UC Berkeley Library Launches “Library Data Initiatives Plan” to Boost Data Science Expertise, Services

From UC Berkeley Library News:

“We have easier access to all of this information, derived from all over the world,” says Anthony Suen, director of programs at Berkeley’s Division of Data Sciences. “But there needs to be a central place where people can be interactive and think about these issues on a deeper level. The Library is the home base.”

In step with the explosion of data science across campus — including a new division, major, and undergraduate course that is the fastest-growing in university history — the Library has launched the UC Berkeley Library Data Initiatives Plan. Developed over years of conversations with librarians and campus partners, the plan is a multifaceted strategy for supporting Berkeley’s changing research landscape.

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The Library’s new initiative focuses on four major goals: increasing access to and resources for data collections; building all librarians’ data expertise; promoting data literacy across campus; and engaging with university partners to build communities around data science. “I’m a librarian, so my ethos is, ‘I’m here to help lower the barrier for people doing research,’” says Josh Quan, data services librarian, who spearheaded the data initiative alongside Amy Neeser, consulting and outreach lead for Research IT. “I’m committed to allowing researchers to do the best work they can in order to change the world.”

Through its Data Acquisition and Access Program, or DAAP, the Library acquires datasets on researchers’ behalf — including, in recent years, the entire U.S. congressional record, newspaper archives, housing rates in major cities, and more.

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See Also: Data Initiatives Expertise Group Info Page

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