply Florida's economy with skilled, hard-to-find workers.

"It's a win for both our students and Florida as a whole," Gulliver said.

Trey Lauderdale, founder and CEO of Sarasota-based Voalte, agrees.

"We don't have a lot of technology programs here in our area; it's kind of a gap we see," he said. "And big data and data analytics is a growing industry."

Voalte and another Sarasota-based company, Star2Star Communications, are two local businesses that will provide data for the New College students to work with. Star2Star provides all-in-one communications solutions to companies, and Voalte develops software to improve communication in the healthcare industry.

Both local companies, much like many companies across the U.S., are in need of employees who can look at large datasets and pull out the pertinent and necessary information. Gulliver said New College faculty worked with businesses to develop the program and cater to their employment needs.

"Employees with these skills are extremely valuable, and companies in many industries are eager to find them and bring them on board," said Patrick McDonald, professor of mathematics and director of New College's data science program.

The New College program aims to develop students' data analytics skills in 18 months, and send them to a paid internship with a partnering company for the final semester. Star2Star already offers internships to New College students, and data analytics plays "a critical role" in what the company does, said CEO Norm Worthington. Bringing students up to speed with the world of "Big Data" is important for his business and for the big scale.

"Due to the rise of cloud computing and a number of other factors, we're generating prodigious amounts of data," Worthington said. "Previously it was discarded or ignored or what have you; due to computational scale and efficiencies it's now possible to make meaningful information from the data."

New College hired four new faculty to teach the program and other undergraduate classes. These faculty members worked at Akamai, described by Gulliver as "the backbone of the Internet," as well as other big-name companies such as Goldman Sachs, Amazon and Microsoft.

Lauderdale said he's excited for the program's potential, and he hopes to hire graduates of the New College Data Science program. But he also knows his company won't be the only one hoping to employ them.

"We'll do what we can to keep them here, but it's a competitive market for good talent," Lauderdale said. He also hopes the program will help shift outsiders' perceptions about the Bradenton-Sarasota job market.

"We need to look at diversification beyond just being a great vacation destination," Lauderdale said. "This program aligns completely with where we hope that diversification will go." One engineer already employed at Voalte will be part of the inaugural class starting in February and Lauderdale said his company is working on a series of projects to share with the New College students.

The data science graduate program is New College's first master's degree. The program was approved by the State University System of Florida Board of Governors in November 2014 and was designed to meet the demand for employees trained in data analytics. The program will be funded with about $700,000 in annual state funding that has already been approved by the Florida Legislature. It is one of few established data analytics master's programs in the U.S.

As a recruiting tool, tuition and fees will be waived for the inaugural class which begins in February. Each full-time session of the program accepts 15 students, and no graduate exam scores are required for application. A second class will start the program in August, and tuition and fees will be set by the New College of Florida Board of Trustees. According to the program's webpage, the 2016-2017 tuition and fees are estimated to be similar to the 2015-2016 rates.

Janelle O'Dea, business reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7095 or follow her on Twitter@jayohday.

This story was originally published January 4, 2016 at 5:07 PM with the headline "New College of Florida pairs with local businesses for data science program ."