Courtesy of Bowie State University
Former Dematha High and NFL Star Brian Westbrook Partners With Data Science Camp, Inc.
Why do some unknown college players get drafted and end up experiencing long careers in the professional sports leagues while other high profile college athletes never make it to the next level? Many times it comes down to the big “D” or data. Catching a long pass, making three point shots, or hitting home runs out of a ballpark is important, but not nearly as critical as the data collected on athletes by scouts and team owners which drives their decisions on who to sign to lucrative professional contracts.
On Friday, May 6, the Brian Westbrook Foundation and Data Science Camp Inc. will partner with the Bowie State University’s College of Business to host an in-person open house for high school athletes interested to attend a free two week virtual camp to better understand how data analytics factor into sports and all facets of daily life. The goal of the science, technology, engineering, athletics, and math (STEAM) camp is to immerse athletes and other students into two weeks of project-based and team-focused learning with the focus on data.
“Many high school students are striving to receive athletic college scholarships and need to understand the importance of data analytics,” said Brian Westbrook, a DeMatha High School and Villanova University star running back who went on to an illustrious nine year career in the NFL. “What’s important to football scouts is your vertical jump, how much you bench press, the time of your 40 yard dash, your hand span, and other data that is amassed and analyzed to identify the best players. The same is true with basketball, baseball, and other sports. It all boils down to numbers and statistics. Data is what drives our economy and many of the decisions we make daily,” he said.
Data Science Camp, Inc., in collaboration with The Brian Westbrook Foundation, will offer the virtual zoom STEAM camp at BSU from June 27 – July 8. All supplies and materials for the camp will be provided to the attendees at no cost. In addition, students will be working closely with the best and most up-to-date software tools to support their efforts in specific projects and at all stages of the camp.
“We want to help students discover how and why everything revolves around data,” said Joycie Hunter, President of Data Science Camp, Inc. “Bowie State has a rapidly expanding data analytics program. We plan on growing our STEAM camp and working with College of Business faculty members to teach students about new emerging data analytic trends and applications beyond sports,” said Hunter.
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