Become a Community Partner
Overview
The Kansas Data Science Consortium (KDSC) engages students from universities across Kansas in real-world data analysis. Community Data Labs connects students to community organizations, businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies to collaborate on the development of data science projects. This partnership brings real datasets into the classroom, so students at universities across Kansas can gain hands-on experience. In turn, partners are granted access to the data analysis, visualizations, and insights generated by the students at low or no cost.
Community Data Labs are held at universities across Kansas including:
- University of Kansas
- Kansas State University
- Wichita State University
- Baker University
- Butler Community College
- Donnelly College
- Johnson County Community College
We have some capacity beyond the classroom, and a limited number of projects may be assigned to our undergraduate research assistants. However, we cannot guarantee students will select these projects until the start of the next Spring semester. However, projects may be developed and datasets may be identified at any time and interested organizations are always welcome to reach out.
What is a data science project?
Because we take an interdisciplinary approach to data science we are able to work with data from various sectors. We are currently working on projects which include photos, text, survey results, sensor readings, trade routes, and much more. This information is adapted to answer questions from our community partners. These questions are as varied as the partners which ask them. If your organization is seeking analysis, exploration, or insight, you could be a community partner.
2025 Community Data Lab Projects
| Sponsor | Project |
|---|---|
| ARISE | Mapping Community Anchor Institutions in KS |
| Kansas City, MO | Building Energy Performance Dashboard |
| Ground Water Management Districts 1, 3 & 4 | Water Use in Western GMDs 1, 3 & 4 |
| KS Dept. of Commerce | Rural Cost of Living Index |
| KS Dept. of Agriculture | Impact of Conservation Programs |
| Lied Center | Marketing Data Analysis |
| City of Lincoln | Sustainability Plan |
| City of Lawrence | Housing Analysis |
| City of Manhattan | Housing Dashboard |
| Wyandotte County | Dashboard of survey data |
| Justice Matters | Youth Trauma in Douglas County |
Data Consulting
KDSC provides support for data science projects to students, faculty, staff, and community members. Examples of consultations may include: data searches and integration, dashboard development, geospatial analysis, regression analysis, data scraping, data pipeline management, data wrangling and visualization.