Collaboration with UVa School of Data Science

RENAISSANCE SCHOOL STUDENTS COLLABORATE WITH UVA SCHOOL OF DATA SCIENCE IN A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PILOT PROGRAM DEMYSTIFYING SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

The pilot program represents a year of collaboration between Renaissance School and the UVA School of Data Science

On March 26, 2025, a reception hosted by UVA School of Data Science Dean Philip Bourne celebrated the completion of a first-of-its-kind pilot program, a collaboration with Renaissance School in Charlottesville, VA, on translating academic research into plain language. From the program guide, “The UVA Data Science Research Demystification Project [engages] high school students, working as Research Ambassadors… the inaugural cohort are students from the Renaissance School located in Charlottesville, Virginia.”

“Academic jargon can create various barriers for a wide variety of stakeholders, especially given the statistics on literacy that demonstrate the majority (54%) of adults in the United States read at or below a middle school level (Rothwell, 2020). Plain language documents can help bridge equity gaps and also support the translation of scientific text, commonly written in English, into various languages.”

For eight weeks, students worked in groups both at Renaissance School and on UVA Grounds at the School of Data Science, and had the chance to collaborate directly with researchers, students, and faculty. Ultimately, four plan-language versions of important data science research articles were produced, on topics ranging from detection of video forgery, to the science of success.

A Year of Collaboration

In early Spring, Renaissance School faculty Stephen Haske was awarded Honorable Mention for his submission to the UVA School of Data Science Data as ART competition, with the work being acquired by the university. This inspired the Renaissance School summer workbook on data visualization, following the example of the book Dear Data by Giorgia Lupi and Stefanie Posavec. In the fall, Renaissance students were delighted to attend a special talk with Dr. Moiya McTier, and received a tour of the new UVA Data Science facility and campus. The UVA Data Science Research Demystification Project was the culmination of a year-long collaboration between Renaissance School and the UVA School of Data Science.

Renaissance School is Charlottesville’s college preparatory school for academically and artistically advanced high school students. Founded in 1999, the school’s comprehensive liberal arts program is ranked the Niche #1 high school for the arts in Virginia for 2025, as well as top 9% nationally in STEM.

RENAISSANCE SCHOOL STUDENTS COLLABORATE WITH UVA SCHOOL OF DATA SCIENCE IN A FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PILOT PROGRAM DEMYSTIFYING SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

The pilot program represents a year of collaboration between Renaissance School and the UVA School of Data Science

On March 26, 2025, a reception hosted by UVA School of Data Science Dean Philip Bourne celebrated the completion of a first-of-its-kind pilot program, a collaboration with Renaissance School in Charlottesville, VA, on translating academic research into plain language. From the program guide, “The UVA Data Science Research Demystification Project [engages] high school students, working as Research Ambassadors… the inaugural cohort are students from the Renaissance School located in Charlottesville, Virginia.”

“Academic jargon can create various barriers for a wide variety of stakeholders, especially given the statistics on literacy that demonstrate the majority (54%) of adults in the United States read at or below a middle school level (Rothwell, 2020). Plain language documents can help bridge equity gaps and also support the translation of scientific text, commonly written in English, into various languages.”

For eight weeks, students worked in groups both at Renaissance School and on UVA Grounds at the School of Data Science, and had the chance to collaborate directly with researchers, students, and faculty. Ultimately, four plan-language versions of important data science research articles were produced, on topics ranging from detection of video forgery, to the science of success.

A Year of Collaboration

In early Spring, Renaissance School faculty Stephen Haske was awarded Honorable Mention for his submission to the UVA School of Data Science Data as ART competition, with the work being acquired by the university. This inspired the Renaissance School summer workbook on data visualization, following the example of the book Dear Data by Giorgia Lupi and Stefanie Posavec. In the fall, Renaissance students were delighted to attend a special talk with Dr. Moiya McTier, and received a tour of the new UVA Data Science facility and campus. The UVA Data Science Research Demystification Project was the culmination of a year-long collaboration between Renaissance School and the UVA School of Data Science.

Renaissance School is Charlottesville’s college preparatory school for academically and artistically advanced high school students. Founded in 1999, the school’s comprehensive liberal arts program is ranked the Niche #1 high school for the arts in Virginia for 2025, as well as top 9% nationally in STEM.