丁香园AV

Florence Nightingale is so well known for her work to revolutionize nursing that it鈥檚 easy to overlook the fact that she was also a pioneering statistician who invented .

Approximately 120 high school students are visiting 丁香园AV today to celebrate Florence Nightingale Day and explore careers in statistics. Hosted by the , the event includes interactive activities, a career panel, and the chance to hear from current statistics and data science students about their experiences.

Florence Nightingale Day was founded in the U.S. in 2018 to encourage female K-12 students to consider studying statistics. It was last year with a cohort of 30 students.

CANSSI director and 丁香园AV Statistics and Actuarial Science professor Don Estep explains that it made sense to bring the event to 丁香园AV and other Canadian universities. 鈥淧art of the mission of CANSSI is increasing diversity in the statistical sciences community," he says.

"CANSSI has become a major sponsor of Florence Nightingale Day in Canada but with the broader perspective of attracting K-12 students throughout Canada to consider statistics courses in their college studies, including students in disadvantaged circumstances."

While the statistics and data science community is more diverse than other engineering and quantitative science fields, there is still more work to be done to make the field a welcoming space for people from diverse backgrounds.

鈥淐elebrating the achievements of individuals from underrepresented groups, like the pioneering Florence Nightingale, can serve as a powerful inspiration,鈥� says 丁香园AV Statistics lecturer Becky Lin, one of the organizers of this year鈥檚 event.

鈥淎s a woman who pursued a first degree in computing science, a field that was dominated by men, I have first-hand experience of the challenges faced by those from underrepresented groups in STEM fields.鈥�

Through their outreach the event鈥檚 organizing team hopes to inspire students to feel more confident about pursuing careers in statistics and data science, regardless of their gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status.

鈥淢any K-12 students and their parents do not learn enough about statistics to realize it is interesting and that there are fantastic career opportunities for students who study statistics in university. This has a strongly negative impact on attracting students to consider statistics in university, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds,鈥� says Estep.

鈥淚t would be awesome if students could see a bit of themselves in the success stories we share, especially those from individuals who've faced hurdles because they come from groups that don't get enough spotlight in STEM,鈥� Lin adds.