Hub to Connect Illinois’ Data Science Research Community Launched

The Office of the Provost at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation (OVCRI) and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications are creating a new Office of Data Science Research (ODSR) to build stronger connections and advance the innovative and lasting work being done by the data science research community on campus.

With initial financial support from the Provost, NCSA and OVCRI, ODSR will organize the considerable assets across campus and strategically align communication, community-building resources and research opportunities for faculty, staff, postdocs and students to take full advantage of the continuing revolution in data science – amplified by artificial intelligence and machine learning – and ensure Illinois’ global brand as a leader in computing, interdisciplinary research and innovation.

“Data science advances are crucial to solving complex problems that have substantial societal impact,” said Provost John Coleman. “This new office at Illinois will draw upon the university’s tremendous collaborative and interdisciplinary culture to support data science research efforts. That research activity will in turn accelerate the mission of the university to lead in discovery, learning, public engagement and economic development.”

“Research collaboration is essential in solving data science challenges, both locally and globally,” said Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Susan Martinis. “The Office of Data Science Research will strengthen those essential connections and fully develop a network to support their important work.”

ODSR will build upon the efforts of the Midwest Big Data Innovation Hub (MBDH), one of four regional big data innovation hubs funded by the U. S. National Science Foundation (NSF). Led from NCSA, MBDH is a collaboration network consisting of members from academia, industry, government, and nonprofits who are passionate about using data-driven approaches to address grand challenges facing science and society. MBDH Executive Director John MacMullen will help lead the early efforts to bring those principles to the Urbana campus, and NCSA Director Bill Gropp will chair an advisory committee to propose an overall strategic plan that drives the mission and success of ODSR, including making a recommendation for the leadership role.

“Illinois faculty, staff and students are innovators in many areas of data science research,” MacMullen said. “ODSR will provide a coordination platform to help them more easily identify synergies and opportunities for collaboration and communicate their impact more broadly.”

ODSR is intended to support and coordinate data science research efforts at Illinois. It will serve as a point of contact for researchers to connect with others in the community, including members in industry, non-profits, government and other data science users outside of the university, begin new projects and offer input on data science infrastructure and other research initiatives.

The Academic Data Science Alliance (ADSA), a professional association for academic data science leaders, researchers and educators, is one entity with which ODSR will coordinate. NCSA is a founding member of the ADSA and ODSR will now take over the role of representing Illinois as a member institution in the alliance.

“NCSA is excited to continue assisting university researchers and data scientists through this new collaboration, and help the expertise and innovation that thrives at Illinois truly be greater than the sum of its parts,” Gropp said.

ABOUT NCSA

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign provides supercomputing, expertise and advanced digital resources for the nation’s science enterprise. At NCSA, University of Illinois faculty, staff, students and collaborators from around the globe use innovative resources to address research challenges for the benefit of science and society. NCSA has been assisting many of the world’s industry giants for over 35 years by bringing industry, researchers and students together to solve grand challenges at rapid speed and scale.